GUEST POST: Top 5 Underrated Sci-Fi Movies You Need to See Now

I love a good Sci-Fi film, If you're stuck as to which one to watch next then have no fear as guest blogger, Cassie, is here to help with her list of the top 5 underrated Sci-Fi ready to stream now. I hope you enjoy this great post.

Cassie is a blogger and writer who focuses mainly on technology and entertainment. She is a huge Sci-Fi and film fan and hopes that these recommendations will bring some deeper thought and excitement into your life. You can find more of her writing on Secure Thoughts or Culture Coverage. She's also on Twitter: @Cassie_Culture.

Whether we know it or not, science fiction has been the primary influence of most genre films and modern filmmaking. They make up most of our blockbusters, and we are now more than ever able to make our grand dreams reality through the use of computer effects and expert filmmaking.

Some sci-fi films slip through the cracks or are poorly marketed. This does not diminish their quality. Fortunately, however, you can now easily access most movies through streaming websites of one sort or another. There are so many films to get lost in that it’s nearly impossible to know what to watch from a glance.

Here are some movies that you'll want to check out on a rainy day when you want to see some unfamiliar worlds and ideas:

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

If you haven’t heard of this movie, then your expectations of Jim Carrey will not be met. In probably his best role, he plays a man who had his mind erased after a relationship turned out poorly and discovers that the woman had the relationship erased from her mind first. The script is from Charlie Kaufman, whose work is some of the best in the film industry in general and who won an Academy Award for this film. This movie simply doesn't get the attention it deserves.

This is a profoundly intellectual movie, and as a film about the corners of the mind, it is about the standard science fiction fare you would expect. Expect to spend some time thinking about the movie long after you've finished watching it. You probably won't look at relationships and memories the same.

The Day the Earth Stood Still

This is not a new film (the one I'm talking about came out in 1951), but it's readily available on streaming websites, still relevant today and yet still contains the charms of a film that came out over 60 years ago. It is likely you’ve heard the plot (or some variation of it) before, in which an alien lands and tells humanity they must be peaceful or be destroyed by other alien races. It speaks to humanity on a grand scale and takes a high-minded approach to the world’s problems.

While the effects and visuals might be hard to bear for some (the movie shows its age at points), one of the main draws of science fiction are the ideas contained within the work. The ideas are the reason this movie has stood the test of time.

Ex Machina

Ex Machina is one of my favorite films of last year, and it just simply gets the release and hype it deserved. It follows a programmer who wins a contest to spend a weekend at the private estate of his company's brilliant CEO. It turns out the true purpose of the weekend is to test the consciousness of a robot the CEO has been working on. A movie small in scope and large in concept, it tackles the divide between machine and man as well as some of the current debates regarding artificial intelligence today.

An extremely philosophical film, people will either love or hate the third act of the movie based on their expectations. That doesn't stop Oscar Isaac from standing out as tech CEO and genius Nathan Bateman. Alicia Vikander also is amazing as Ava, bringing an almost otherworldly presence to the character. Watching it now will be the best part of your day.

Under the Skin

Under the Skin is a film that will mess with your head and a movie some people won't like. You need to see it for yourself, as you simply can’t call it a standard science fiction film. Scarlett Johansson plays an extraterrestrial “woman” who lures men into fatal situations, and it's hard to decide whether the movie feels real or not.

Johansson is amazing in this role, and you can't help but feel intentionally uncomfortable with her character. You aren't certain of her intentions. You don't know what she wants. There are dozens of theories as to how her character and the film, in general, represent women in our culture (I'll leave it to you to create your own theory). The film tries to trick you. It tries to horrify you and then dares you to understand it. You absolutely need to watch this film.

Serenity

If you've intended to watch Joss Whedon’s masterpiece Firefly, you should probably skip this one for now and go watch the series. If you've already seen it, then you absolutely need to find this movie on your favorite streaming service and watch it. 

In many ways, it picks up right after the series left off, but it still manages to contain a story for people who are watching with you who might not be too interested in the series. The fact that Whedon gets a feature film budget to work with means we get some stunning action sequences within this already excellent universe.

There we have it, enough films for a great day’s worth of streaming. While you might prioritize some over others, know that you’ll most likely appreciate these films more than the numbers give them credit for.

Are there any other science fiction films that you think deserve a watch or are underrated? Have there been any films you watched recently that you think are awesome and want to share with your fellow readers? If so, please leave a comment below.

Thanks for reading!

Kick Ass 2

So before we get started on this review I would just like to say that I usually try to refrain from swearing in my posts but due to one of the character names in Kick Ass 2 there will be some. You probably don't care but I thought I better mention it! Anyway onto the review of the sequel of one of my favourite films; Kick Ass.

Kick Ass was a great action comedy that summed up what I wanted my life to be like. By the end of the film I wanted to join Kick Ass and Hit-Girl and be a superhero. In the sequel it seems a lot of people wanted to also do this, however by the end of this film I did not. For me Kick Ass 2 lost something special that the first film had the ability to give me goosebumps at the more emotionally heated moments whilst punching the air with my fist at the more action packed sequences, which pardon the pun, were kick ass! Kick Ass 2 just seemed to take away the fanboy dream the first one set up and turn everything on its head. There's still a lot of fun to be had with the over the top comic book violence and sweary cast members but just not as much.

The story follows Kick Ass and Hit-Girl as they try and fail to settle in to ordinary life. Events of the previous film have a brought a new bunch of people to the streets being superheroes. However the previously named Red Mist has now reinvented himself as the world's first super villain; The Motherfucker.

Kick Ass 2 is a lot darker and some of the more comedic moments don't always pay off with the tone of the film. Like an attempted rape played for laughs or watching a girl throwing up and literally crapping her pants. There are still enough laughs to class this as a comedy but it isn't as bright and witty as its predecessor. It's unfortunate but this is the first film that Christopher Mintz-Plasse hasn't been that funny in and I found most of the scenes with The Motherfucker in just to be a bit annoying.

Jim Carrey gets to don a costume in this film, even if he has now condemned the violence in it. He plays Colonel Stripes and Stars who steals every scene he is in. However he is only in a few scenes and feels much underused. That being said I haven't read the comic book this is based on and therefore realise that film was staying true to the source material however I would have liked to have seen more of him. 

I did still enjoy this film, especially the relationship between Kick Ass and Hit-Girl as Chloe Moretz and Aaron Taylor-Johnson have excellent chemistry in this film. It really is there film and they both steal the show, apart from those few scenes with Carrey in. The action is great also though again never seemed to live up to the first film. The comic style cinematography is still there and works well making it feel like the graphic novel is coming to life.

The first half of this film is great and I really enjoyed it, the second half starts to go a bit downhill but there is still a lot of fun to be had. Kick Ass was such an unexpected gem that really stuck with me as a film, unfortunately things just don't seem to be as good in the sequel, even the soundtrack wasn't as good! Maybe the shock factor has gone or expectations have been raised but the first film for me was a 5/5 film whereas I am giving Kick Ass 2 a rating of 3/5. It wasn't a bad film it just didn't always work. 

This just hasn't been the year for superhero films with most falling below expectations. Maybe Thor: The Dark World can turn this around.