The 50 Best Sci-Fi Films Of The 21st Century (So Far)

With summer blockbuster season in full-swing, and all its explosions and aliens and smashy smashiness, The Playlist decided to take a look at real science fiction films. Those movies that explore the relationships between the organic and technology, opportunities to explore what our moral standards actually are, and what really happens when we encounter the unknown.

I’ve never been a huge genre fiction person, and for a while, I think I inadvertently dismissed sci-fi for fantasy. It’s not, and I know that now, so it’s been fun to catch up with some of the better pieces that have stood the test of time. Here’s my take: I appreciate world building, but just showing me a creature and saying he’s good and then another one and saying he’s bad and then having them fight and the good guy is never gonna be enough for me, narratively. (Sorry, Tolkien) So, I think sci-fi that is able to create a new and interesting set of circumstances and then figure out how to deal with the human experience or our sense of justice inside of those is actually a super cool opportunity for “last refuge of the morality tale”

Anyway, I’m personally going to dig into this list, and am busting out my library card as we speak. Of those I’ve seen, I’m highly recommending “Moon,” “Another Earth,” “Solaris,” and “Upstream Color” as a great place to start.

The 50 Best Sci-Fi Films Of The 21st Century So Far [ThePlaylist.net]