The ’70s down to the ’90s presented three fantastic decades of amazing sci-fi movies. These decades have now become a potent point of reference in the genesis, growth, and firm establishment of the science fiction genre that presents infinite creativity. Whether it is about aliens, time travel, astronauts, and the likes, these decades brilliantly execute it.
The ‘70s served as a major introductory basis that grew into what fueled the sci-fi genre. It no doubt, gave resources to imaginative, visionary, and provocative filmmakers. As a result, interesting film projects in this decade gave root to the science fiction genre. The ’80s ushered in the period where the modern sensibilities and the progressive ideas of the previous decades flourished. It brilliantly gifted the sci-fi genre extensive breakthrough to the entertainment business. It followed down a brilliant adventure of imagined futures, artificial intelligence, possible pasts, virtual realities, piercing satires, and many more. Finally, the ’90s came in grand style with a brilliantly eclectic mix of high-concept action, classic horror, dystopian-made societies, self-reflexive parodies, and a couple of sequels. What’s more, the introduction of CG-character tech revolutionized and birthed some of the world-renowned movies.
All these decades gave the genre its distinct but massive input, and this list provides you with:
The top 10 sci-fi movies that graced the ’70s down to the ’90s!
10. Back to the Future (1985)
“Wait A Minute, Doc. Are You Telling Me You Built A Time Machine…Out Of A DeLorean?”
Michael J. Fox as Marty in Back to the Future
Number 10 on the list is perhaps the most popular time travel movie ever to be made. Plus, have you ever come across a movie that perfectly merges comedy and science fiction? Back to the Future does it brilliantly. This 1980s sci-fi classic deals with several standard time travel themes, including changing something in the past to negate the future. There is also the bootstrap paradox and the possibility of becoming one’s own father – which is gross and funny, by the way!
An experiment by a rather eccentric scientist, Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd), goes wrong in the story. His teen friend, Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox), accidentally finds himself hurled back to the ’50s since he had traveled through time in a modified DeLorean car. Here, Marty gets to see young versions of (Crispin Glover, Lea Thompson), who are his lovely parents. He must make sure they fall in love, or he stands the risk of not existing anymore. As the plot thickens, Marty has got to return to his timeline and save his scientist friend, Doc Brown.
9. Total Recall (1990)
“What If This Is A Dream?”
Arnold Schwarzenegger as Douglas Quaid in Total Recall
This 9th place film was one fitting and apt sci-fi movie to kick off the ’90s decade. It made its way to become one of the best sci-fi movies by the end of the decade. Paul Verhoeven’s Total Recall gave us a brilliant adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s story. The turnout is terrific, weird, goofy, and of course, excellent! This movie was produced just before CG effects came on and dominated sci-fi movies. Despite that, the makeup and physical effects employed in the movie are both meretricious and awe-inspiring. What particularly makes this movie a great watch is its nuttiness and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s brilliant portrayal of the character Douglas Quaid. This movie no doubt holds up to match subsequent movies of that decade!
Total Recall tells the tale of Douglas Quaid (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a pretty bored construction worker who hopes to visit the colonized Mars. He visits a company, ‘Rekall,’ popular for planting false memories in people’s brains to experience the thrill of the colonized Mars, without even having to go there. As the story proceeds, Quaid realizes that his entire life has been nothing but a fake memory. He also discovers that those who implanted the false memory in his head now want him dead. A fantastic story!
8. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
“Hasta La Vista, Baby”
Arnold Schwarzenegger as The Terminator in Terminator 2: Judgement Day
James Cameron’s Terminator 2: Judgment Day accentuates the fact that he is one of the masters of making sequels. This 8th placed movie arrived not only to thrill fans of the original film but also to smash box office records. This sequel came out apocalyptic, bigger, bolder, better, and accordingly grandiose. It was even more refreshing to see that Arnold Schwarzenegger switched allegiances and became one of the good guys. This thrilling action-adventure deserves all the plaudits thrown at it. It is another successful movie that further depicts the story of humanity versus technological machines.
This sequel is set 11 years after the original, young John Connor (Edward Furlong) is now the target of T-1000 (Robert Patrick), a shape-shifting killing machine. Fortunately, the resistance sent a protector once more: another Terminator, T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger), who was initially the killer, now revamped. The boy grows to form an unexpected bond with the robot as they run from the boy’s killer.
7. Stalker (1979)
“Softness is great, and strength is worthless. When a man is born, he is soft and pliable. When he dies, he is strong and hard. When a tree grows, it is soft and pliable. But when it is dry and hard, it dies. Hardness and strength are death’s companions. Flexibility and softness are the embodiment of life. That which has become hard shall not triumph.”
Aleksandr Kaydanovskiy as Stalker in Stalker
Tarkovsky’s Stalker, being the 7th placed sci-fi movie on this list, remains a quintessential movie-poetry example. It is way easier to experience than explain in every sense. It’s a brilliant sci-fi that is more about ideas than action, and for this reason, it is deliberately paced. If you are the kind that is a fan of the ‘metaphysical,’ spirituality, as well as questions on faith, then you would love this movie! The scenery in this movie feels surreal and deep! And watching this movie every new time comes with a deeper understanding, and sometimes, something anew. This makes this sci-fi a pretty enigmatic movie. So, this film is one of the bests science fiction of the ’70s decade, no doubt.
Stalker tells the story of a country (unnamed) during an unspecified time. In it is ‘The Zone,’ a post-apocalyptic wasteland that is heavily protected. Aleksandr Kajdanovsky playing the role of an illegal guide – the Stalker, takes people through The Zone. He has a mutant child that tells of unspeakable horrors within The Zone. In no time, there ensues a search for a mythical place, called ‘The Room.’ It turns out that anyone who enters this sacred place will somehow have their earthly desires fulfilled immediately.
6. Blade Runner (1982)
“Wake up. Time to die.”
Brion James as Leon in Blade Runner
Don’t be surprised that Blade Runner sits on this list as number 6. That’s because this sci-fi movie is not only amongst the best of the ’80s decade but also one of the best sci-fi movies ever. Hence, it must make the list when you compare these three decades, no matter how you look at it! Here, Scott created a futuristic world that has many distinct variations and several fascinating details. This world happens to be beautiful, dark, and fascinating. The fact that many works have been done after the initial release shows how potent the film is. It’s one film that can be looked at from diverse perspectives. Blade Runner brilliantly explores what it means to remain human in the age where technology exists as air. It simply a heartbreaking classic!
This brilliant sci-fi movie has a pretty simple yet fascinating story. The movie is set where replicants who are humanoids (androids that look like a human), are treated as slaves. In the long run, some humanoids go AWOL, and a cop (Harrison Ford) is given the task of hunting down this group of replicants who have eloped from their range of control.
5. ALIENS (1986)
“We’re On An Express Elevator To Hell, Goin’ Down!”
Bill Paxton as Private Hudson in ALIENS
It was not an easy task for James Cameron to come up with the fantastic ALIENS, being a sequel of the brilliant Ridley Scott’s ALIEN. Here, James Cameron cleverly didn’t try to reproduce the intense horror of the initial film. Rather, he fills it with full-blown action in a way that is accentuated with tension! While many would argue on which is better, we’ve done you a favor by placing them just after the other with this coming as number 5! Thus, ALIENS is that perfect example of how to make a sequel. It excellently takes the premise of terrifying extraterrestrial life and makes it a perfect action flick that’s undoubtedly thoughtful and high-flown!
In this mind-blowing sequel from James Cameron, Aliens feature Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), who gets to join a group of marines on a mission to investigate further the alien planet from ALIEN (1979) – the first film. However, by the time they arrive, it is now a colony. The plot thickens as there is more than one alien to worry about. With all the glory that comes with being the lead, Ripley steps in as some new energetic characters join her in this quest.
4. ALIEN (1979)
“This is Ripley, last survivor of the Nostromo, signing off.”
Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley in ALIEN
Being the third runner-up on this list, this sci-fi horror is not only one of the best sci-fi horror movies to come out of the ’70s, but is one of the best movies ever to grace the decade! It has practically stood the test of time as the movie is still celebrated today. It is one hell of an office drama in space and a submarine thriller set ablaze among the stars! This movie brilliantly creates unbearable tension, merged with scientific excellence. It’s that sci-fi horror that gives you nightmares while awake, confinement where no one can hear you scream. Ridley Scott’s Alien is no doubt one of the best science fiction ever made.
This movie, which firmly introduced Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) as one of the greatest sci-fi heroes of all time, tells a pretty interesting story. Here, a small crew of a spacecraft answers a distress call on a strange planet. Unfortunately for them, while on their quest, they are haunted by an alien creature that is ever-evolving!
3. Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
“…For my ally is the Force, and a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us and binds us. Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter. You must feel the Force around you; here, between you, me, the tree, the rock, everywhere, yes. Even between the land and the ship.”
Frank Oz as Yoda in Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back
Number 3 on this list is no other but Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back! After George Lucas changed sci-fi cinema forever with Star Wars, he went further to explore this galaxy even further! Thus, coming up with the brilliant sequel, The Empire Strikes Back. This sci-fi movie is opined by many to be the greatest Star Wars franchise. This movie is living proof that the pop culture hype that enshrouded the first film was, in fact, no accident. This movie is vastly witty, possessing outstanding twists in the history of film.
Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back tells a story that evolves in very clever and unexpected ways. The characters, vastly loved in the first film, continue in their quest to protect the galaxy. However, things get tricky with twists and turn. They embark on a difficult adventure to stop Darth Vader and the Empire from their never-ending resolve to take over the galaxy.
2. The Matrix (1999)
“I know you’re out there. I can feel you now. I know that you’re afraid… you’re afraid of us. You’re afraid of change. I don’t know the future. I didn’t come here to tell you how this is going to end. I came here to tell you how it’s going to begin. I’m going to hang up this phone, and then I’m going to show these people what you don’t want them to see. I’m going to show them a world without you. A world without rules and controls, without borders or boundaries. A world where anything is possible. Where we go from, there is a choice I leave to you.”
Keanu Reeves as Neo in The Matrix
The number 2 sci-fi movie on this list unarguably remains one of the most outstanding films of all time. This sci-fi movie is deeply philosophical and action-versed. It fundamentally questions the perception of reality and machines that can portray countless interpretations. The thematic density employed in this movie is so rich, coupled with the brilliantly iconic visuals. It undoubtedly pushed technology and camerawork way beyond their limits as of then and has been able to stand the test of time. This cinematic masterpiece is garnished with brilliant action, genuine humor, and a pretty imaginative world. The characters are inherently mastering of their art, being engaging, plausible, and larger than life.
In the movie, Neo (Keanu Reeves) seeks answers to his question – what is the Matrix? As the movie progresses, he realizes that the life he knows is nothing but a compound deception of an evil cyber-intelligence. What ensues is a brutal battle for their love, as it seems this truth could cost Neo something that seems to be more valuable than his life.
1. Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977)
“The force will be with you, always.”
Sir Alec Guinness as Obi Wan Kenobi in Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope
At the top of this list that features amazing sci-fi movies that span three decades is Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope!While many fans view The Empire Strikes Back to be the Star Wars franchise’s pinnacle, no one can deny how vastly important the original movie is. It is one movie that is highly significant not just as it concerns the sci-fi genre, but also as it concerns Hollywood as a whole! This movie launched the biggest property as far as the history of pop culture is concerned. It also changed the perception of how to make and view science fiction. Many tried to do their own Star Wars but never matched the brilliance of the original. George Lucas, no doubt created a classic story embellished with fantastic design and weaponry that the history of science fiction would acknowledge till tomorrow.
Humor, pathos, excitement, spectacle, and of course, the greatest bad guy of all time fill this movie. Here, Lucas joins forces with a Jedi knight, a pilot who is very cocky, two droids, and a Wookie to save the entire galaxy from the Empire and Darth Vader. He does this while trying to save Princess Leia from the vicious villain.
FINAL THOUGHTS
There you have it, the top 10 sci-fi movies from the ‘70s down to the ‘90s! All science fiction movies on this list have one way or the other broken conventions, given thrills, predicted futuristic events, and most importantly, entertained us! As cosmic as the sci-fi genre can be, many of these films listed above focused on its peculiar strength. They all beautifully came with an innovative and conceptually robust blast of a visualized world with endless possibilities. The ’70s down to the ’90s, as far as the sci-fi genre is concerned, can never be forgotten in history!
Author: Chris Ingledue
Contact: email
Bio: I am the founder and owner of Wheeljack’s Lab pop Culture and Toy Shop. My vision has always been to reunite customers with their favorite childhood toys and pop culture, triggering fond memories, and reigniting their imaginations. Every day, I work in the “lab” where it’s Christmas 365 days a year. I scour the internet, like when we had the Sears Catalog of yesteryear, for the next great treasure. Then, I await the arrival of the postman as if he were Santa Claus himself and helping collectors worldwide with their own versions of Christmas. Every day as a vintage toy buyer is an absolute joy!