The 10 best science-fiction movies of the 1990s
Cinema has been transporting filmgoers to the farthest reaches of outer space and bringing intergalactic life to Earth for more than a century. During that time, some cornerstone entries into the sci-fi genre produced exhilarating and propulsive tales and profound reflective explorations on the condition of humanity.
Each decade of cinema has had its fair share of voyaging into the genre. The 1960s saw the arrival of Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece, 2001: A Space Odyssey, a mesmerising vision that began with mankind’s hominid beginnings and then charted to outer space to explore a perplexing artificial object hidden beneath the lunar surface, guided by the intelligent computer HAL 9000.
The 1970s offered Andrei Tarkovsky’s brilliant meditative human drama about a team aboard a space station orbiting the oceanic planet Solaris, descending into madness plagued by inexplicable circumstances and the psychologist sent to uncover the mystery behind the crew and their disturbances.
By the end of the decade, Ridley Scott merged horror with space in Alien, which birthed the famous tagline “In space, no one can hear you scream”. Three years later, in 1982, Steven Spielberg released his sci-fi family drama onto the world, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Like Alien, Spielberg’s story had humans come face to face with a species from a different planet, except this time, mankind was the enemy.
And then came the ’90s, regarded as the golden era for indie cinema, but the decade also produced some great additions to the sci-fi genre. For example, Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones took to the streets of New York as a pair of well-dressed, sunglass-wearing secret agents taking down alien life forms on Earth in the sci-fi comedy Men In Black. Smith also returned to fight an alien invasion in Independence Day alongside Jeff Goldblum and a crew of ragtag survivors taking on a far superior alien intelligence intent on destroying cities across the globe.
Considering this, here’s a compilation of the top ten sci-fi movies from the 1990s. Some joined the ranks of true classics, amassing a dedicated following, while others may have polarised audiences, collectively showcasing that the genre continued to deliver.
10 best sci-fi movies of the 1990s:
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (James Cameron, 1991)
After the blistering success of the ’80s classic Terminator, James Cameron returned with the sequel to the time-travelling cyborg saga. However, this time, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator was here to save humanity, not destroy it. Terminator 2: Judgment Day stands as a landmark in cinematic history, a sci-fi magnum opus that elevated the genre to new heights. Released in 1991, the film is a seamless blend of groundbreaking visual effects, heart-pounding action, and a gripping narrative that resonated with audiences worldwide.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day reveals T-1000, a new robot designed by Skynet to annihilate humanity. It targets Sarah’s ten-year-old son, John, and so the Terminator assumes the responsibility of battling T-1000 to protect John and safeguard the future of the human race.
The film’s impact on popular culture was immense, solidifying Schwarzenegger’s status as an action-hero icon and leaving an indelible mark on the cinematic landscape. Its legacy continues to endure, influencing subsequent films in the genre and earning its place among the pantheon of sci-fi classics.
Jurassic Park (Steven Spielberg, 1993)
Steven Spielberg brought the prehistoric era back into the 21st century with this blockbuster adventure, spawning a series of tiresome and unimaginative sequels that are still being churned out to this day. Nevertheless, the original was a fantastic film and one of Spielberg’s greatest movies. The film unfolds as John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) prepares to unveil a wildlife amusement park featuring cloned dinosaurs. However, the situation takes a terrifying turn when a power outage disrupts the park, leading the dangerous animals to escape from their enclosures and wreak havoc on the visitors.
Spielberg, drawing inspiration from his iconic shark thriller, Jaws, strategically employs suspense by revealing the man-eating dinosaurs only in brief glimpses until the film’s climactic finale, totalling only 20% of the screen time. In contrast, the later entries in the Jurassic Park series showcase dinosaurs for up to 80% of the running time, highlighting that CGI spectacle alone does not make a good movie.
The Matrix (Lana Wachowski, Lilly Wachowski, 1999)
Created by Lana Wachowski and Lilly Wachowski, the cyber-adventure follows Neo (Keanu Reeves), a skilled hacker who becomes the chosen one tasked with saving the world. As he delves deeper into the mystery, he discovers that his consciousness is entangled in a Matrix—a system that renders human bodies obsolete while ensnaring their minds in a simulated reality.
A stylish and kung-fu-heavy fusion of comic books, computer games, and Japanese animation, The Matrix took the world by storm, becoming a cultural phenomenon and influencing fashion and sci-fi for decades to come. What sets The Matrix apart is its visionary blend of groundbreaking visual effects, martial arts choreography, and a narrative steeped in philosophical and existential themes. The film’s iconic “bullet time” effect, where time appears to slow down during action sequences, became a cultural phenomenon and influenced countless films and commercials thereafter.
The Fifth Element (Luc Besson, 1997)
Luc Besson’s extravagant and sci-fi escapade completely polarised critics and audiences alike. Was this a creation of a filmmaker whose brilliance remains largely unrecognised, or just a frivolous space romp with over-the-top costumes designed by John Galliano?
Regardless of your feelings toward The Fifth Element, it was a success at the box office and has since gained a cult following. It is the story of a 23rd-century taxi cab driver (Bruce Willis) who becomes embroiled in a battle against an apocalyptic evil force. His new mission is to secure the Fifth Element, the only weapon capable of halting the impending doom. Interestingly, Gary Oldman has since gone on record as being perplexed by the admiration fans across the world have for the film, admitting he only did the film as a favour for Besson, to whom he owed a favour.
The Iron Giant (Brad Bird, 1999)
Brad Bird’s brilliant sci-fi animated action adventure, which holds a very similar plot to E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, tells the story of a young boy who forms a friendship with a benign alien that takes on the appearance of a massive robot. A sceptical government agent is determined to eliminate the extraterrestrial entity.
Starring voices from Vin Diesel, Jennifer Aniston, and Christopher McDonald, the film is an adaptation of Ted Hughes’s 1968 children’s story The Iron Man, with Bird transporting the story from small-town England to rural America. It’s a heartwarming, simple but charming story and predates Bird’s later brilliant family animation gem, The Incredibles.
At its core, The Iron Giant is a touching exploration of innocence, sacrifice, and the power of selflessness. The giant’s journey to choose his destiny, transcending his programmed nature, embodies the film’s overarching themes of redemption and the capacity for growth.
Tremors (Ron Underwood, 1990)
Tired of their mundane lives in the small desert town of Perfection, Nevada, repairmen Val McKee (Kevin Bacon) and Earl Bassett (Fred Ward) decide to make a break for it. However, their plans take an unexpected turn when they stumble upon a string of mysterious deaths and encounter a worried seismologist (Finn Carter) investigating unusual readings beneath the ground. Teaming up with an eccentric couple (Reba McEntire, Michael Gross), the group must now battle for survival against colossal, worm-like monsters with an insatiable appetite for human flesh.
Tremors, directed by Ron Underwood, is a joyous throwback to the creature features that ran riot during the 1950s, such as The Creature of The Black Lagoon, The Blob, and Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Revisiting it today, the puppetry and effects might be a sight for sore eyes, but the unselfconscious affection Underwood and the cast pay to the story has allowed the film to stand the test of time.
Starship Troopers (Paul Verhoeven, 1997)
Paul Verhoeven’s brilliant outer space war movie is B-movie cinema at its finest. Boasting an incredibly simple premise of mankind travelling to outer space to battle giant bugs that have waged war on life on Earth, it has since gained a cult following similar to Verhoeven’s other sci-fi classics, Robocop and Total Recall.
However, at the time, the film received terrible reviews and did badly at the box office. After the disappointing financial success of Verhoeven’s follow-up flick, Hollow Man, the director returned to Europe with his status as a blockbuster filmmaker in tatters. Since then, public opinion of Starship Troopers has developed, with some even citing its brilliant sly takedown on fascism.
Ghost in the Shell (Mamoru Oshii, 1995)
In this Japanese animated film, cyborg federal agent Maj. Motoko Kusanagi (voiced by Mimi Woods) tracks down “The Puppet Master” (voiced by Abe Lasser), a figure who illicitly infiltrates the computerised minds of cyborg-human hybrids. As she pursues this individual capable of altering the identities of others, Motoko begins to contemplate her own existence and wonders about the potential life she might lead with more human attributes. Alongside her partner, she corners the elusive hacker, but her introspection about identity takes the case in an unexpected and intriguing direction.
Directed by Mamoru Oshii, featuring extreme violence and a study of our dark connection to the webbed and even kinky tech porn, the film is regarded as one of the greatest anime movies ever made. Revisiting it almost 30 years on and with AI creeping into our day-to-day life more than ever, Ghost In A Shell seems just as vital and groundbreaking as ever.
Men in Black (Barry Sonnenfeld, 1997)
Barry Sonnenfeld’s sci-fi comedy adventure, looking something like The French Connection meets Ghostbusters, follows James (Will Smith), a New York City cop recruited by Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) from a covert government agency responsible for overseeing extraterrestrial activities on Earth. Their mission is to retrieve a stolen item taken by an intergalactic villain. Together, they navigate the challenges of dealing with otherworldly threats and ensuring the safety of the planet.
Men in Black achieved global success, grossing $589.4m at the box office. The film’s popularity extended beyond the screen, leading to merchandise, action figures, a theme park ride, and various serials and spin-offs. Even today, it remains an entertaining and amusing family movie with a humorous central premise—anyone could be an alien in disguise, masquerading as a human.
Total Recall (Paul Verhoeven, 1990)
Adapted from Philip K. Dick’s novella We Can Remember It for You Wholesale, first published in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction in April 1966, Total Recall follows Douglas Quaid as he endeavours to unravel the mystery behind his recurring dream of Mars. As he delves deeper, he discovers that a false memory has been implanted in his brain, and those responsible for this deception are now seeking to end his life.
Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger in the lead and directed by the provocateur filmmaker Paul Verhoeven, the story keeps the core of Philip K. Dick’s story about memory and colonisation intact while seasoning it with some true Schwarzenegger-style action set pieces, pushing the film into the realm of sci-fi action adventure.
