Immersive Sci-Fi & Fantasy Films
Some films might have been "bigger", made more money, had bigger stars and higher acclaim by critics, but these are the ones that I found immersive and took me outside and beyond present day reality.
Also included are films that include ethnic/cultural or historic fantasy that may be factually supported by contemporary oral tradition, though may be considered legend or myth by others. In no particular order, of course, selected of those I've chosen to see thus far.
Also included are films that include ethnic/cultural or historic fantasy that may be factually supported by contemporary oral tradition, though may be considered legend or myth by others. In no particular order, of course, selected of those I've chosen to see thus far.
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- DirectorDanny BoyleStarsCillian MurphyRose ByrneChris EvansA team of international astronauts is sent on a dangerous mission to reignite the dying Sun with a nuclear fission bomb in 2057.Outstanding soundtrack and performances even if certain aspects of the story went somewhat strange towards the end.
- DirectorPaul W.S. AndersonStarsLaurence FishburneSam NeillKathleen QuinlanA rescue crew is tasked with investigating the mysterious reappearance of a spaceship that had been lost for seven years.Rarely get unnerved by a film, but this one came close but perhaps because I read the book first...which was far more descriptive.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsHarrison FordRutger HauerSean YoungA blade runner must pursue and terminate four replicants who stole a ship in space and have returned to Earth to find their creator."Accelerated decreptitude." A strong sense of inevitably. Fighting against the inevitable, fighting fiercely. Overwhelming reality.
- DirectorLana WachowskiLilly WachowskiStarsKeanu ReevesLaurence FishburneCarrie-Anne MossWhen a beautiful stranger leads computer hacker Neo to a forbidding underworld, he discovers the shocking truth--the life he knows is the elaborate deception of an evil cyber-intelligence.Future possibility, current reality hidden? Who knows. That's the story of the Matrix.
- DirectorPeter JacksonStarsElijah WoodIan McKellenOrlando BloomA meek Hobbit from the Shire and eight companions set out on a journey to destroy the powerful One Ring and save Middle-earth from the Dark Lord Sauron.For anyone who has read the books (and I was skeptical at first), these are lovingly realized films if not able to present all events in the books. This applies for the next two entries as well.
- DirectorPeter JacksonStarsElijah WoodIan McKellenViggo MortensenWhile Frodo and Sam edge closer to Mordor with the help of the shifty Gollum, the divided fellowship makes a stand against Sauron's new ally, Saruman, and his hordes of Isengard.Again, not able to present everything, but great overall especially key scenes were terrific.
- DirectorPeter JacksonStarsElijah WoodViggo MortensenIan McKellenGandalf and Aragorn lead the World of Men against Sauron's army to draw his gaze from Frodo and Sam as they approach Mount Doom with the One Ring.My favorite of the trilogy. The scene where Gandalf rides out of Minas Tirith brandishing his staff, the wedge of light driving the Nazgul back was requested to be read by me from my critically ill sister, when we were both younger. To see it created on screen brings tears to my eyes every single time..."
- DirectorNeil JordanStarsBrad PittTom CruiseAntonio BanderasA vampire tells his epic life story: love, betrayal, loneliness, and hunger.When I first heard was disappointed by the casting of Cruise and Pitt, but they were wonderful in the roles. Didn't care for the total represented and strange casting of Banderas as Armand, though I like Antonio well enough, it was just too far from the books. BUT, I found the film mezmerizing with Dunst's innocent/killer performance and again, an on-point soundtrack.
- DirectorGeorge LucasStarsMark HamillHarrison FordCarrie FisherLuke Skywalker joins forces with a Jedi Knight, a cocky pilot, a Wookiee and two droids to save the galaxy from the Empire's world-destroying battle station, while also attempting to rescue Princess Leia from the mysterious Darth Vader.I remember seeing the poster a few weeks before its premiere. Standing in a line wrapped three times around the small theater in my little city where I grew up. From the first dramatic note? I went on to see it more than 10o times in theater. I never tire of it.
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsChris EvansJamie BellTilda SwintonIn a future where a failed climate change experiment has killed all life except for the survivors who boarded the Snowpiercer (a train that travels around the globe), a new class system emerges.One of the best films I've ever experienced in the building of empathetic emotion, where only within minutes of the films beginning: you are wholely WITH the movement, the need, the necessity...The Determination. Superb twist at the end.
- DirectorChristian AlvartStarsDennis QuaidBen FosterCam GigandetTwo crew members of a spaceship wake up from hypersleep to discover that all their colleagues are missing. Despite this, it appears that they are not alone.Not the best script, cinematography, etc. and I didn't like the main character but it was the most engrossing "alien" on a vessel film since the iconic "Aliens" that I'd seen in a while. The supporting characters really made this film for me PLUS there was good effort to help you "imagine" yourself there.
- DirectorJohn BoormanStarsNigel TerryHelen MirrenNicholas ClayMerlin the magician helps Arthur Pendragon unite the Britons around the Round Table of Camelot, even as dark forces conspire to tear it apart.Wonderfully brash and common: a combination of making it true to period and incorporating interesting effects. It really did manage to inspire emotions that many writings of the legend presented: disappointment, a sense of betrayal and anger at the misplaced love, strivings after the ethereal, the loyalty to a king one knows to be flawed but is still loved anyway. Memorable soundtrack again.
- DirectorJames CameronStarsSigourney WeaverMichael BiehnCarrie HennDecades after surviving the Nostromo incident, Ellen Ripley is sent out to re-establish contact with a terraforming colony but finds herself battling the Alien Queen and her offspring.One of the best action sci-fi thrillers of all time, unforgettable main characters and supporting actors. Makes you ask the question, "Would you go back?"
- DirectorStanley KubrickStarsKeir DulleaGary LockwoodWilliam SylvesterAfter uncovering a mysterious artifact buried beneath the Lunar surface, a spacecraft is sent to Jupiter to find its origins: a spacecraft manned by two men and the supercomputer HAL 9000.No list of this type could truly be complete without this classic.
- DirectorEnki BilalStarsLinda HardyThomas KretschmannCharlotte RamplingIn the distant future, Earth is occupied by ancient gods and genetically altered humans. When a god is sentenced to death he seeks a new human host and a woman to bear his child.The poem grabbed me, "Une Charogne (A Carcass)" by Charles Baudelaire. Flawed but stunning.
- DirectorMathieu KassovitzStarsVin DieselMichelle YeohMélanie ThierryVeteran-turned-mercenary Toorop takes the high-risk job of escorting a woman from Russia to America. Little does he know that she is host to an organism that a cult wants to harvest in order to produce a genetically modified Messiah.I read book the first, "Babylon Babies" by Maurice Georges Dantec, an exceptional work of science fiction. I could enjoy the film for what it did reveal and only wished they would/could have been more expansive with the original story. Vin Diesel played the role, as presented in the book, very, very well.
- DirectorNeill BlomkampStarsSharlto CopleyDavid JamesJason CopeViolence ensues after an extraterrestrial race forced to live in slum-like conditions on Earth finds a kindred spirit in a government agent exposed to their biotechnology.Brilliant and horrifying, a transformation you almost painfully felt...but the end result? Still human.
- DirectorAlex ProyasStarsRufus SewellKiefer SutherlandJennifer ConnellyA man struggles with memories of his past, which include a wife he cannot remember and a nightmarish world no one else ever seems to wake up from.Surprising and solid sci-fi with shades of noir.
- DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsKurt RussellWilford BrimleyKeith DavidA research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims.Though special effects are dated, with the build of tension and acting levels, they still can be terrifying to this day. Add in simply the idea of a "thing" transforming which you have no control over, no knowledge of its agenda?
- DirectorDavid LynchStarsKyle MacLachlanVirginia MadsenFrancesca AnnisA Duke's son leads desert warriors against the galactic emperor and his father's evil nemesis to free their desert world from the emperor's rule.For lovers of the series, "Dune" was a both a dream come true and a bit of a disappointment, but because many aspects of the characters and story were realized so beautifully.... Everett McGill perfectly played Stilgar. Francesca Annis was the Lady Jessica... Brad Dourif, Patrick Stewart, Linda Hunt, and so on.
- DirectorDanny BoyleStarsCillian MurphyNaomie HarrisChristopher EcclestonFour weeks after a mysterious, incurable virus spreads throughout the UK, a handful of survivors try to find sanctuary.Well-acted, thought-provoking situation, terrifying in its possibilities that might erupt in our world. What would you do? Terrific soundtrack that boosted the film even higher in my mind.
- DirectorGabe IbáñezStarsAntonio BanderasBirgitte Hjort SørensenDylan McDermottHuman race is at edge of the end. Robot race is at edge of the beginning.The robot component was the immersive part of this film. Despite facial expressionlessness, the suggestion of emotion in movements, actions was captivating for me. It was the human component that was problematic: acting, plot, scene selection, etc.
- StarsJu Ji-hoonBae DoonaKim SungkyuWhile strange rumors about their ill King grip a kingdom, the crown prince becomes their only hope against a mysterious plague overtaking the land.A South Korean horror series in a historical beautiful setting, which gives a much needed alternative origin for human flesh eating monsters.
- DirectorYong-hwa KimStarsHa Jung-wooJu Ji-hoonKim Hyang-giIn the afterlife, one guardian helps a man through his trials, while his two colleagues help a former guardian on earth.The story of two brothers seeking reincarnation with the help of guardian spirits, for their must traverse 7 different hells.
- CreatorJohn GriffinStarsHarold PerrineauCatalina Sandino MorenoEion BaileyUnravel the mystery of a city in middle U.S.A. that imprisons everyone who enters. As the residents struggle to maintain a sense of normality and seek a way out, they must also survive the threats of the surrounding forest.Horror has a whole new origin and meaning in a small-town where no one is allowed to leave, and you must need open a door or window after dark.