Some are kept as pets, while others roam wild and face slaughter to keep numbers down. In the far future, humanity has been removed from Earth by giant blue aliens called Draags, who have placed us on a world called Ygam and treat us as animals. Fantastic Planet (1973) – 72 minutesĪ stop-motion cutout animation, Fantastic Planet was a French-Czech production brought to mainstream attention in the USA by Roger Corman, who appreciated a high-concept piece of filmmaking when he saw one. While I don’t want to spoil anything more, the balance between young joyful Emily (played by Hertzfeldt’s 4 year old niece) and monotone sombre Emily 3G (Julia Pott) is the key to this film, always bringing the humour when future events threaten to get a little too bleak. It paints a horrifying picture of how humanity has lost touch with itself (case in point, moon robots are producing the best poetry), and how we have to reach back into our past to find real emotion. Director Trumbull, who worked on 2001: A Space Odyssey, created a practical effects masterpiece, but most importantly put heart at the centre of the film. Rebelling, Lowell kills his fellow crew and hijacks the ship, determined to save the plant life with the help of three robotic drones. However, orders from Earth instruct the crew to destroy the domes housing the plant and animal life, and return the ship to commercial use. A film which places environmental concerns front and centre, Bruce Dern plays Freeman Lowell, a man in charge of looking after the only remaining Earth plant life in the galaxy. ![]() Here’s our pick of the best of them… Silent Running (1972) – 89 minutesĪ true science-fiction classic, which has inspired a generation of modern filmmakers (see Moon), and continues to be every bit as powerful now as it was upon release. Perhaps it’s because of all the ideas, themes, and awe-inspiring imagery that sci-fi contains? Maybe those drawn to sci-fi just like long stories? But for every 2001: A Space Odyssey, or Interstellar, or even The Last Jedi, there are sci-fi films which transport you to another world, and back again, all in under an hour and a half. This has been the same since the very earliest days of cinema, where George Melies was producing sci-fi at lengths no-one had ever seen. Perhaps more than any other genre, sci-fi leans towards an epic run-time.
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