Sci-Fi Movies We Love But Never Need To Rewatch

A.I. Artificial Intelligence has to be one of the most unusual films of the 2000s, sci-fi or otherwise. The project was developed by Stanley Kubrick. After he died, Steven Spielberg took over, and the film was released in 2001. The plot is a science-fiction riff on Pinocchio, focusing on David (Haley Joel Osment), a robotic boy who goes on an epic journey hoping to become real and find parental love.

Without a doubt, A.I. is compelling in its themes and dazzling in its visuals. And because it's the byproduct of an unintended Kubrick/Spielberg collaboration, the movie has a tone and feel that's unique. That said, Kubrick's tendency to go dark clashes with Spielberg's trademark sense of wonder and awe, turning the story into something that's occasionally creepy and ultimately sort of a bummer, despite the cheerful sheen on the surface.

Ad Astra revolves around Roy McBride (Brad Pitt), an astronaut sent on a mission to Mars. Once there, he is supposed to send a transmission to his father Clifford (Tommy Lee Jones), a fellow astronaut who went missing 15 years ago while attempting to search for intelligent life in the cosmos. It comes as a surprise when Roy learns Clifford is still alive. 

Many viewers were dismayed when they saw Ad Astra. There's exactly one traditional action scene in the movie - a thrilling race across the surface of the moon in lunar vehicles. Beyond that, it's really a father/son story dealing with the complex emotions between Roy and Clifford. Director James Gray is also mediating on the subject of loss. Roy never properly grieved for his father the first time, and there's a possibility of facing the loss a second time. If you're in the market for a sci-fi film that's more about deep themes than adventure, this is a good one to catch. If not, the rambling nature of it won't inspire you to take a second look. 

Annihilation is an intelligent, thoughtful sci-fi film in which the government discovers an area of land overtaken by a bizarre force they dub “the Shimmer.” Natalie Portman plays Lena, a cellular biology professor recruited to enter the zone for scientific study. She has a personal reason for wanting the job. Her husband, Kane (Oscar Isaac), is the only surviving member of an Army Special Forces team that was previously sent in. He hasn't been the same since coming back and she wants to figure out why.

Whereas many sci-fi movies have a lot of thrilling action scenes, Annihilation is more of a head trip. There's one very exciting scene involving a bear, as well as an encounter with some kind of weird alien-like creature at the end. Mostly, though, it's a philosophical thriller about how Lena's views on life and death change as a result of her journey. The film is brilliant, yet not necessarily the kind of thing you put on when you want an evening of fun entertainment. 

Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange stars Malcolm McDowell as Alex, the leader of a gang called the Droogs. They're hooligans who like to get drunk and then engage in “a little of the old ultraviolence,” as the character famously puts it, using the specialized vocabulary that author Anthony Burgess created for the novel that the film is adapted from. Alex is recruited for a scientific experiment designed to rid him of his aggressive tendencies. It involves propping his eyes open and exposing him to a series of provocative images.

The movie is understandably considered a classic. It's bold, daring, and shocking. It's also excessively difficult to watch. The stuff Alex and the Droogs do, including viciously beating a rich lady with a heavy sculpture, is really disturbing. There's a point to the violence - one Kubrick couldn't make if he didn't accurately show it. Nonetheless, you walk away from A Clockwork Orange feeling as though you've been beaten up, and that's not necessarily an experience worth repeating. 

Scarlett Johansson stars in 2013's Under the Skin as “the Female.” She's an otherworldly being who comes to Earth seeking to learn about our planet. One of her preferred activities is to use her feminine form to seduce men, who she then drowns in mysterious black liquid. The movie explores what she learns from these conquests.

It's undeniable that Johansson is fantastic in the film, which casts a hallucinatory spell over you when you watch it. The Female's activities are nevertheless profoundly unnerving. When you watch people getting enveloped in that liquid, a chill goes down your spine. Under the Skin uses its sci-fi premise to develop some provocative ideas. The movie is absolutely worth seeing, but putting yourself through the surreal, creepy experience more than once doesn't necessarily hold much appeal. 

2010's Never Let Me Go has an excellent cast, fronted by Keira Knightley, Andrew Garfield, and Carey Mulligan. They play three young people who think they're normal boarding school students. Eventually they learn the horrific truth, which is that they're clones, built to serve as organ donors for rich people in need. They look for a woman who might be able to get them a deferment on their scheduled demise.

The movie is based on a best-selling novel by Kazuo Ishiguro. It's an intelligent, literate film with nuanced performances from the central trio and a thought-provoking theme powering the story. Despite being a high-class production, it's hard to deny that Never Let Me Go is emotionally draining to watch. Spending time with characters who are tormented from knowing their lives will be cut short eats away at you. The movie is profoundly sad by nature. Once is enough.