The best movies about outer space

If we included all the good “Star Wars” movies, this list would have been overrun with films from that franchise. The first three “Star Wars” films helped revitalize the “space opera” and created some of the most iconic characters in movie history. Sure, maybe most people didn’t like the prequels, but the recent reboot has had a lot of success, both with new characters and classic ones like Luke and Leia. Even the middling reception to "Rise of Skywalker" won't deter us.

If we include “Star Wars,” we have to also include the “Star Trek” movies. While “Star Trek” began life as a TV show and has had several series over the years, there have been a lot of movies as well. It has been a more hit-and-miss franchise than “Star Wars,” but there have certainly been some good films along the way, even if “Star Trek Into Darkness” is basically just a remake of “Wrath of Khan.”

We could have included “Alien” as well, which is a eerie, creepy horror movie set in the confines of a space station. However, when James Cameron got his hands on the series, he turned it into an epic mixture of horror and action. Sigourney Weaver has a great hero turn as Ellen Ripley, but we also have to point out the work done by the likes of Paul Reiser and Bill Paxton in supporting roles.

Yes, Stanley Kubrick’s masterwork is slow, quiet and features basically no known actors. Its most famous character is a computer with a red dot representing a face. None of that matters. Kubrick created a gorgeous piece of film that has captivated audiences for decades, even if there are no laser swords or spaceship fights.

The actual Apollo 13 situation — where something went wrong for astronauts on board a spaceship, and ground controllers in Houston worked together to get the astronauts home safe — is an intense story in real life. This faithful recreation of the events for the screen, led by Tom Hanks as Jim Lovell, captures that intensity quite well. The fact planes were used to replicate zero gravity certainly also helped.

The idea of going to the moon may seem exciting, but what if you were stuck there, alone, working? That’s the plight of Sam Rockwell’s character in “Moon,” a smaller, less epic outer space movie. That doesn’t mean there aren’t some significant science fiction events that take place, giving Rockwell the chance to give a tour de force performance.

Sigourney Weaver is back, this time in a comedic role. The premise of “Galaxy Quest” is a fun one. The cast members of a cheesy sci-fi space show are mistaken by a race of aliens as actual space heroes, and they bring the actors on board to try and help them defend themselves from an evil alien out to conquer them. This misunderstanding leads to a rollicking space comedy featuring probably the best performance of Tim Allen’s career.

Hopefully you got to see this one on the big screen. This movie is, in a way, a two-hander starring Sandra Bullock and the directing of Alfonso Cuaron. It’s gripping and intense, and it looks amazing to boot. Bullock deserves a ton of credit for being the only actor in the film for large stretches of time.

We’ve all been there. Our crew leaves us for dead, and we get stranded on Mars. That’s the plight of Mark Watney, as played by Matt Damon, in “The Martian.” He doesn’t give up, though, figuring out a way to keep himself alive, alert NASA to this fact and endure long enough for people to try and find a way to save him. This was a film that managed to combine critical success with being a huge blockbuster hit.

People expecting an epic biopic about Neil Armstrong from “First Man” may have walked away disappointed. Damien Chazelle’s film is a little hard to get the rhythms of. Armstrong, as played by Ryan Gosling, is stoic and unknowable. The movie doesn’t hold your hand as it moves from event to event. Even the huge moments feel underplayed. This may not have been what people expected, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a good film.

Adapted from Tom Wolfe’s book, “The Right Stuff” tells the story of the test pilots who were turned into the members of NASA’s Project Mercury, the first manned spaceflight program in U.S. history. We’re talking some of the most iconic names in American history. John Glenn, Alan Shepard, Chuck Yeager; they’re all there. So are some of famous faces of Hollywood, such as Ed Harris and Dennis Quaid.

Christopher Nolan doesn’t make small movies. Whether he’s tackling Batman or dream criminals, he swings big. “Interstellar” was certainly a big swing, and not everybody was on board. It’s epic in scope, and it can be a little tricky to wrap your head around. However, when you are talking movies about outer space, this is definitely up there.

OK, so maybe this one has an asterisk next to “outer space,” but we still feel like it merits inclusion. "Capricorn One" is the first crewed mission to Mars, and the astronauts on board are all set to be heroes, except for one thing: It’s all a hoax. There is no manned trip to Mars. Unfortunately for the astronauts involved, the conspiracy starts to unravel, and there are people higher up in the government who don’t want what happened to be exposed. The cast is stacked, featuring the likes of Elliott Gould, James Brolin, Sam Waterston, and, um, O.J. Simpson.

James Bond had to go to space eventually, didn’t he? At a certain point, he had done it all. He fought a guy with a lethal hat! Finally, one of his villains has a plan that involves going to outer space. This gets Bond, played by Roger Moore here, up in the stars as well. Does James Bond have sex in space? C’mon, you know the answer there.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has spent more and more time in space. However, not many of them are true “outer space” movies. “Guardians of the Galaxy” definitely is though. It’s a world full of aliens and strange planets. There’s a community set up in the excavated head of an ancient being. “Guardians” is basically Marvel’s answer to “Star Wars” but with even more humor.

One day, you’re just an average human. The next thing you know, you’re being whisked off to space on an adventure that introduces you to a depressed android and some aliens that are truly terrible at poetry. Douglas Adams’ book is deeply beloved and cultishly adored, and this movie adaptation starring Martin Freeman, Mos Def and Sam Rockwell didn’t quite live up to expectations. That being said, it’s still a fun movie and worth a watch.

Give Mel Brooks something to spoof, and he’s going to throw everything at the wall to see what sticks. After “Star Wars” fever took over the world, Brooks decided to give it the parody treatment with “Spaceballs.” He also got comedy heavyweights like John Candy and Rick Moranis into the cast. And of course, Mel Brooks himself plays a couple of characters, including a Yoda parody named Yogurt.

“The Fifth Element” starts on Earth, admittedly a futuristic version of Earth, but soon enough Korben Dallas, played by Bruce Willis, and Leeloo, a humanoid alien that is “the perfect woman” played by Milla Jovovich, are heading into space as part of an epic quest to save the universe. You know, the usual stuff. It’s right up Willis’ alley, as he often excelled as a regular Joe in over his head. Just look at “Die Hard.”

This is a double whammy of outer space! Not only are Mike Nelson and his robot friends trapped in space where they are forced to watch cheesy movies, but also the movie they watch in the film version of the cult classic TV show is “This Island Earth.” That movie also features the main characters going into space. Twice the space plus a ton of laughs thanks to the quips of Mike, Crow and Tom Servo.

Yes, “Armageddon” is ridiculous. It’s about a bunch of oil men and drillers being sent into outer space to drill into an asteroid to explode it to save the Earth. This is, after all, a Michael Bay film. That being said, if you like cheesy action flicks with impressive casts, you can do worse than “Armageddon.”

Jane Fonda stars in this camp classic. It’s cheesy, but it does look quite good in its way. Also, there is a character named Durand Durand, which inspired the band name Duran Duran. How many films can say they inspired the name of a hit band?

We’re back with one more trip to the land of Marvel, because “Captain Marvel” deserves mention. There’s a lot of fun had on Earth in this movie, thanks largely to all the ‘90s nostalgia. That being said, there are aliens involved, and Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel, is on the planet Hala when the action begins. “Captain Marvel” travels between Earth and outer space with gusto, and it succeeds in both places.

Paul Verhoeven doesn’t mess around. He takes everything to the nth degree, and that includes his film “Total Recall.” While it doesn’t have the hyper violence of “RoboCop,” it’s a completely nuts movie, featuring a bonkers Arnold Schwarzenegger performance. However, Verhoeven has his dedicated fans for a reason. His style is right up the alley of many film fans.

Much of the action of “Independence Day,” even though it involves aliens, takes place on Earth. In fact a chunk of it takes place underground at a secret government lab. However, the climax of the film features Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum heading into space to take down the alien mothership. That’s enough to count it as an outer space film, and that gets it on our list.

Gary Sinise, who was in “Apollo 13” as well, just can’t get enough of playing guys who help salvage space missions gone awry. Here, though, he’s a fictional character helping to fix issues on the first manned mission to, well, Mars. That gives the movie an added air of sci-fi intrigue. Also, “Mission to Mars” was directed by Brian De Palma, one of the most stylish directors. Oh, and that first manned Mars mission? It takes place in 2020. Better get on that, NASA.

The first attempt to adapt Frank Herbert's "Dune" by David Lynch was a fascinating fiasco, but a fiasco nonetheless. Finally, another director decided to take it on in Denis Villenueve. This year, Oscar nominations and massive financial success followed. Sure, it was secretly a part one, but it was still a worthwhile movie that looked great.