Best Sci Fi Movies on Netflix Right Now (July 2020)
Are you looking for the best sci fi movies to stream on Netflix right now? The service itself is basically the stuff of science fiction -- a huge repository of motion pictures, available to watch at the push of a button. Time travel to any era in cinema history (more or less)! It's a magical, wonderful concept, and the only thing that would make it better is if they actually had all the movies you want. But that's where we come in with our monthly updates on the best new movies on Netflix. So let's take a look at the newest releases in sci fi streaming on Netflix, including true classics of the genre like Back to the Future and E.T., as well as more recent hits like Ex Machina and Snowpiercer. This list features high-concept stories for fans of all kinds to watch. The newest additions to the list will be added at the top and marked with an asterisk. Oh, and when you're done here, be sure to also check out our list of the 100 Best Sci-Fi Movies Ever and what's new to Netflix this month. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-best-sci-fi-movies-on-netflix&captions=true"] Best Movies on Netflix by Genre:
While it's a very different film from The Matrix, Cloud Atlas is no less an impressive accomplishment on the part of the Wachowski sisters. This sweeping epic features a strong ensemble cast playing multiple roles throughout time, as the plot stretches from the mid-19th century to mankind's post-apocalyptic future. The story can be confusing on a first watch, but the lavish visuals and music make it well worth the effort.
Steven Spielberg has consistently been churning out great work for decades, but he could have called it quits with E.T. and he'd still rank among the great American filmmakers. This timeless story of a boy and his newfound alien friend showcases Spielberg at his most whimsical and adventurous. If you're a Stranger Things superfan who hasn't gotten around to watching one of the main films that inspired that '80s nostalgia-fest, now you have no excuse.
Good news, '80s kids - Netflix finally has the complete Back to the Future trilogy available to stream. No longer do we have to settle for just re-watching Back to the Future Part III. The original remains one of the greatest sci-fi movies ever made, in part because it worries less about the rules of time travel and more about having fun with Michael J. Fox's lovable hero Marty McFly as he's dragged three decades into the past. Neither sequel is quite as good, but both manage to add entertaining new wrinkles to the saga of Marty and Doc Brown.
The sequels may have dulled its appeal somewhat, but the original The Matrix remains a bona fide sci-fi classic. Nowhere outside of the anime realm have we seen such an effective blend of cyberpunk, martial arts and philosophy. The film stars Keanu Reeves in his most iconic role since Ted "Theodore" Logan, playing a solitary hacker who discovers his entire world is a digitized illusion and he may just be the messiah destined to save humanity from its machine oppressors.
Hollywood has a long history of adapting Philip K. Dick's science fiction novels, and Minority Report is still one of the best. We'd expect nothing less from director Steven Spielberg. This high-concept thriller stars Tom Cruise as a futuristic cop who relies on a trio of precognitive psychics to stop crimes before they happen. But when he's accused of murder, Cruise's John Anderton goes on the run (often literally) to prove his innocence.
You'd think Christopher Nolan would have a tough time following up The Dark Knight, but instead he gave us Inception. This high-concept sci-fi action movie unfolds in the realm of dreams, with Leonardo DiCaprio starring as Cobb, an international fugitive who orchestrates mental heists. Nolan's singular talent for combining mind-bending storytelling with crowd-pleasing action and stunning imagery has never been more on display.
The Lobster is far from the most approachable or mainstream-friendly film on this list, but we'd expect nothing less from director Yorgos Lanthimos. Fans of dystopian sci-fi hungry for something quirky and different will find exactly that in this darkly hilarious look at life in a world where singles have 45 days to either find a romantic partner or be transformed into an animal. Both Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz deliver top-notch performances as budding lovers struggling to build a relationship against the backdrop of a very strange and oppressive world.
Snowpiercer is easily one of the best comic book adaptations that most viewers don't even realize is a comic book adaptation in the first place. Acclaimed South Korean director Bong Joon-ho made his English language debut here, chronicling a post-apocalyptic world where a handful of survivors (played by Chris Evans, John Hurt, Octavia Spencer and others) make their way through a frozen wasteland aboard an eternally moving train. Naturally, the class divide still exists in this terrible future, and the film focuses a great deal on contrasting the squalor of the rear cars with the decadent luxury of the train's more privileged passengers.
Oscar Isaac stars as a brilliant billionaire inventor, who invites one of his low-level peons, played by Domhnall Gleeson, to his secluded estate. But this isn't a friendly visit. He's actually here to test the humanity of Isaac's new invention, a realistic robotic woman named Ava, played to perfection by Alicia Vikander. As they question the robot's humanity, and what it means to be human, we gradually realize that what they really can't figure out is the female mind. Brilliant performances and a thought-provoking screenplay make Ex Machina one of the best sci-fi films of the century so far.
In an extremely recognizable future, in which people live their lives through their phones and computers, and are so divorced from human intimacy that they have to hire people like Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix) to write their personal correspondence for them, a new operating system seems more human than human beings. So it is that Theodore connects to, and falls in love with an artificial intelligence named Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson). As directed by Spike Jonze, Her examines the melancholy of human disconnection in an increasingly connected world, and the complex way that emotions and romance will evolve as technology exceeds our psychological understanding.
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Cloud Atlas (2012)*
While it's a very different film from The Matrix, Cloud Atlas is no less an impressive accomplishment on the part of the Wachowski sisters. This sweeping epic features a strong ensemble cast playing multiple roles throughout time, as the plot stretches from the mid-19th century to mankind's post-apocalyptic future. The story can be confusing on a first watch, but the lavish visuals and music make it well worth the effort.
E.T. the Extra Terrestrial (1982)
Steven Spielberg has consistently been churning out great work for decades, but he could have called it quits with E.T. and he'd still rank among the great American filmmakers. This timeless story of a boy and his newfound alien friend showcases Spielberg at his most whimsical and adventurous. If you're a Stranger Things superfan who hasn't gotten around to watching one of the main films that inspired that '80s nostalgia-fest, now you have no excuse.
Watch E.T. the Extra Terrestrial on Netflix.
Back to the Future Trilogy
Good news, '80s kids - Netflix finally has the complete Back to the Future trilogy available to stream. No longer do we have to settle for just re-watching Back to the Future Part III. The original remains one of the greatest sci-fi movies ever made, in part because it worries less about the rules of time travel and more about having fun with Michael J. Fox's lovable hero Marty McFly as he's dragged three decades into the past. Neither sequel is quite as good, but both manage to add entertaining new wrinkles to the saga of Marty and Doc Brown.
Watch Back to the Future on Netflix.
The Matrix (1999)
The sequels may have dulled its appeal somewhat, but the original The Matrix remains a bona fide sci-fi classic. Nowhere outside of the anime realm have we seen such an effective blend of cyberpunk, martial arts and philosophy. The film stars Keanu Reeves in his most iconic role since Ted "Theodore" Logan, playing a solitary hacker who discovers his entire world is a digitized illusion and he may just be the messiah destined to save humanity from its machine oppressors.
Minority Report (2002)
Hollywood has a long history of adapting Philip K. Dick's science fiction novels, and Minority Report is still one of the best. We'd expect nothing less from director Steven Spielberg. This high-concept thriller stars Tom Cruise as a futuristic cop who relies on a trio of precognitive psychics to stop crimes before they happen. But when he's accused of murder, Cruise's John Anderton goes on the run (often literally) to prove his innocence.
Watch Minority Report on Netflix.
Inception (2010)
You'd think Christopher Nolan would have a tough time following up The Dark Knight, but instead he gave us Inception. This high-concept sci-fi action movie unfolds in the realm of dreams, with Leonardo DiCaprio starring as Cobb, an international fugitive who orchestrates mental heists. Nolan's singular talent for combining mind-bending storytelling with crowd-pleasing action and stunning imagery has never been more on display.
Read our Inception review or watch Inception on Netflix.
The Lobster (2015)
The Lobster is far from the most approachable or mainstream-friendly film on this list, but we'd expect nothing less from director Yorgos Lanthimos. Fans of dystopian sci-fi hungry for something quirky and different will find exactly that in this darkly hilarious look at life in a world where singles have 45 days to either find a romantic partner or be transformed into an animal. Both Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz deliver top-notch performances as budding lovers struggling to build a relationship against the backdrop of a very strange and oppressive world.
Read our The Lobster review or watch The Lobster on Netflix.
Snowpiercer (2013)
Snowpiercer is easily one of the best comic book adaptations that most viewers don't even realize is a comic book adaptation in the first place. Acclaimed South Korean director Bong Joon-ho made his English language debut here, chronicling a post-apocalyptic world where a handful of survivors (played by Chris Evans, John Hurt, Octavia Spencer and others) make their way through a frozen wasteland aboard an eternally moving train. Naturally, the class divide still exists in this terrible future, and the film focuses a great deal on contrasting the squalor of the rear cars with the decadent luxury of the train's more privileged passengers.
Read our Snowpiercer review or watch Snowpiercer on Netflix.
Ex Machina (2015)
Oscar Isaac stars as a brilliant billionaire inventor, who invites one of his low-level peons, played by Domhnall Gleeson, to his secluded estate. But this isn't a friendly visit. He's actually here to test the humanity of Isaac's new invention, a realistic robotic woman named Ava, played to perfection by Alicia Vikander. As they question the robot's humanity, and what it means to be human, we gradually realize that what they really can't figure out is the female mind. Brilliant performances and a thought-provoking screenplay make Ex Machina one of the best sci-fi films of the century so far.
Read our Ex Machina review or watch Ex Machina on Netflix.
Her (2013)
In an extremely recognizable future, in which people live their lives through their phones and computers, and are so divorced from human intimacy that they have to hire people like Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix) to write their personal correspondence for them, a new operating system seems more human than human beings. So it is that Theodore connects to, and falls in love with an artificial intelligence named Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson). As directed by Spike Jonze, Her examines the melancholy of human disconnection in an increasingly connected world, and the complex way that emotions and romance will evolve as technology exceeds our psychological understanding.
Read our Her review or watch Her on Netflix.
How We Choose the Best Sci Fi Movies on Netflix
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2018/11/29/5-ways-pop-culture-science-fiction-has-influenced-real-technology"] Science fiction is a wide-ranging genre, and one that can sometimes be difficult to pin down. We try to focus on sci-fi movies that have a time-tested reputation like The Matrix, as well as those movies that scored well on aggregate sites like Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic. In some cases, we may pick more critically divisive movies like Under the Skin that we still feel are worth checking out. The one common thread is that all these movies explore the intersection of humanity and technology in a unique way. [widget path="ign/modules/recirc" parameters="title=Best%20of%20Netflix%20Right%20Now&type=articles%2Cvideos&tags=recirc-netflix-genre&count=3&columnCount=3&theme=article"]
Best Sci Fi Movies on Netflix Right Now (July 2020)
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July 06, 2020
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