I have a great respect for the art of Science Fiction film making. There are numerous rules directors/screen writers must consider when creating a film. The dedication and time spent researching the plausibility of the science and themes within a Sci Fi film must be astronomic. To make life more difficult the world is full of Sci Fi film nuts that will scrutinize every scientific notion within a film, leaving little room for error.

This is my ode to such films, and the artists behind the film. The following is a list of the best Science Fiction movie poster designs from the 1920’s to today.

1927 – Metropolis

Synopsis

In a futuristic city sharply divided between the working class and the city planners, the son of the city’s mastermind falls in love with a working class prophet who predicts the coming of a savior to mediate their differences.

Poster details

Designer: Unknown (Please get in contact if you know any details)

Further details

Picture source: Jedimoonshyne9

 

1956 – Forbidden Planet

Synopsis

A starship crew goes to investigate the silence of a planet’s colony only to find two survivors and a deadly secret that one of them has.

Poster details

Designer: Unknown (Please get in contact if you know any details)

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

1957 – The Incredible Shrinking Man

Synopsis

When Scott Carey begins to shrink because of exposure to a combination of radiation and insecticide, medical science is powerless to help him.

Poster details

Designer: Reynold Brown

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

1968 – Barbarella

Synopsis

In the far future, a highly sexual woman is tasked with finding and stopping the evil Durand-Durand. Along the way she encounters various unusual people.

Poster details

Designer: Robert E. McGinnis

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

1969 – Journey to the Far Side of The Sun

Synopsis

A planet is discovered in the same orbit as Earth’s but is located on the exact opposite side of the sun, making it not visible from Earth. The European Space Exploration Council decide to send American astronaut Glenn Ross and British scientist John Kane via spaceship to explore the other planet. After a disastrous crash-landing Ross awakes to learn that Kane lies near death and that they apparently have returned to Earth, as evidenced by the presence of the Council director and his staff. Released to the custody of his wife, he soon learns things are not as they seem.

Poster details

Designer: Unknown (Please get in contact if you know any details)

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

1971 – A Clockwork Orange

Synopsis

Set in the 25th century, the story centers around a man and a woman who rebel against their rigidly controlled society.

Poster details

Poster artwork: Philip Castle
Designer: Bill Gold

Further details

Picture source: Verdoux

 

1971 – THX 1138

Synopsis

Set in the 25th century, the story centers around a man and a woman who rebel against their rigidly controlled society.

Poster details

Designer: B.D. Fox Independent

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

1974 – Andy Warhol’s Frankenstein

Synopsis

In Serbia, Baron Frankenstein lives with the Baroness and their two children. He dreams of a super-race, returning Serbia to its grand connections to ancient Greece. In his laboratory, assisted by Otto, he builds a desirable female body, but needs a male who will be superbody and superlover. He thinks he has found just the right brain to go with a body he’s built, but he’s made an error, taking the head of a gay aesthete. Meanwhile, the Baroness has her lusts, and she fastens on Nicholas, a friend of the dead lad. Can the Baron pull off his grand plan? He brings the two zombies together to mate. Meanwhile, Nicholas tries to free his dead friend. What about the Baron’s children

Poster details

Designer: Unknown (Please get in contact if you know any details)

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

1977 – Close Encounters of the Third Kind

Synopsis

After an encounter with UFOs, a line worker feels undeniably drawn to an isolated area in the wilderness where something spectacular is about to happen.

Poster details

Designer: Unknown (Please get in contact if you know any details)

Further details

Picture source: CK MacLeod Collectibles

 

1979 – Alien

Synopsis

A mining ship, investigating a suspected SOS, lands on a distant planet. The crew discovers some strange creatures and investigates.

Poster details

Designer: Bemis Balkind

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

1984 – Ghostbusters

Synopsis

Three unemployed parapsychology professors set up shop as a unique ghost removal service.

Poster details

Designer: Unknown (Please get in contact if you know any details)

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

1989 – The Abyss

Synopsis

A civilian diving team are enlisted to search for a lost nuclear submarine and face danger while encountering an alien aquatic species.

Poster details

Designer: Unknown (Please get in contact if you know any details)

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

1996 – Mars Attacks

Synopsis

The Earth is invaded by Martians with irresistible weapons and a cruel sense of humor.

Poster details

Designer: Bemis Balkind

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

2001 – Donnie Darko

Synopsis

A troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes, after narrowly escaping a bizarre accident.

Poster details

Designer: KO Creative

Further details

Picture source: Phawker

 

2001 – Artificial Intelligence

Synopsis

A highly advanced robotic boy longs to become “real” so that he can regain the love of his human mother.

Poster details

Designer: Intralink Film Graphic Design

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

2003 – The Matrix Reloaded

Synopsis

Neo and the rebel leaders estimate that they have 72 hours until 250,000 probes discover Zion and destroy it and its inhabitants. During this, Neo must decide how he can save Trinity from a dark fate in his dreams.

Poster details

Designer: Concept Arts

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

2006 – Children of Men

Synopsis

In 2027, in a chaotic world in which humans can no longer procreate, a former activist agrees to help transport a miraculously pregnant woman to a sanctuary at sea, where her child’s birth may help scientists save the future of humankind.

Poster details

Designer: The Creative Partnership

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

2009 – District 9

Synopsis

DISTRICT 9 depicts a fictional world where extraterrestrials have become refugees in South Africa. The tension between the aliens and the humans comes to a head when an MNU field operative, Wikus van der Merwe, contracts a mysterious virus that begins changing his DNA. Wikus quickly becomes the most hunted man in the world, as well as the most valuable — he is the key to unlocking the secrets of alien technology. Ostracized and friendless, there is only one place left for him to hide: District 9.

Poster details

Designer: Ignition print

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

2009 – Moon

Synopsis

Astronaut Sam Bell has a quintessentially personal encounter toward the end of his three-year stint on the Moon, where he, working alongside his computer, GERTY, sends back to Earth parcels of a resource that has helped diminish our planet’s power problems.

Poster details

Designer: Cardinal Communication USA

Further details

Picture source: IMP Awards

 

Have I missed any good Sci Fi film posters?