Science fiction movies are enjoyable and a thrill to watch as they suspend our disbelief while still keeping the viewers grounded of things that may seem possible in a few years’ time. From the extraterrestrial life of Alien: Covenant, robots of Ghost in the Shell, to the werewolves of Underworld: Blood Wars — here’s our list of hand-picked sci-fi movies that are expected to hit the big screens this 2017.
Alien: Covenant
The film follows a crew of the colony ship Covenant which is on their way to a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy to discover what they think is an uncharted paradise. There, they find a survivor from the Prometheus expedition and soon the ‘paradise’ of a place slowly turned into a nightmare when a hostile alien life-form makes its appearance and forces them to fight for their survival.
(Release: May 17, 2017)
Blade Runner 2049
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDscTTE-P-k
Ryan Gosling plays a new blade runner for the Los Angeles Police Department who soon uncovers a long-hidden secret that could potentially turn things for the worse. This puts him on a quest to look for the former blade runner who’s been missing for 30 years — you guessed it, it’s Harrison Ford.
(Release: October 6, 2017)
Ghost in the Shell
Based on the popular Japanese manga, Ghost in the Shell focuses on a human-cyborg hybrid called Major (played by Scarlett Johansson) who leads a highly-trained task force dedicated to stopping a group of cyber criminals who plan to wipe out Hanka Robotics. The trailer has some scenes pretty faithful to the original movie so fans of the franchise are looking forward to this film.
(Release: March 31, 2017)
Kong: Skull Island
This movie takes its audience to Skull Island where the king of the apes resides. The trailer also shows different gigantic creatures roaming around and fighting the protagonists. One fun fact that you should know is that there have been clear indications that this film is setting up grounds for a Kong vs Godzilla movie. That’s one film I wouldn’t miss!
(Release: March 10, 2017)
Life
Life on Mars has been/is an integral topic for movies and this is the case for this film. A crew makes their way to the red planet and is successful in capturing a sample that could be the first proof of extraterrestrial life. But like with most sci-fi thriller movies, things take a negative turn when the said organism gains intelligence and attacks the crew.
(Release: March 24, 2017)
The Circle
The Circle, which is portrayed in the movie as like Facebook but with more advanced technological tools, is mainly pushing the boundaries of privacy. The social media has a way of seeing all and knowing all so the question of personal freedom and ethics go into play. It’s a promising movie that plays with the idea of a setup which could happen in the not-so-distant future.
(Release: April 28, 2017)
Underworld: Blood Wars
Kate Beckinsale’s character, Selene, is back and this time she’s neither on the side of the Lycans nor the vampires that betrayed her. Caught in the middle, she sets off on a journey to end the eternal war between the two races once and for all. There’s guns, swords, and more guns in this action-packed sci-fi film.
(Release: January 6, 2017)
War for the Planet of the Apes
The third chapter of the critically-acclaimed blockbuster franchise shows Caesar and his tribe of apes placed at the feet of humans almost begging for their lives. Caesar needs to do something to avenge his kind which, later on, puts him toe-to-toe with the ruthless Colonel in an epic bout to determine whose race lives and dies.
(Release: July 14, 2017)
Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
Valerian and Laureline are like the interstellar dynamic duo that keeps the peace throughout the universe for the government of the human territories. They later on receive a mission that will require them to go to the city of Alpha where different species thrive together but of course, there are forces that aim to tip the balance and bring chaos to mankind. Personally, it feels like a Lord of the Rings x Star wars movie with its epic fights and alien characters. CG looks promising and the direction of Luc Besson is always something to look forward to.
(Release: July 21, 2017)
Those are our picks! How about you? Any sci-fi movies you’re looking forward to this 2017? Feel free to share them in the comments section below.
Underworld deals with the supernatural and cannot be considered Sci-fi.
Arrival is already being hailed as the best Sci-Fi film of the decade (which I couldn’t agree more). Let’s see if any of these films can top it.