In a just world, films would be rewarded for their creativity, style, and quality. Sometimes, that happens, and masterpieces become classics. Other times, though, great movies are overlooked due to poor marketing, bad timing, or simply an uninterested populace. Here are five great sci-fi films that for whatever reason weren’t given the attention they were due.

Sunshine

Sunshine is an ambitious, beautifully shot, and wonderfully acted breath of fresh air.

Before Danny Boyle won an Oscar for Slumdog Millionaire, the 28 Days Later and Trainspotting director created Sunshine, a cerebral thriller with an all-star cast. With the likes of Cillian Murphy (Peaky Blinders), Chris Evans (Captain America), Rose Byrne (X-Men: First Class), Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), and Cliff Curtis (Fear the Walking Dead) leading the cast, Sunshine sends a small crew of astronauts on a mission to “restart” the sun.

When the sun begins to dim, Earth is plunged into a solar winter. As a last-ditch effort to survive, the space faring countries of the world send their best and brightest hurtling towards the sun on spacecraft strapped to the back of a stellar bomb.

Even as their mission progresses smoothly, the crew knows that the odds aren’t in their favor. “Simply put, we don’t know if it’s going to work,” one of the crew remarks, and that attitude looms over the entire mission. As problems arise, tensions flare, and things inevitably go wrong, the crew is forced to make difficult life-and-death decisions that affect the fate of the human race.

Brilliantly penned by Alex Garland (Ex Machina), the story twists and turns, keeping the viewer on their toes.

Backed by a now-legendary score from John Murphy, Sunshine is a visual and aural treat that shouldn’t be missed.

Available to rent on Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, Vudu, and the Microsoft Store.

Moon

Sam Rockwell dazzles in this semi-solo act that has a lot more to it than meets the eye.

Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) is the only person on the moon. Contracted for a three-year shift working for a lunar mining company, Sam’s only communication comes in the form of recorded messages from his family, and the cold company of his robotic assistant, GERTY, played by Kevin Spacey.

Just three weeks away from the end of his shift, Sam’s health starts to deteriorate. He suffers headaches and hallucinations, which he believes stem from being isolated for such a long period of time.

As his symptoms worsen, Sam comes to realize that things aren’t what they seem. He starts to think that GERTY is lying to him, but when a younger version of himself shows up, he begins to question his sanity.

Moon is a fantastic look at the effects of isolation on the human psyche. Rockwell provides a stunning performance, and Duncan Jones’ direction keeps the audience guessing. If you’re looking for a true science fiction masterpiece without huge action set-pieces, Moon is a great choice.

Available to rent on Amazon, Google Play, Vudu, PlayStation, and the Microsoft Store.

Primer

Time travel is messy.

When most people think of Primer, the first thing that comes to mind is the film’s budget. Made for an incredibly miniscule $7000 USD, the independent sci-fi drama was the first feature film foray from Upstream Color director Shane Carruth, who also wrote, produced, scored, edited, and starred in the film.

When two engineers, Aaron and Abe, realize they’ve accidentally created a device that loops time in Aaron’s garage, they do what anyone would - they try to profit. At first, they do the obvious: day trade on the stock market using future knowledge, bet on sports games they already know the outcomes of, and contemplate playing the lottery.

Before long, though, they realize that in the future, they won’t be honest with each other, and are driven to find out why, with each man trying to make sure he comes out on top.

Primer can get confusing near the end, but it presents some very interesting ideas about time, and interestingly enough, filmmaking. It’s no masterpiece, but it’s definitely worth a watch if you’re interested in complicated timelines and theories, or if you’re an aspiring filmmaker wanting to know how to make a feature film with the money in your savings account.

Available to rent on Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, Vudu, and the Microsoft Store.

Attack The Block

Before he wielded a lightsaber in a galaxy far, far away, John Boyega starred in a film where the aliens came to us.

When a hostile alien force lands in South London, Moses (Boyega) and his mates don’t run - they grab their baseball bats, get on their dirtbikes, and take to the streets.

Attack the Block is a refreshing take on the alien invasion genre, full of laughs, suspense, and scares. The film also stars Jodie Whittaker (Doctor Who), Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz), and Luke Treadaway (Unbroken), under the direction of Joe Cornish (Ant-Man) in his directorial debut.
Though it is only six years old, Attack the Block is already widely regarded as a cult film in the making, and for good reason. The film received a 90% from Rotten Tomatoes’ review aggregator, as well as a Certified Fresh rating.

As John Boyega’s star power grows, hopefully Attack the Block finds its way into the homes of more and more people around the globe. It isn’t as mind-bending or philosophical as the other films on this list, but it’s one hell of a good time. If you’re looking for 88 minutes of pure entertainment, do yourself a favor and watch Attack the Block.

Available to rent on Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, PlayStation, Vudu, and the Microsoft Store.

Gattaca

Ethan Hawke leads this futuristic look at where the arrival of genetic design may take our society.

In a world where the children of the wealthy are genetically designed to have favorable traits, how can the naturally-born compete? Such is the dilemma for Vincent Freeman, played by Ethan Hawke (Training Day) in Andrew Niccol’s (The Truman Show, Lord of War) sci-fi mystery, Gattaca.

When Vincent, a man whose genetic makeup was determined naturally, is told that he will never achieve his dream of space travel because his genes are inferior, he assumes the identity of Jerome Morrow, played by Jude Law (The Young Pope). Morrow is genetically perfect, but was left a paraplegic as the result of a car accident.

Vincent then masquerades as Morrow, passing Morrow’s DNA samples off as his own and finally lands his dream job as a Celestial Navigator at Gattaca Aerospace Corporation. A week before he is scheduled to depart for Saturn’s moon, Titan, however, the mission director is murdered, and Vincent’s “in-valid” DNA is found in the building. As his departure date draws near and the police close in on him, Vincent must avoid being found out, all while building a romance with one of his coworkers, played by Uma Thurman (Kill Bill).

Gattaca is a cerebral thriller that entertains and still manages to ask questions about the moral and societal implications of genetic manipulation in humans. If you’re in for a noir-like thriller that requires thought, Gattaca is a great choice.

Available to stream on STARZ and to rent on Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, Vudu, PlayStation, and the Microsoft Store.

This list is by no means complete. Know some other sci-fi films that have been criminally overlooked? Leave a comment and let me know.

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