Must Own DVD Movies That Define The Fantasy & SciFi Genres?

[RangerWickett]

Predator.

 

[Cthulhudrew]

Outland

 

[Aus_Snow]

Metropolis: If you're looking for landmark pictures, this vision of a dystopian future by Fritz Lang is a must-have. It is in black-and-white and is silent, so don't expect sensational effects.

I still have a soft spot for the recoloured version with (now) retro soundtrack. . . It was the first I saw, so. Well, anyway. . . it's a 'must see' movie, whichever you see first, assuming you see both.

I'd also (following in the vein of retro, if not much else) suggest checking out Blake's 7. It's terribly dated of course, and was poorly funded, even for those times. And there are numerous other niggles and such, but still, it has some good things going for it, in my opinion. Even now.

Can't think of much else that other people haven't already mentioned. Many of them, I would second, third and so on. But I suspect you'll get around to them without me doing so.

 

[mmadsen]

Has anyone mentioned Close Encounters of the Third Kind yet? Absolutely incredible movie!

Meh.

For TV Series I'd have to go with Starblazers or Robotech for introducing to many people the idea that an animated series can actually have a multi-season storyline with all of the plot and drama that you'd expect from a live action series. Before those two pretty much all animated shows were just a bunch of stand alone episodes that had nothing to do with each other. I remember running home from school and skipping my homework because the previous episode of Starblazers had left off with a cliffhanger and I couldn't wait to see what happened next. Good times!

They showed the episodes out of order on our local station -- which was pretty funny, if also disappointing. "Wait, they have 100 days left to save Earth? But they only had a few weeks left yesterday?"

 

[frankthedm]

Not one mention of Pan's Labyrinth?

while I would not buy it, I think Logan's Run has some of the qualities the OP is seeking.

 

[Holy Bovine]

I don't have time for a Top 10 right now, but here's one essential: Forbidden Planet (the new-ish widescreen edition).

What? They have a widescreen version of this now? Loved this the first time I saw it - loved it more the 33rd time.

 

[Holy Bovine]

Funny thing is, there are some fantasy movies that are "must haves" that may not match your definition of "quality."

No fantasy collection is complete without Krull, Dragonslayer, Clash of the Titans, Conan (the first one), and Beastmaster (also the first one), but I wouldn't claim that all of those are necessarily "quality" movies.

Absolutely. These are all fantastic 'popcorn' movies where you can turn your brain off and just enjoy the ride.

I'll add Jason and the Argonauts. Ray Harryhausen is a certified legend. You really can't be a fan of sword n' sorcery action until you have seen the skeleton fight in JatA.

 

[Asmo]

Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000






Nah, just kiddin´

Asmo

 

[Holy Bovine]

Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000






Nah, just kiddin´

Asmo

And here I went and pulled out my stabbin' knife.

Oh well Mabel, you'll just have to wait.

 

[Mallus]

What? They have a widescreen version of this now?

This is set my wife gave me for Christmas last year. It looks (and sounds) amazing.

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/Forbidden-Planet-Ultimate-Collectors-Pidgeon/dp/B000HEWEEY/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1223060827&sr=8-3]Forbidden Planet at Amazon[/ame]