Since its conception as a genre, science fiction has allowed every kind of audience to see the stuff that dreams are made of, which is only possible if imagination is let loose in a space of absolute creative freedom. When sci-fi books were brought to the big screen, we saw the materialized ideas of authors who dared to glimpse the future. In some cases, it's a positive outlook. But in other cases, the future is very grim indeed.
In any case, the relationship between sci-fi books and movies has always been close: some of the best sci-fi films ever made were inspired by the open-minded attitude of some writers with enough vision to imagine and spew those worlds into pages. However, the following sci-fi films have felt somewhat secondary in the genre. This needs to be fixed.
These are the most underrated sci-fi movies based on established literary works.
10 Solaris (2002)
Based on Solaris by Stanislaw Lem
Solaris
- Release Date
- November 27, 2002
In Steven Soderbergh's Solaris, psychologist Dr. Chris Kelvin is recruited to lead a dangerous mission: a space station orbiting the planet Solaris has seen its crew go rogue. No one wants to return, and the corporation in charge of the station has received a message from one of the scientists on board.
Dr. Gibarian, a personal friend of Kelvin, is asking the company to send the psychologist by himself, and he will get some answers. Kelvin complies, and when he arrives, he will have more questions than answers when he finds his deceased wife alive in the station.
Films based on Lem's novel had already been made in 1968 and 1972. 1972's was made by Andrei Tarkovsky, and it's a sci-fi staple. When Soderbergh went the remake route and decided to make a new American version based on the novel, the result was a box office flop that only a few people connected with.
The film was set to be directed by James Cameron during the 1990s, but he was between blockbusters at the time. The production ended up going to Soderbergh's more sober style. Regardless, it's very well-written, the performances are great, and the director was able to embody the mysterious feeling of doom that the novel has and that the other adaptations didn't exactly awaken.
9 The Road (2009)
Based on The Road by Cormac McCarthy
The Road follows a man and a boy who are surviving in a desert country after an apocalypse has wiped out most people and all other living organisms. The couple tries their best to survive by scavenging the remains of civilization, but they're also cautious of other survivors who have taken more extreme measures to continue. Throughout their journey, the man will do whatever's necessary to protect the child against the monsters roaming the planet.
The film is an often underseen apocalyptic movie because, to be fair, it's not as thrilling and entertaining as others of its genre. Instead, it goes for a grim depiction of a possible world where nihilism is the rule, and humankind has gone back evolution-wise for the sake of survival against others. Nevertheless, the relationship between the man and the son is beautiful, perfectly portrayed by Viggo Mortensen and Kodi Smit-McPhee, respectively. You can stream The Road on Tubi.
14 Underrated Sci-Fi Movie Remakes That Deserve a Second Look
These sci-fi remakes carry the essence of the source material while expanding on the themes present with new methods.
8 Ender's Game (2013)
Based on Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Ender's Game
- Release Date
- October 24, 2013
- Main Genre
- Sci-Fi
Ender's Game tells the story Ender Wiggin, a small boy who gets recruited by a military corporation to defend humankind. An alien race known as the Formics is apparently preparing to exterminate us, and the International Fleet has been training small children to become the pioneers in the attack on the Formics planet. Ender is a virtuoso in the art of military strategy, and he gets picked out as one of the best during training, but soon, the boy discovers not everything is as it seems.
Written and directed by Gavin Hood, the film has been in production since the 1980s, when Card's original bestseller was published. The problem was that no creative direction was good enough for the author. However, in the 2010s, an agreement was reached. The result was a box office flop that critics didn't exactly love.
In retrospect, Ender's Game is actually a pretty entertaining film that solidly depicts its conflict from a teenage perspective without making it a young adult-exclusive film. It stars Harrison Ford in a secondary but interesting role, and best of all, it's actually a good adaptation of the book that could have used a follow-up.
7 The Prestige (2006)
Based on The Prestige by Christopher Priest
A very underrated film by Christopher Nolan, The Prestige, follows the stories of two magician's assistants in the late 1800s as they try to figure out the best tricks and how they can come up with better versions of it. When tragedy strikes, their relationship is broken, and this sends them down a spiral of hostility between each other.
Eventually, when one of them does the inexplicable in terms of magic, the other one decides to resort to an unorthodox and dangerous technique to beat him, involving the mysterious man known as Nikola Tesla.
The book, which won literary awards in 1996, resembles what the Nolans adapted to the big screen. And as effective as the film is, it's still seen as a lesser film in Nolan's catalog because it doesn't display his gigantic theatrics and complicated storylines. This is a story about perfect rivalry and the lengths a man would go to prove his superiority to the other and the entire world. The Prestige is one of Nolan's best films.
6 The Girl With All the Gifts (2016)
Based on The Girl With All the Gifts by Mike Carey
The Girl With All the Gifts
- Release Date
- January 26, 2017
- Director
- Colm McCarthy
- Main Genre
- Horror
The Girl With All the Gifts follows society after an apocalypse. Of course, zombies have taken over the world, but in this version of the end of the world, things are looking up. It depends on the research by scientists who are experimenting on young children. Among them is Melanie, a small child with the "ability" to control the hunger to eat human flesh. Melanie and some scientists flee when the station is attacked, but survival won't be easy with her by their side.
Based on the book by Mike Carey who also wrote it, The Girl with All the Gifts came and went without making much noise at the box office, but critics loved it back then (85% on Rotten Tomatoes), and it's maintained a cult status since its release. Featuring a solid cast, it's one of the most appealing dystopian horror sci-fi films on this list. You can stream The Girl with All the Gifts on Tubi.
5 Never Let Me Go (2010)
Based on Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
In Never Let Me Go, three children named Ruth, Kathy, and Tommy have always lived in a boarding school system. When they were small, a teacher told them their fate was to be organ donors, but this didn't change their life direction. Still living as young adults in the same system, the trio realize they're actually clones whose organs are being harvested until needed and then, their bodies will be discarded.
Mark Romanek's direction of Alex Garland's script is exceptional by the genre's standards. Though it's clearly a sci-fi-based setting, it remains a character-driven journey from beginning to end, and this may be why the film was such a disappointment at the box office, albeit its impressive cast. Its balance of realistic drama and fiction is essential to making it a noteworthy and distinct movie that still feels relevant.
4 Bicentennial Man (1999)
Based on The Positronic Man by Isaac Asimov
Chris Columbus' Bicentennial Man takes audiences to the "near future in 2005," where androids have been built and commercialized to basically do chores in the household. The Martins buy one unit called Andrew, and soon, Andrew begins showing signs of extreme intelligence and ability.
Eventually, he becomes sentient and very sensitive and begins a journey to be as human as possible. The problem is that all the humans he cares for eventually pass away, and Andrew is left alone to devise a plan to be as human as the ones he loves.
The film was a box office flop starring Robin Williams who was in a period of transitioning to more serious roles. His performance is outstanding and probably one of the best of his career, but audiences still felt disconnected from the script's direction and the questions of ethics it raises.
In retrospect, it's a melancholic film that often steps in Hallmark territory, but that's exactly how a movie of this nature should be. Considering our current relationship with technology, it's more relevant than ever. You can rent Bicentennial Man on iTunes.
3 Cloud Atlas (2012)
Based on Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
Cloud Atlas tells the stories of several characters during different periods. They span from the 1800s to 2321, but each era connects with the next through the effects of the acts of different characters struggling through various situations and counterparts. The very ambitious film is a sci-fi epic unlike any other, and it features the same performers playing different characters whose arcs have a direct influence on their "future versions."
Directed by the Wachowskis alongside Tom Tykwer, Cloud Atlas is the best film you never saw. Perhaps you were influenced by the divisive nature of its reception, as many claimed it was a masterpiece, but others said it was a piece of trash that had the potential to bring down an entire studio with it.
In reality, it was financed by many independent entities, making the most important independent film project of the 2010s. It was still a box office flop that, to this day, still divides critics. It deserves a rewatch, if only for the ensemble cast: Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Hugh Grant, Jim Broadbent, Susan Sarandon, and Keith David among others.
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The 15 Best Hard Sci-Fi Movies That Define the Genre
There are no limits when it comes to hard sci-fi. The following movies are proof of the essence of the genre, which allows us to see the inexplicable.
2 Body Snatchers (1993)
Based on The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney
Body Snatchers follows the Malones as they're posted to live in a military facility in Alabama. The teenage daughter Marti is estranged from her new family (she lives with her stepmother and her half-brother), so she takes on a rebellious tone early on. Very quickly, Marti begins to feel something's off in this place. For some reason, people change their behavior, and she finds out that an alien invasion is underway. Will she be able to convince her family on time?
The film directed by Abel Ferrara in one of his only big studio films, Body Snatchers, wasn't a huge player at the box office. However, it did very well with some critics who appreciated the change made to the original storyline from the novel, which had been adapted in the previous versions of 1956 and 1978.
The special effects were great, and Gabrielle Anwar's performance was one of the best of her career. Nevertheless, the best thing about it is the adaptation of the "body snatcher" theme in a military setting as it calls for more thrills and less repetitive paranoia. You can rent Body Snatchers on iTunes.
1 Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994)
Based on Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is an ambitious sci-fi horror film that tells the story of a madman who promises to play against God's rules and devises a method to remedy death. After losing his mother, Victor Frankenstein thinks of a way to reawaken a monster stitched up and made up of pieces of other cadavers. But the problem is Frankenstein's creation doesn't exactly follow the rules of its creator, and soon Victor regrets his decision.
Kenneth Branagh's adaptation of the literary classic is undoubtedly the most faithful version of Shelley's horror novel. The monster, wonderfully portrayed by Robert De Niro, is one of many original shifts from the previous adaptations of Frankenstein.
Unfortunately, some critics felt it was too inconsistent in its storytelling (the film suffered major rewrites) and forgot about it quickly. Regardless, it's worth the rewatch as it reflects a major studio's bet to make it big with a high-concept horror film starring Hollywood stars. You can stream Mary Shelley's Frankenstein on MGM+.
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