Movies about disasters—natural or human-made—have been produced since the earliest days of film. As early as 1916, a disaster with an extraterrestrial cause was touted inThe End of the World, a Danish film about a passing comet causing chaos and terror on Earth. But most stories about disasters being visited upon our planet from outer space involve aliens, not comets.
A comet has no agency, no malignant intent… on the other hand, alien invaders want to conquer humans, enslave the world, and consume humanity’s precious resources before laying waste to the entire surface of the planet.What follows are the top alien invasion movies that manage to capture this horror, ranked according to their scores on Rotten Tomatoes.
35. ‘Independence Day’ (1996)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 68%
Most likely the first film that comes to mind whenever fans mention alien invasion,Independence Dayrevolves around a massive alien invasion on Earth, where humanity must unite to combat a technologically advanced and formidable extraterrestrial force.
With an A-list cast includingWill Smith,Jeff Goldblum, andBill Pullman,the film beautifully combines thrilling aerial warfare, high-stakes action, and heroic moments, giving fans a treat for the eyes. Also, the White House being demolished by an alien spacecraft is still remembered for its famous image.
Independence Day
34. ‘Earth vs. the Flying Saucers’ (1956)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 73%
Most definitely a film of its time, 1956’sEarth vs. the Flying Saucersmade the most of the 1950s obsession with alien spacecraft and helped launch a bevy of similar films all revolving—in a manner of speaking—around flying saucers. In this film, at least, the aliens at first have no intention of invading, but after being met with violence when they first land, retaliate ruthlessly.
Special effects legendRay Harryhausen created the flying saucerswith stop-motion animation that was very effective for its time, one reason why this is still regarded as a seminal and ground-breaking alien invasion film. Even now, there’s still some value in watching this sci-fi classic, if only to see the iconic imagery.
Earth vs. the Flying Saucers
33. ‘War of the Worlds’ (2005)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 75%
The beloved sci-fi action film,War of the Worlds, isSteven Spielberg’s 2005 version ofH. G. Wells' classic story. It seems entirely fitting that a director with Spielberg’s ability to make the epic personal should craft a film where the concerns of a single man, Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise), should focus the attention of the audience while the world around him succumbs toone of the most horrifying and cinematically glorious alien invasions ever put on the big screen.
Although Ferrier’s family life can sometimes seem overly melodramatic, it all makes sense in those scenes where his children are threatened. The escape from the Hudson River ferry, for example, when the giant striding Martian machines wreak havoc and slaughter, must have had even the most jaded sci-fi critic looking for a bigger box of popcorn to hide behind.
War of The Worlds
32. ‘Signs’ (2002)
Though today he’s known as one of Hollywood’s most hit-or-miss directors, back in his early days,M. Night Shyamalanwas one of the most exciting young voices in the industry. He cemented his title as such with 2002’sSigns, a mystery sci-fi drama where a widowed former reverend living with his children and brother on a Pennsylvania farm finds mysterious crop circles in the fields, suggesting something more frightening to come.
Signsis still remembered as one of the best Hollywood sci-fi films of the 2000s, as well as one ofthe best sci-fi thrillers of all time.On Rotten Tomatoes, critics praised Shyamalan’s unique suspense-building skills, labeling it as a future classic, which it has certainly proved to be. Scary, deeply meaningful, and surprisingly influential, it’s one of its director’s defining works.
31. ‘Quatermass 2’ (1957)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 78%
With a screenplay byNigel Knealebased on his television series of the same name, 1957’sQuatermass 2was one of the earliest sci-fi filmsproduced by Britain’s Hammer studios. The film has a straightforward narrative about aliens taking over humans, in this instance to help build and keep secret a giant base to house and protect the invaders.
What makesQuatermass 2special is the way it uses suspicion and paranoia to propel the narrative along, helping to paper over some gaping holes in the story’s logic and scientific plausibility. All in all, it’s a great deal of fun with several scenes of real horror and growing dread.
Quatermass 2
30. ‘Cloverfield’ (2008)
Cloverfieldis a found footage-style monster thriller film that follows a group of friends in New York City who are documenting a farewell party when a massive monster suddenly attacks the city. The film captures their attempt to survive and navigate the chaos as they make their way through the devastated streets, battling not only the monster but also other terrifying creatures that have been released.
Cloverfieldstands out in its genre for its distinctive use of discovered material, compelling plot, and tense setting. Additionally, the film generates a realistic sense of anxiety for viewers by concentrating on the views of common people caught up in a tragic occurrence. The film’s cryptic marketing materials and viral marketing strategy also increased its appeal and generated interest.
Cloverfield
29. ‘Predator’ (1987)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 80%
Predator, which was directed byJohn McTiernanand serves as the first installment in the same-name franchise, follows a group of elite commandos, led byArnold Schwarzeneggeras Major Alan “Dutch” Schaefer, who find themselves being hunted in the dense jungles of Central America by an invisible and technologically advanced alien creature.
The movie becamea new benchmark for the sci-fi action genre as well as the alien invasion subgenre thanks to its tight action scenes, catchy one-liners, and the intimidating presence of the Predator. People were hooked on the fascinating premise that they’ve been able to draw even more stories from over the years.
28. ‘Super 8’ (2011)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 81%
For fans of Steven Spielberg, there are very few filmmakers with a body of work as guaranteed to be enjoyable asJ.J. Abrams’s. Throughout his entire career, Abrams has been constantly compared to the father of summer blockbusters, and it’s all thanks to movies as incredible asSuper 8(which was actually produced by Spielberg). This alien invasion movie is a conspiracy thriller where, during the summer of 1979, a group of friends witness a train crash and investigate subsequent unexplained events in their small town.
Very much in the same vein asStranger Things,Super 8is full of nostalgia of the era, but is much more than just a trip down memory lane. A celebration of childhood, filmmaking, and love,it’s a movie as emotionally stirring as it is terrifying and exhilarating. The cast of children does an amazing job, and Abrams’s direction has never been more consistently energetic and creative than here.
27. ‘Avatar’ (2009)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 82%
Not only hasJames Cameron’s 2009 blockbuster become the highest-grossing film of all time, but its sequelAvatar: The Way of Wateris alreadythe 4th highest-grossing film of all time. And make no mistake, this is one of cinema’s alien invasion filmspar excellence, it’s just that in this case, the aliens are humans who are bent on conquest and exploitation.
If the story is sometimes a tad predictable, it’s no mean trick to shift an audience’s perceptions so they end up rooting for the blue-skinned Na’vi instead of the equivalent of the colonial marines. Cameron, who wrote as well as directedAvatar, pulls it off ina film where the special effects truly and literally made the world.
26. ‘Superman II’ (1980)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 83%
The incredible 1978 gemSupermangave birth to the superhero movie as audiences know it today.Its sequel,Superman II, is nearly as great, and that’s saying an awful lot. In it, Superman agrees to sacrifice his powers to start a relationship with Lois, but three Kryptonian criminals he unknowingly released are hell-bent on conquering Earth.
Bigger, more ambitious, and every bit as entertaining as its predecessor, this isas good as superhero movie sequels get. Critics on Rotten Tomatoes were able to overlook some of the movie’s more dated aspects, from the humor to the special effects, and saw an adventurous, delightfully silly masterpiece with a couple of outstanding villains inGene Hackman’s Lex Luthor andTerence Stamp’s General Zod. Even decades later, with the Superman mythos being much more mainstream and having been explored plenty of times in cinema, this remains one of the hero’s most exciting outings.
