rickyjames writes, I am a devoted Browncoat, but even I have a little trouble swallowing that Serenity is the top SF movie of all time as voted by 3000 readers of the British magazine SFX. Star Wars and Blade Runner were runners-up, with Planet Of The Apes beating Matrix and Alien. Rounding out the top ten were Forbidden Planet, 2001, Terminator and Back To The Future.
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Yeah right. Ninja Turtles might as well be on that list if Serenity gets a top 10 billing.
Loved the show; the movie… not so much.
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I adored the movie, and I still don’t think it belongs on a top ten list. There are simply too many other significant, pioneering, important sci-fi films out there.
Just trying to get more?
I’d be willing to bet that the people who voted for Serenity don’t even believe it’s #1 themselves. They’re probably just of the belief that if Serenity and Firefly continue to get attention it might increase the chances that another movie gets made. I think it’s a long shot, but polls like this are so meaningless it’s worth a try.
For the record, my #1 pick would have been Blade Runner. My #2 would be The Day the Earth Stood Still – love that flick. I couldn’t even consider Star Wars after all that’s happened to it, and its "legacy," over the years.
Re: Just trying to get more?
I think that the original Star Wars still deserves a place of honor, despite the dilution of the later movies. It was simply world-changing when it came out. As far as what I’d consider #1 personally? I’d probably have to go with 2001.
Re: Just trying to get more?
Me too.
Re: Just trying to get more?
I *LOVE* Firefly… but I would vode for 2001 and Bladerunner ahead of it. They were bigger pioneers, took greater risks, and have survived the test of time (except for the dates mentioned in each).
Re: Just trying to get more?
I think the "recent release" factor may be at work here.
Hey, don’t you wish 2001 had looked as Kubrick imagined it? Except faster moving and with less wooden dialogue.
Planet of the Apes
Okay, the original Planet of the Apes was good, but beating out Alien and The Matrix? And call me stupid, but I don’t believe I’ve ever seen Forbidden Planet. I really don’t agree with some of the rankings.
Re: Planet of the Apes
You really should see it, stupid.</sarcasm>
Really though, it is good, and quite foundational. Oh, and it has sweet music. And Robby the Robot. Classic.
I suspect my list would change weekly….
Star Trek‘s unofficial pilot
Since we’re doing it anyway, what would everyone else’s Top Ten list look like?
Re: I suspect my list would change weekly….
I totally agree. If Forbidden Planet had not been made in the late 1950s to enable a successful breakaway from pure monster movies into space opera, there absolutely would have been no greenlight by TV execs for Star Trek or Lost In Space in 1963 and 1964 – both highly deriviative of FP. We owe a LOT to FP and it is VERY underrated both as a movie and as a cultural influence.
If you don’t like the SFX rankings, there’s always the IMDb SF movie rankings or the Wired SF movie rankings or the Sci-Fi Lists SF movie rankings or….
Here’s the cool Wikipedia list of best SF movie nominees…