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The dawn of the new millennium has been an exciting time for science fiction cinema. After the 90s ended in style with The matrix, the good times continued into the 2000s with groundbreaking films like Donnie Darko, District 9 and of course, Avatar. It was the decade when sci-fi filmmakers big and small took risks and more often than not they paid off, with audiences dealt with some of the most innovative films in the genre.
Despite the eclectic successes seen during this period, there is still a plethora of incredibly inventive sci-fi and adventure films that have gone under the radar and continue to do so to this day. Films that failed to attract audiences in early releases, but are worth seeking out and enjoying at their leisure by filmmakers – something increasingly easy to do thanks to the plethora of streaming services. available in one click.
ten Balance (2002)
Christian Bale channeled his inner Neo for this sophisticated sci-fi thriller from writer / director Kurt Wimmer. Bale plays John Preston, a police officer living in a dystopian future where feelings and artistic expression are illegal. Every day, citizens are given daily injections designed to suppress all emotions. But after missing a dose, Preston begins to question the morality of the society he lives in and soon sets out to overthrow it.
Smart, stylish and packed with great action sequences, Balance was also notable for championing ‘gun kata’, a cinematic style of combat that mixes martial arts and the use of firearms to dazzling effect.
9 Number (2002)
Vincenzo Natali continued his brilliant debut cube with this mind-boggling corporate spy thriller. Zero focuses on Morgan Sullivan (Jeremy Northam), an austere accountant stuck in a suburban rut who ends up being recruited as a spy for a major IT company.
Assigned to travel to conventions across the country to record speeches, Sullivan accidentally stumbles upon a shady plot involving company-wide brainwashing and a mysterious woman named Rita (Lucy Liu) who soon does so. questioning one’s own identity and existence. A complex and unconventional techno-noir that owes the works of Philip K Dick.
8 Reign of Fire (2002)
Reign of fire deserves praise for the fact that there is no such thing. To imagine Mad Max merged with How to train your dragon and it is still only scratching the surface of this guilty pleasure of a sci-fi adventure.
The action takes place in post-apocalyptic London; reduced to rubble by fire-breathing dragons with Christian Bale’s Fire Marshal Quinn leading the remaining community of survivors. Things change with the arrival of American hotshot Van Zan, played by a gloriously over-the-top Matthew McConaughey, who claims to know how to conquer the beasts. Tall, brash but a lot of fun.
7 Already seen (2006)
The late Tony Scott has reconnected with his Crimson Tide and Man on fire muse Denzel Washington for this time travel / action outing that’s just the bright side of the fun. Washington plays Doug Carlin, an ATF special agent on the trail of a criminal (Jim Caviezel) responsible for detonating deadly incendiary devices on several pedestrian ferries.
Carlin runs a top-secret program with access to technology that allows them to track an individual’s movements over the previous four days. However, he soon discovers that he has another interesting use: he can also send him back in time.
6 The Host (2006)
Long before gaining international fame with Parasite, Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho first broke western audiences with this feature film of a creative creature. When a random U.S. military pathologist dumps dangerous chemicals into the Han River, he unwittingly creates breeding ground for the Gwoemul, a monstrous aquatic creature that develops a liking to local residents.
When the creature ends up grabbing a young girl, it’s up to her father, played by Parasite‘s Song Kang-ho, to save her. A mixture of scares, giggles and social comments, The host is an endlessly inventive thrill ride.
5 The Cell (2000)
Thesilenceofthelambs meets Alice in Wonderland in this vividly imagined thriller from visionary director Tarsem Singh. Jennifer Lopez delivers the best performance of her career as Catherine Deane, a psychotherapist at the forefront of a revolutionary treatment that allows her to enter the mind of the patient.
The FBI apprehended Carl Stargher (Vincent D’Onofrio), a troubled lender who kidnapped women and slowly drowned them. Stargher has fallen into a coma, so they need Catherine to enter his twisted mind to find her latest victim before time runs out. A disturbing and visually distinctive sci-fi odyssey.
4 Series 7: The Suitors (2001)
A brutal dismantling of the reality TV shows that dominated the start of the new millennium, Series 7: The Suitors mixes dark humor with dystopian chills for a thrilling effect. It centers around “The Contenders,†a fictional hit reality TV show where six people are randomly chosen to take down until only one champion survives.
Brooke Smith, better known as Catherine Martin in Thesilenceofthelambs, plays Dawn, a tough mother-to-be and defending champion taking on five other contenders. A gritty, entertaining, and a lot of fun satire that asks serious questions about society’s unhealthy fascination with reality TV.
3 The Core (2003)
A throwback to the stupid explosive fun of movies like Armageddon, The core takes the action underground rather than space for a silly but charming B movie adventure with a top-tier cast.
Aaron Eckhart plays Dr Josh Keyes, a geophysicist who discovers the Earth’s inner core has stopped spinning in a development that could have catastrophic consequences for everyone above. The solution? Send a team of top scientists played by great actors such as Stanley Tucci, Delroy Lindo and DJ Qualls with two astronauts (Hilary Swank and Bruce Greenwood) to detonate a device and restart the nucleus.
2 Player (2009)
Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor have taken action to reach exciting new extremes with Crank before turning to science fiction with this innovative adventure full of irony starring Gerard Butler. Butler plays Kable, a death row inmate who fights with fellow inmates in violent crime Loss-like an online video game called “Slayers”.
Mind control technology means that every move of Kable is controlled by a player called Simon and overseen by game creator Ken Castle (Michael C. Hall). The rules are simple: if Kable accumulates 30 wins, he buys his freedom. But a vengeful Kable has bigger things on his mind.
1 A Dark Scanner (2006)
One of Philip K Dick’s best adaptations and a highlight for multi-talented Richard Linklater, A dark scanner is an ambitious and brilliantly directed cinematic journey that ranks among the most underrated sci-fi movies of the 2000s. It centers on Keanu Reeves as Robert Arctor, an undercover cop developing a dangerous addiction to a newcomer. type of narcotic.
Responsible for finding a large dealer, he finds himself instead on a journey that leads him to question his existence. Boasting a superb cast and filmed using a unique interpolated rotoscoping technique, this is a complex and challenging top-notch sci-fi story.
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