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1950's Sci-Fi classics.

by universe1701 • Created 7 years ago • Modified 7 years ago
A list of 1950's sci-fi classics. A mix of the greats, under-rated, and a couple of not so great, fun campy movies.
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  • 44 titles
  • Forbidden Planet (1956)

    1. Forbidden Planet

    19561h 38mG80Metascore
    7.5 (56K)
    A starship crew in the 23rd century goes to investigate the silence of a distant planet's colony, only to find just two survivors, a powerful robot, and the deadly secret of a lost civilization.
    DirectorFred M. WilcoxStarsWalter PidgeonAnne FrancisLeslie Nielsen
  • The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

    2. The Day the Earth Stood Still

    19511h 32mG83Metascore
    7.7 (88K)
    An alien lands in Washington, D.C. and tells the people of Earth that they must live peacefully or be destroyed as a danger to other planets.
    DirectorRobert WiseStarsMichael RenniePatricia NealHugh Marlowe
  • The War of the Worlds (1953)

    3. The War of the Worlds

    19531h 27mG78Metascore
    7.0 (40K)
    A small town in California is attacked by Martians, beginning a worldwide invasion.
    DirectorByron HaskinStarsGene BarryAnn RobinsonLes Tremayne
  • Them! (1954)

    4. Them!

    19541h 34mApproved74Metascore
    7.2 (26K)
    The earliest atomic tests in New Mexico cause common ants to mutate into giant man-eating monsters that threaten civilization.
    DirectorGordon DouglasStarsJames WhitmoreEdmund GwennJoan Weldon
  • Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)

    5. Creature from the Black Lagoon

    19541h 19mG68Metascore
    6.9 (37K)
    A strange prehistoric beast lurks in the depths of the Amazonian jungle. A group of scientists try to capture the animal and bring it back to civilization for study.
    DirectorJack ArnoldStarsRichard CarlsonJulie AdamsRichard Denning
  • Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter in Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

    6. Invasion of the Body Snatchers

    19561h 20mApproved92Metascore
    7.7 (58K)
    A small-town doctor learns that the population of his community is being replaced by emotionless alien duplicates.
    DirectorDon SiegelStarsKevin McCarthyDana WynterLarry Gates
  • Grant Williams in The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)

    7. The Incredible Shrinking Man

    19571h 21mApproved73Metascore
    7.6 (21K)
    After Scott Carey begins to shrink because of exposure to a combination of radiation and insecticide, medical science is powerless to help him.
    DirectorJack ArnoldStarsGrant WilliamsRandy StuartApril Kent
  • Richard Carlson, Charles Drake, Kathleen Hughes, and Barbara Rush in It Came from Outer Space (1953)

    8. It Came from Outer Space

    19531h 21mApproved68Metascore
    6.5 (12K)
    A spaceship from another world crashes in the Arizona desert and only an amateur stargazer and a schoolteacher suspect alien influence when the local townsfolk begin to act strangely.
    DirectorJack ArnoldStarsRichard CarlsonBarbara RushCharles Drake
  • Helena Carter, Arthur Franz, and Jimmy Hunt in Invaders from Mars (1953)

    9. Invaders from Mars

    19531h 18mApproved
    6.3 (9.9K)
    A young boy learns that space aliens are taking over the minds of earthlings.
    DirectorWilliam Cameron MenziesStarsHelena CarterArthur FranzJimmy Hunt
  • Robert Cornthwaite, Margaret Sheridan, Douglas Spencer, and Kenneth Tobey in The Thing from Another World (1951)

    10. The Thing from Another World

    19511h 27mApproved
    7.0 (36K)
    Scientists and American Air Force officials fend off a bloodthirsty alien organism while at a remote arctic outpost.
    DirectorsChristian NybyHoward HawksStarsKenneth TobeyMargaret SheridanJames Arness
  • Ishirô Honda and Takashi Shimura in Godzilla (1954)

    11. Godzilla

    19541h 36mNot Rated79Metascore
    7.6 (44K)
    After a dinosaur-like beast - awoken from undersea hibernation by atom bomb testing - ravages Tokyo, a scientist must decide if his similarly dangerous weapon should be used to destroy it.
    DirectorIshirô HondaStarsTakashi ShimuraAkihiko HirataAkira Takarada
  • Christopher Lee in The Curse of Frankenstein (1957)

    12. The Curse of Frankenstein

    19571h 22mApproved65Metascore
    7.0 (14K)
    While awaiting execution for murder, Baron Victor Frankenstein tells the story of a creature he built and brought to life - only for it to behave not as he intended.
    DirectorTerence FisherStarsPeter CushingHazel CourtRobert Urquhart
  • The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958)

    13. The Revenge of Frankenstein

    19581h 30mApproved68Metascore
    6.7 (6.6K)
    Having escaped execution and assumed an alias, Baron Frankenstein transplants his deformed underling's brain into a perfect body, but the result proves to be mortally perilous.
    DirectorTerence FisherStarsPeter CushingFrancis MatthewsEunice Gayson
  • Quatermass 2 (1957)

    14. Quatermass 2

    19571h 25mApproved
    6.7 (5.1K)
    Professor Quatermass, trying to gather support for his Lunar colonisation project, is intrigued by mysterious traces that have been showing up.
    DirectorVal GuestStarsBrian DonlevyJohn LongdenSidney James
  • The Blob (1958)

    15. The Blob

    19581h 26mApproved58Metascore
    6.3 (31K)
    An alien lifeform consumes everything in its path as it grows and grows.
    DirectorsIrvin S. Yeaworth Jr.Russell S. Doughten Jr.StarsSteve McQueenAneta CorsautEarl Rowe
  • Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956)

    16. Earth vs. the Flying Saucers

    19561h 23mApproved
    6.3 (9.7K)
    Extraterrestrials traveling in high-tech flying saucers contact a scientist as part of a plan to enslave the inhabitants of Earth.
    DirectorFred F. SearsStarsHugh MarloweJoan TaylorDonald Curtis
  • Destination Moon (1950)

    17. Destination Moon

    19501h 32mApproved
    6.3 (4.9K)
    "Destination Moon", tells the tale of when Doctor Charles Cargraves and retired General Thayer approach Jim Barnes, the head of his own aviation construction firms to help build a rocket that will take them to the moon.
    DirectorIrving PichelStarsJohn ArcherWarner AndersonTom Powers
  • 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)

    18. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

    19542h 7mG83Metascore
    7.2 (39K)
    A ship sent to investigate a wave of mysterious sinkings encounters the advanced submarine, the Nautilus, commanded by Captain Nemo.
    DirectorRichard FleischerStarsKirk DouglasJames MasonPaul Lukas
  • Ray Corrigan, Shirley Patterson, and Marshall Thompson in It! The Terror from Beyond Space (1958)

    19. It! The Terror from Beyond Space

    19581h 9mApproved
    6.0 (6.6K)
    A mission sent to rescue the first manned expedition to Mars is invaded by an unknown life form, which stows away on the rescue ship.
    DirectorEdward L. CahnStarsMarshall ThompsonShirley PattersonKim Spalding
  • Beverly Garland in Not of This Earth (1957)

    20. Not of This Earth

    19571h 7mApproved
    6.1 (2.5K)
    An alien agent from the distant planet Davana is sent to Earth via a high-tech matter transporter. There, he terrorizes Southern California in an attempt to acquire blood for his dying race, the result of a devastating nuclear war.
    DirectorRoger CormanStarsPaul BirchBeverly GarlandMorgan Jones
  • David Hedison and Patricia Owens in The Fly (1958)

    21. The Fly

    19581h 34mApproved62Metascore
    7.1 (27K)
    A scientist has a horrific accident when he tries to use his newly invented teleportation device.
    DirectorKurt NeumannStarsDavid HedisonPatricia OwensVincent Price
  • Return of the Fly (1959)

    22. Return of the Fly

    19591h 20mApproved
    5.7 (5.5K)
    Philippe Delambre, the now-adult son of "The Fly", does some transportation experimentation of his own.
    DirectorEdward BerndsStarsVincent PriceBrett HalseyDavid Frankham
  • When Worlds Collide (1951)

    23. When Worlds Collide

    19511h 23mG47Metascore
    6.6 (10K)
    As a new star and planet hurtle toward a doomed Earth, a small group of survivalists frantically work to complete the rocket which will take them to their new home.
    DirectorRudolph MatéStarsRichard DerrBarbara RushPeter Hansen
  • Donald Curtis, Faith Domergue, and Kenneth Tobey in It Came from Beneath the Sea (1955)

    24. It Came from Beneath the Sea

    19551h 19mApproved
    5.9 (6.9K)
    A giant, radioactive octopus rises from the Philippine Trench to terrorize the North American Pacific Coast.
    DirectorRobert GordonStarsKenneth TobeyFaith DomergueDonald Curtis
  • Jennifer Jayne, Janet Munro, Laurence Payne, and Forrest Tucker in The Crawling Eye (1958)

    25. The Crawling Eye

    19581h 24mNot Rated
    5.2 (5.2K)
    A series of decapitations on a Swiss mountainside appear to be connected to a mysterious radioactive cloud.
    DirectorQuentin LawrenceStarsForrest TuckerLaurence PayneJennifer Jayne

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