A.I. Tales (2019)
Science Fiction Anthology
An anthology of four SF tales, short films from various directors around the world, although surprisingly none that feature Artificial Intelligences
Nuclear War
Nuclear War refers to the detonation of nuclear weapons and the mass devastation they cause. There is a reasonable body of films about the theft and hijacking of nuclear weaponry (although these are almost never depicted as being detonated) – these are covered under the theme The Nuclear Threat. Films set in the aftermath of the dropping of the bomb and collapse of civilisation are dealt with under After the Holocaust Films.
Films about nuclear war began in the 1950s in the aftermath of the dropping of the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Outbreak of nuclear between the West and the Soviet Union was considered a very real possibility between the 1950s and late 1980s and much genre cinema of this period is tinged with the stark fears this would become an actuality.
The first of these films was Five (1951) depicting survivors of a nuclear detonation trying to piece life together in the ruins. Beginning with On the Beach (1959), these films started to take on a very grim tone showing little hope for the future. The Nuclear War film saw a renewed interest with another cluster of films and tv movies in the 1980s.
With the ending of hostilities with the Soviet Union, the nuclear war film has now almost entirely died out apart from sporadic exceptions. In the depictions we do get, it is usually part of a film that is principally about something else as in Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), or where the cause of the war is usually omitted.
The ABCs of Death (2012)
Horror Anthology
Unique anthology that offers 26 episodes from different directors, each ending with a death. The episodes vary wildly in quality but a sufficient number ignore all good taste and/or travel waaaay across taboo lines
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Part II (2013)
Comic-Book Superhero/Animation
The second of the two-part animated adaptation of Frank Miller’s classic graphic novel. The film is staged as a series of epic confrontations between iconic DC characters and written with a dark bite to emerge much more satisfying than the first part
The Big Bang (1987)
Gonzo Animation
French-Belgian adult animated film in the gonzo trippy vein of Ralph Bakshi and Bill Plympton – a visually madcap satire of science-fiction tropes and 1980s East-West tensions, full of wackily surreal visuals
By Dawn’s Early Light (1990)
Nuclear War
The last gasp of the Cold War nuclear film. A tv movie that features Martin Landau is the US President who tries to stop an accidental Russian nuclear release escalating into full-out war
Chain of Command (2000)
Action/Hijacking of Presidential Nuclear Codes
Halfway reasonable action film in which US President Roy Scheider is taken hostage by Taiwanese terrorists who want to use the nuclear launch codes against China. The surprise about the film is how political it is willing to get
Chosen Survivors (1974)
Vampire Bats Invade a Nuclear Fallout Shelter
Largely remembered now for its premise – survivors in a nuclear fallout shelter find they have been trapped with a horde of vampire bats. Sort of a conceptual collision between The Birds and The Andromeda Strain
The Creator (2023)
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics
Gareth Edwards, the director of Monsters and Godzilla, makes a genre-defining work about robotics and artificial intelligence set in a stunningly detailed future world. This site’s Top Film for 2023
Crimson Tide (1995)
Submarine Thriller/Impending Nuclear War
Gripping submarine drama from Tony Scott with captain Gene Hackman and second-in-command Denzel Washington fighting over whether to obey orders and fire their nuclear missiles after receiving a possibly faulty alert
Damnation Alley (1977)
Post-Apocalyptic Trek
Disastrous adaptation of the Roger Zelazny novel where the story of a Hell’s Angel on a trek across the post-apocalyptic wasteland is recast with a G.I. and a girl and kid along for the journey, plus the addition of giant mutant cockroaches
The Day After (1983)
Nuclear Holocaust
From Nicholas Meyer, a TV movie (released theatrically in some countries) that was considered controversial in its day for its no-holds-barred depiction of a nuclear attack on the US
Day the World Ended (1955)
After the Nuclear Holocaust
One of the first films from Roger Corman. Set among a group of survivors in the immediate aftermath of the nuclear holocaust, Corman blatantly steals the plot from Five and adds a mutant monster to the mix
The Dead Zone (1983)
Clairvoyance/Stephen King Adaptation
David Cronenberg adapts a Stephen King novel with Christopher Walken waking from a coma with clairvoyant abilities. An okay film if one that lacks the personal intensity and rich themes of Cronenberg’s original works
Defcon-4 (1985)
Nuclear Holocaust and After
A breath of originality in a decade overrun with Mad Max copies, a clever and original little film in which the crew of a space station return to Earth after the nuclear holocaust
Deterrence (1999)
Impending Nuclear War
A thriller with Kevin Pollak as the US President caught at a diner by a blizzard where he is faced with the hard choice of whether or not to launch a nuclear attack on Iraq
The Divide (2011)
Survivors of a Nuclear Holocaust in a Cellar
Tough and brutal depiction of the collapse of civilised order among a group of survivors of a nuclear holocaust holed up in a cellar. This holds an incredibly bleak depiction of human nature
Dr Strangelove or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
Nuclear War Black Comedy
Stanley Kubrick decided the only way to make a film about nuclear war was to resort to black comedy. Aided by three sidesplitting performances from Peter Sellers, the result are mercilessly funny
Dreamscape (1984)
Psychic Dream Therapists-Assassins
The original version of Inception almost, featuring psychics entering into people’s dreams and then attempts to dream assassinate the US President. Despite much promise, the idea is prosaic in its handling
Fail-Safe (1964)
Nuclear War
Work of incredibly stark tension set amidst post-Cuban Missile Crisis nuclear anxieties with the US trying to recall a bomber that has been accidentally dispatched to drop an atomic bomb on Moscow
Fail Safe (2000)
Nuclear War
Live tv broadcast remake of the 1960s Cold War nightmare about an accidental nuclear release over Russia, now with an all-star cast. This proves far more suspenseful and expertly played than one might have thought
Five (1951)
The Survivors of a Nuclear War
SF cinema’s first ever portrayal of nuclear war. The film is sometimes incredibly naive and mostly wants to make a parable of racial tolerance. It is often heavy-handed but also holds moments of undeniable lyricism
Genocidal Organ (2017)
Anime/The Manipulation of Language to Create Genocide
An extraordinary anime adapted from Project Itoh, a conceptually challenging work concerning a villain who can manipulate language to drive populations to genocide
A House of Dynamite (2025)
Nuclear Attack
Kathryn Bigelow makes a strong return to form with a film about the lead-up to an imminent a nuclear attack on the US. Made with a documentary-like urgency that convinces you this is the way that the real thing would play out
How I Live Now (2013)
England Invaded/Outbreak of Nuclear War
While the title suggests a self-help manual about someone going to live off the land, this depicts an imaginary invasion of England similar to Red Dawn having been pitched as a Young Adult work
Human Highway (1982)
Gonzo Comedy
Musician Neil Young directs a science-fiction film! I was hoping this would be another Repo Man, instead we get an incoherent mess that throws in a jumble of sf concepts and feels like it was made without a script
Hunk (1987)
Pact with the Devil for the Perfect Male Body
A lightweight comedy in which nerd Steve Levitt makes a pact with The Devil to have the perfect male body but soon comes to regret his decision
I.S.S. (2023)
International Space Station Drama
A gripping work set aboard the International Space Station where the US and Russian crews are suddenly placed at one another’s throats as war between the two sides breaks out down on Earth
Injustice (2021)
Animation/Comic-Book Superheroes
An alternate world take on DC Comics continuity where Superman snaps and creates a totalitarian police state and the other DC superheroes come together to stop him
Invasion USA (1952)
Communist Invasion of the USA
An amazing Communist Scare film from the 1950s depicting a Soviet invasion and atomic bombing of the US. This writes its fears of the Communist treat in loud and red-bloodedly alarmist tones
Iron Sky (2012)
Nazi Flying Saucers from the Moon
Finnish filmmaker Timo Vuorensola makes a conceptually wild film about invasion by Nazi flying saucers from the Moon. Stunning quality effects on a minuscule budget that rival the work of professional houses
It’s a Disaster (2012)
End of the World Comedy
Imagine This is The End with four hipster couples instead of a bunch of Hollywood celebrities barricaded in a house. A likeable, if never side-splitting, End of the World comedy with a finely tuned ensemble cast
The Lathe of Heaven (1980)
Man Whose Dreams Change the World When He Wakes
One of the most brilliant SF works conducted for television – the adaptation of an Ursula Le Guin book about a a man whose dreams change the world every time he wakes up
Leave the World Behind (2023)
Catastrophe and Social Collapse
A strong and dramatic work about a sudden catastrophe that occurs when the world’s internet and cellular system are shut off. Produced by no less than former US President Barack Obama
Letters from a Dead Man (1986)
The Nuclear Holocaust - The Russian Perspective
Amid, the 1980s body of nuclear war films, all others are English-language made but this is one made by the Russians. The results are incredibly bleak but also have a haunting poetry
Lord of the Flies (1963)
Reversion to Barbarism
A starkly effective film adaptation of William Golding’s classic novel about a group of British schoolboys stranded on a desert island in a plane crash and their descent into barbarism
Malevil (1981)
Nuclear War
An entry in the spate of early 1980s nuclear war films about the residents of a French village who are sheltered in a wine cellar when the bomb drops and their efforts to survive in the aftermath
The Martian Chronicles (1980)
Human Colonisation of Mars/Ray Bradbury Adaptation
Ray Bradbury’s book about the human colonisation of Mars is an SF classic for its wistful, nostalgic poetry. This tv mini-series adaptation is killed by a lumbering director who over-explains Bradbury’s imagery in the most literal ways
The Midnight Club (2022)
Teenagers Tell Horror Stories
Mike Flanagan horror mini-series adapted from Christopher Pike’s book, this is set around a group of patients in a hospice who form a group to tell each other horror stories
Miracle Mile (1988)
Impending Nuclear Strike on L.A. Comedy
Quirky offbeat comedy in which Anthony Edwards picks up a ringing phone at a diner and the call warns that a nuclear strike is about to hit L.A. in 50 minutes during which he tries to find his lady love as the city descends into chaos all around from what may have been a prank call
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning (2025)
Spy/Action Film
The eighth of the Mission: Impossible films. The previous entry Dead Reckoning was a high point in the series and this is left wrapping up the storyline in what would appear to be Tom Cruise’s final outing for the series
The Noah (1975)
Last Man on Earth
Experimental film about the last man left on Earth after a nuclear war who develops a series of imaginary companions
On the Beach (1959)
The Nuclear Holocaust
The first major film confronting nuclear war full on with the world’s last survivors gathered in Australia. Slightly ponderous today but nevertheless full of potent imagery
On the Beach (2000)
The Nuclear Holocaust
TV mini-series remake of the 1959 nuclear war film. With no longer the need to make messages as in the original, the story has been expanded out with a lush romantic sweep
Panic in Year Zero! (1962)
Nuclear War/Ruthless Survivalism
A film about the outbreak of nuclear war directed by actor Ray Milland. What takes you aback is the naked liberatarian fantasy that Milland engages in, arguing in favour of a brutal ruthlessness in the name of survival
The People Who Own the Dark (1976)
Nuclear War Outbreak
Spanish film about a group of orgiasts at a villa who survive a nuclear explosion outside but are then held at siege from an attack by blinded villagers
Philadelphia Experiment II (1993)
Alternate History/Nazis Rule
A sequel to The Philadelphia Experiment where Brad Johnson is thrown into an alternate timeline where the Nazis have overtaken the USA
Postal (2007)
Videogame Adaptation/Bad Taste Satire
Another Uwe Boll videogame adaptation, a satire where Zack Ward sets out on a shooting spree. Boll sets out to offend as many people as possible but somehow forgets to make any of it funny
Rapture-Palooza (2013)
Biblical End Times Comedy
There is irresistible appeal to the idea of a comedy that conducts a spoof of the Biblical Rapture. Despite a script from one of the Bill and Ted writers, this emerges as a remarkably unfunny film that consists of about an hour of Craig Robinson delivering crude sexual innuendos
Rocket Attack U.S.A. (1958)
Communist Missile Threat
Incredible Communist fear film largely made up of stock footage that urges the US to build a strong missile defence as the Soviet Union arms itself to attack
Rules of Engagement (1989)
Impending Nuclear War
The last gasp of the mid-80s era of nuclear anxieties that brought Threads and The Day After, a tv mini-series about the imposition of martial law in a British city as US-Soviet nuclear war looms in Europe
The Sacrifice (1986)
Praying Back the Nuclear Holocaust
Andrei Tarkovsky’s final film, a slow and weighty meditation upon questions of faith as one man prays to turn back a nuclear holocaust
Stranger from Venus (1954)
Alien Visitor
A British-made ripoff of The Day the Earth Stood Still. Slow, plodding and talky without the action ever seeming to move beyond the confines of a country pub
The Sum of All Fears (2002)
Nuclear Terrorism/Tom Clancy Adaptation
Fourth of the Tom Clancy Jack Ryan films, which performs a confusing continuity reset to recast the role with the younger Ben Affleck. The film’s release was delayed by 9/11, which makes the plot about nuclear terrorism on US soil seems absurdly tame in retrospect
The Summer of Massacre (2011)
Anthology of Slasher Tales
The unique idea of an anthology made up of five different slasher tales. Unfortunately, the film’s only raison d’etre is serving up serial gore scenes, which have the effect taken out of them because they are all conducted digitally and look biologically preposterous
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Time-Travelling Killer Androids
The first sequel to The Terminator where James Cameron returns with the biggest budget for a film at the time. Cameron harnesses then top-drawer CGI technology to create one of the most original nemeses in any SF film
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
Time-Travelling Killer Androids
After the highs of James Cameron’s first two Terminator films, this was a crashing disappointment. Schwarzenegger is back but his performance has become self-parody and the uninspired action sequences are accompanied by some terrible effects
Terminator Genisys (2015)
Time-Travelling Killer Androids
A hodgepodge of competing elements – an aging Arnold Schwarzenegger, a soft reboot, alternate timelines, reintroduction of the familiar, twists to the familiar – that make no sense on a narrative level, least of all come anywhere near what James Cameron delivered back in the first two films
Terminus (2015)
Alien Artefact/Prophecy of Nuclear War
Australian SF film about a man’s discovery of an alien artifact that helps regenerate body parts and gives him prophetic dream warnings of a coming nuclear war. An odd little film more than it is necessarily one that keeps you interested or dramatically engaged
Testament (1983)
Nuclear Holocaust
Part of a cluster of strong strong and powerful depiction of the outbreak of nuclear war that came out in the mid-1980s. This avoids melodrama by staying focused on a family’s attempts to cope
Threads (1984)
Nuclear War
UK tv movie that sets out to offer an unflinching depiction of a nuclear strike. About as bleak as it is possible to get
The Time Machine (1960)
Time Travel/H.G. Wells Adaptation
This adaptation of H.G. Wells’ classic novel was one of the best films from 1950s SF producer/director George Pal. The time travel is depicted with considerable wondrousness and standout effects for the era
Trump vs The Illuminati (2020)
Gonzo Satire/Trump's Clone Fight The Devil in Space
A clone of Donald Trump battles The Illuminati and the Egyptian god Anubis on Mars before travelling to Hell to sort out The Devil. The sheer dementia of the premise alone has one sitting down to watch
The War Game (1965)
Nuclear War Mockumentary
Peter Watkins stark, brutal mockumentary about a nuclear strike on England, this was banned from the BBC and still makes for harsh viewing today
WarGames (1983)
Teen Hacker Accidentally Triggers Nuclear War
This was the first film to ever depict the internet with Matthew Broderick as a teen innocent hacker who accidentally hacks in and triggers a nuclear alert thinking he is playing a computer game
When the Wind Blows (1986)
The Nuclear Holocaust/Animation
Powerful and biting animated film from a Raymond Briggs book focused on an elderly couple and their wholly inadequate attempts to cope with the outbreak of nuclear war
Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
Comic-Book Superheroine
The much-anticipated sequel to the Gal Gadot starring Wonder Woman is a highly divided success, partly due to an inane plot centred around a magic wishing stone
X: First Class (2011)
Comic-Book Superheroes/Origin Prequel
An X-Men origin story that serves as the occasion to recast the series with younger actors. This works far better than the previous two films, integrating the characters in a strong story, although is quiet at the superheroic action
Years and Years (2019)
Near Future Family Saga
Exceptionally written UK mini-series from Doctor Who producer Russell T. Davies following a diverse family throughout the 2020s that become a projection of current trends turned nightmarish