There’s nothing like a good space or sci-fi movie to take you away from earthly troubles. Science fiction cinema has the benefit of allowing the human imagination to run away with itself, imagining distant galaxies of the past or future, or alternate realities of the present.
Perhaps that’s why it has attracted some of the biggest names in filmmaking over past decades: directors like Ridley Scott, Paul Verhoeven, Steven Spielberg, Stanley Kubrick and Ron Howard.
Arguably, sci-fi is also one of the most accessible film genres, with a back catalogue to suit most cinematic tastes.
Here, in no particular order, is our pick of some of our favourite space-based sci-fi movies, young and old.
Best recent space movies
The Martian
Director Ridley Scott
Year of release 2015
Matt Damon plays an astronaut stranded on Mars and presumed dead. With years to wait until he is rescued, can he work out how to produce his own food and rocket fuel to become a self-sustaining Martian?
As humanity makes serious steps towards setting foot on the Red Planet, The Martian is a film that’s set to become even more relevant.
Where to watch
Blu-ray / DVD
Interstellar
Director Christopher Nolan
Year of release 2014
Set in a dystopian future and starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain, Interstellar follows humanity’s attempt to pass through a wormhole in space in search of a new Earth.
Between the hunt for an Earth-like planet beyond our Solar System and the dangers of climate change, Interstellar is a film that tackles some of the biggest issues facing contemporary science.
Where to watch
Blu-ray / DVD
First Man
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Ryan Gosling stars as Neil Armstrong in First Man. Credit: Universal PicturesDirector Damien Chazelle
Year of release 2018
Ryan Gosling plays Neil Armstrong in this retelling of the Apollo 11 mission to land on the Moon. Contrasting the enormity of the achievement with the resulting strain on the astronauts’ family lives, this is a film very much about what it took to be an astronaut in the late 1960s, but also what it took to be related to one.
Rattling sound effects and beautiful POV shots of the lunar landscape make this one of the most realistic moonlanding depictions on film.
Where to watch
Blu-ray / DVD
Gravity
Director Alfonso Cuarón
Year of release 2013
Sandra Bullock plays an International Space Station astronaut who gets caught in a debris storm during a spacewalk. Fans of the ISS will love the detail paid to recreating its interior, as Bullock’s character floats around the abandoned space station while all hell breaks loose around her.
Epic cinematography and an atmospheric score make Gravity a true rollercoaster ride. If you have a home cinema set-up with a good sound system, this is one film that needs to be played loudly.
Where to watch
Blu-ray / DVD
Moon