Alien – This film birthed an entire franchise and an eventual Predator crossover, and for good reason. This battle between man and the terrifying unknown is a classic, spawning a legion of imitators throughout the ’80s. The original is still a horror and sci-fi classic that brings H.R. Giger’s terrifying creation to life.

Director: Ridley Scott
Release date: 25 May 1979
Cast: Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerrit, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm

Back To The Future series – While not only taking a glimpse into the future of the Family McFly and presenting a possible future where all cars can fly, Back To The Future II also famously featured sneakers that laced themselves up (the inspiration behind a certain genre bending rapper’s new shoe). Expanding on the promise of the first film in the franchise, the first in a series of sequels explored the whole space / time continuum in a way that was accessible to multiplex audiences. Take that, Hawking!

Director: Robert Zemeckis
Release dates: 3 July 1985, 22 November 1989, 25 May 1990
Cast: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Thomas F. Wilson, Lea Thompson

Blade Runner – A leading example of the neo-noir genre, this movie is stylistically amazing. Showcasing a not so pleasant future where humans have been able to create genetically manufactured beings called ‘replicants.’ These replicants are used to do dangerous work off-planet and some manage to escape. It’s Rick Deckard’s job to find these dangerous escapees and destroy them.

Director: Ridley Scott
Release date: 25 June 1982
Cast: Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Daryl Hannah

The Lord of the Rings – This is the full blown epic in the Ten Commandments tradition. Watch Frodo, Gandalf and company struggle towards Mordor to end an evil that will destroy all of Middle Earth. Also, Orcs, walking trees, and Liv Tyler. Featuring by far the most epic full-scale battle scene in any movie, Return of the King will confound you if you haven’t seen the prior two films in the series but will nevertheless wow you with it’s superb special effects. With white bearded wizards, orc decapitations, and elf princesses, this movie series is the visual manifestation of a nerd wet dream.

Director: Peter Jackson
Release dates: 19 December 2001, 17 December 2002, 16 Decmber 2003
Cast: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellan, Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom, John Rhys-Davies, Sean Astin, Liv Tyler, Hugo Weaving

Pans Labyrinth – A girl entrapped by the rigors of civil war plighted Spain escapes into a land of surrealism and fantasy. The austerity of the soldiers, coupled with their uniforms and chivalrous disposition make this film a refuge for the devitalized gentleman after a long day at the office.

Director: Guillermo del Toro
Release date: 11 October 2006
Cast: Ivana Baquero, Sergi Lopez, Maribel Verdu, Doug Jones, Aridna Gil

The Matrix – The Matrix made us reassess the importance of binary code. The oft ridiculed Keanu Reeves plays Neo, a computer hacker confronted by Morpheus (Lawrence Fishburn), captain of the last vanguard of human life in the computer netherworld – the Matrix. Morpheus attempts to disambiguate the reality of Neo’s being, and act as harbinger of things to come. The Matrix was huge upon its inception. Its ruling power over the minds of the computer savvy refined has pull to the present day.

Director: Andy and Larry Wachowski
Release date: 31 March 1999
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving

The Original Star Wars Trilogy – This entry regards only the original three, that beautiful trilogy covering struggle, triumph, sacrifice and droids. Even today the films are universal in their depiction of human endeavour. Episode IV taught us about hope, Episode V taught us about despair, and Episode VI taught us about redemption. A truly modern fairy tale masterpiece that was one of the first to teach many young men about life.

Director: George Lucas, Irvin Kershner, Richard Marquand
Release date: 25 May 1977 – 21 May 1980 – 25 May 1983
Cast: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter Mayhew, James Earl Jones, Billy Dee Williams, Ian McDiarmid, Alec Guinness

Total Recall – This movie took the sci-fi genre to another level. The concept, the violence and the triple breasted women all had a role in this. Arnold Schwarzenegger is his usual action movie self, which always proves to be entertaining. Get a view into what Mars might be like if humans are one day able to colonize it, and then wish you never have to go there.

Director: Paul Verhoeven
Release date: 1 June 1990
Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Sharon Stone, Ronny Cox, Michael Ironside