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10 Best Alien Movies That Are Out Of This World

10 Best Alien Movies That Are Out Of This World

Here it is… our carefully curated list of the top ten best alien movies that are out of this world.

TheFourthKind

10- The Fourth Kind

Starting the list off at number ten is 2009’s The Fourth Kind. Directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi and starring Milla Jovovich, this movie follows Dr. Abigail Tyler, a psychologist using hypnosis on her patients in Nome, Alaska, in hopes they recall memories of past alien abductions. As the movie progresses, we uncover evidence suggesting it’s not only her patients that have been in contact with the extraterrestrials.

The movie is interesting in its style, perhaps more so than in actual content. The cast kicks off the film by saying they’ll be re-enacting actual events. These “re-enactments” are then followed by what the film claims to be actual footage of events that transpired. While the plot itself may be a bit predictable, the mockumentary mixed with sci-fi thriller gives The Fourth Kind a touch of the plausible.

Just remember to watch it in a closed basement in the middle of the day.

IndependenceDay

9- Independence Day

Coming in at number nine is 1996’s Independence Day, directed by Roland Emmerich. The movie centres on humanity’s fight for survival during a less than friendly alien invasion. A computer wiz, a U.S. Marine Corps pilot, patriotic volunteers (including an alcoholic veteran who claims to have been abducted) and the President of the United States lead an attack against the invading aliens.

The movie is an action packed classic that features the best of humanity. The lengths people go to survive, and their drive to keep fighting in the face of the impossible is what draws audiences in. And if that wasn’t enough to keep you glued to your seat then the iconic image of the White House being blown to smithereens by an alien laser beam should do it.

MenInBlack

8- Men In Black

Ever been coming home and think the cabbie driving you back seemed a bit off? He gave you a weird vibe that made you wonder if he really grew up in the suburbs or on Mars? Then welcome to the world of 1997’s Men In Black, directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones.

The premise of the movie is that there’s a secret organization responsible for policing and monitoring extraterrestrials. The film follows Agent Jay (Smith), whose the bureau’s newest recruit, and Agent Kay (Jones)whose an MIB veteran. Throughout the film we’re introduced to a slew of aliens living amongst humans (from one that appears to be a talking pug, to one that owns a pawn shop) and learn of the sacrifices made in the name of work, not to mention what it really means to be one of the Men In Black.

CloseEncountersOfTheThirdKind

7- Close Encounters Of The Third Kind

Ever get a tune stuck in your head but can’t remember what song it’s from? Or picture someone’s face but can’t place where you’ve seen them? Sometimes it’s enough to drive you crazy, like it nearly did Roy (as played by Richard Dreyfuss) in 1977’s Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, directed by Steven Spielberg.

Aliens are spotted over the night sky over Muncie, Indiana, not long after a plane that’s been missing for thirty years is found in the Sonoran desert. Roy (Dreyfuss), one of the witnesses from Indiana, is left with a song that he’s never heard in his head, along with an image of a mountain he’s never before been to. This image and song plague him, bringing both Roy and his family to the breaking point.

Part of what makes this film so great is the special effects (which were ahead of their time), not to mention Roy’s decent into madness and the toll it takes on his family. The clinical, scientifically cold fashion in which the government studies and makes contact with the aliens is also fun, and brings a sense of the possible to this movie.

An oldie but a goodie, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind is definitely worth revisiting this summer.

Paul

6- Paul

Closing the first half of this two part countdown, and number six on the list is 2011’s Paul, written by and starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, and directed by Greg Mottola.

Who says that all aliens want to do is invade Earth or kill mass amounts of human beings? That their only goal in life is interplanetary domination and the eradication of civilization as we know it? For Paul (as voiced by Seth Rogen) it was simple as accidentally crashing to earth, being picked up by the government, and working for them until he’s of no more use, forcing him to escape custody before they cut out his brain. Finding refuge amongst two British tourists (as played by Pegg and Frost) who’re sightseeing UFO crash sites (like Area 51), the three of them (and other unlikely friends they pick up along the way) rush to get Paul off the planet before the government can recapture Paul.

What makes this movie so great are the references to classic films (such as Paul saying he gave the idea for E.T. to Spielberg) and how unexpectedly human Paul happens to be. Unlike other alien films that portray extraterrestrials as monstrous, or unusual, Paul comes across as your average guy, who just happens to be from another species. A funny, sometimes inappropriate twist on the alien genre, Paul is a great movie to re-watch this summer.

  E.T.

5- E.T. The Extraterrestrial

A child’s first friendship is a life changing thing and unique for every one of us. Especially if your first friend happens to be an alien who just wants to go home.

Starting the second half of this list off is 1982’s E.T. The Extraterrestrial, directed by Steven Spielberg. The story is about an alien stuck on earth, who befriends a boy. Together, they work to get E.T. off the planet before the government can have their way with the friendly extraterrestrial. This movie is a classic, and brought parents and children alike together in theatres. It’s a heartwarming film, and a great summer watch.

TheThing

4- The Thing

Alien invasions are a scary thing. The idea of an extraterrestrial race descending down on us from the heavens in an attempt to wipe out humanity can make people a little anxious. The only upside to this violent end for mankind is that everyone comes together in an attempt to prevent, and beat back, the aliens with the disproportionately big guns.

But what happens when the aliens come and you’re all alone?

Such is the premise for 1982’s The Thing, directed by John Carpenter and starring Kurt Russell. Deep in the ice of the Antarctic a crew of scientists uncover an alien that, upon its discovery, begins to pick them off one by one by taking the form of its last victim. Part of what makes this movie so horrifying is the isolation the crew faces. Their deaths are inevitable, lonely, terrifying and deep in the barren Antarctic wasteland, but altml that matters is stopping the alien threat before it’s too late. A heart pounding movie with nail biting suspense, The Thing makes its way easily into the fourth spot on this list.

Alien

3- Alien

Coming in at number three is 1979’s Alien, directed by Ridley Scott and starring Sigourney Weaver. After receiving a distress call while deep in space, the crew of the commercial ship Nostromo are awakened from stasis in order to investigate the S.O.S. Believing they’ll discover people in need of rescuing, the crew stumble upon horrors none of them were prepared to face. Soon an alien life form is born on the ship and begins picking off the crew, hunting them down on their vessel until only one remains.

Alien is a true thriller, with suspense and action right until the very end. Much like The Thing at number three, what makes this movie so horrifying is the isolation of the crew from the rest of humanity. Alone in space, with no one but each other and the imminent threat of death, the film brings audiences (much like the crew of the Nostromo) to the edge, and then pushes them over.

A classic by all standards, Alien is worth revisiting this summer.

 

InvasionOfTheBodySnatchers

2- Invasion Of The Body Snatchers

Ever talk to someone you know and five minutes into the conversation you realize they don’t seem right? Something’s off about them and they’re not their usual self? They seem out of character, out of sorts, and maybe they’re hungry or it’s just a headache, but you wouldn’t have a hard time believing that they’re not really who they seem to be?

Well maybe like the characters in the 1978 film Invasion Of The Body Snatchers, directed by Philip Kaufman, they’re not.

The premise of the film is that an alien spore finds itself drifting down from our atmosphere onto San Francisco after traveling through space. Upon landing these spores begin to spread and grow into pods, from which alien duplicates are born to replace the human original. This movie is terrifying because it plays on the idea of being isolated amongst society. That the very people we look to for help, and support, are the very creatures of our destruction.

A truly original film with scares the whole way through, Invasion Of The Body Snatchers is a great film to watch again this summer.

District 9

1- District 9

Wrapping this list up in the top spot is 2009’s Distric 9, directed by Neil Blomkamp and starring Sharlto Copley. A movie about a government agent assigned to the slums of an alien refugee camp, who finds he has more in common with the extraterrestrials than he thought, District 9 is an amazing film that encompasses everything an alien movie should have.

The politics of the governments, and those of the aliens, feel real and the documentary aspect helps make the whole film feel plausible. The way Wikus (as played by Copley) transforms, both physically and mentally, feels honest (and slightly Kafkaesque). The reactions of both his family and society help contribute to how the movie feels true to the situation and the world created. District 9, unlike most alien films, pays attention to more than just the bigger details by showing audiences the inner workings, and finite details, of this alien infested Johannesburg.

Easily finding itself on the top of this list, District 9 is more than worth re-watching this summer.

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