Science fiction is one of the most well-liked film genres that appeal to viewers of all ages. As a result, many science fiction films are made each year to satisfy its devoted fan base with creative stories, brilliant performances, and cutting-edge technology.
Given those sci-fi movies frequently feature advanced technologies, an intriguing future, and elaborate scientific facts, some viewers are immediately let down because the genre encompasses more than simply these specifics, including politics, philosophy, or how the filmmakers choose to approach their subjects. Whenever a science fiction film deviates from what the audience often expects, the film will be immediately received poorly. Critics and viewers may conflict at such a point because the critics may see the film’s potential that the viewers may easily overlook for entertainment.
10 ‘Ad Astra’ (2019)
Critic Score: 83% / Audience Score: 40%
Ad Astra centers on an astronaut, played by Brad Pitt, who travels to the edge of space in search of his father (Tommy Lee Jones), whose obsessive search for intelligent alien species threatens the Solar System and all life on Earth.
The movie is exciting, daring, and stunning while simultaneously raising serious philosophical and emotional issues for viewers. The film’s slow pace and philosophical treatment of a challenging subject matter could be to blame for its failure to engage viewers. In contrast, in addition to the film’s important message and engaging storytelling, critics laud Pitt’s superb performance the most.
9 ‘Ghostbusters’ (2016)
Critics Score: 73% / Audience Score: 49%
Rebooting the 1984 film of the same name and serving as the third film in the Ghostbusters franchise, 2016 Ghostbusters centers on four eccentric ladies who launch a ghost-catching business in New York City. They are then joined by their inept helper, played by Chris Hemsworth.
Ghostbusters (2016) tried to give the male-led comedy a new, entertaining twist with Hemsworth playing a silly sidekick instead of a lead and a brilliant breakout performance by Kate McKinnon. However, the movie was doomed even before production began since the original 1984 movie fans would not accept the reboot despite having a solid comedy and performances from the lead cast.
8 ‘War of the Worlds’ (2005)
Critics Score: 75% / Audience Score: 42%
Based on H. G. Wells‘ 1898 novel of the same name, War of the Worlds centers on an American longshoreman (Tom Cruise) who must fend for his children as he fights to keep them safe and reunite them with their mother when aliens attack Earth and obliterate cities with massive war machines.
Despite being extremely influential, continuously inventive, packed with heart and elegant formal trickery, and upholding the exact standards of a Steven Spielberg production, the film is still poorly received by the audiences for several reasons, including an uneven plot.
7 ‘Under the Skin’ (2013)
Critic Score: 84% / Audience Score: 55%
Loosely based on the 2000 novel of the same name by Michel Faber, Under the Skin follows an alien who inhabits a young woman’s (Scarlett Johannson) form in Scotland as she searches the streets and roads for the human prey she came to pillage. She lures her abandoned and alone men into an ethereal realm where they are stripped and devoured.
According to critics, the movie is one of the most singularly engrossing movie-watching experiences, featuring captivating imagery and hypnotic music. Yet, the film disappoints many spectators due to its incredibly slow pace and cerebral theme that delves into complex subject matters.
6 ‘Splice’ (2009)
Critics Score: 75% / Audience Score: 37%
Splice follows two young, disobedient scientists (Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley) who are ordered by their employers to stop their ground-breaking study in which they have created new creatures with therapeutic benefits by fusing the DNA of several organisms. They make the decision to covertly carry on with their work, adding human DNA this time.
Although it seems like a fairly simple plot, the actual movie provides the viewers with more in the innovative way of shivers and scares. Yet, some viewers find that this film has way too many scares and that the dialogue is arrogant and false, negatively impacting their enjoyment of the picture.
5 ‘The Nutty Professor’ (1996)
Critics Score: 64% / Audience Score: 44%
The Nutty Professor follows Professor Sherman Klump (Eddie Murphy), who is morbidly obese and kind and developed an experimental formula that rebuilds a person’s DNA to help someone lose weight more quickly. He immediately drops 250 pounds, but as a side effect, he develops a second personality: Buddy Love, a loudly boastful braggart.
The movie is considered by fans to spend too much time trying to make people laugh and not enough time criticizing the culture’s weight obsession and fat shaming. In contrast, The Nutty Professor garnered favorable reviews, with critics appreciating Murphy’s acting and the makeup in particular.
4 ‘Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome’ (1985)
Critics Score: 81% / Audience Score: 49%
Set in post-apocalyptic Australia, Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is the third film in the Mad Max franchise that continues to follow the titular character, played by Mel Gibson, a lone wandering warrior banished to the desert and comes across a remote child cargo cult there that is dedicated to a wrecked Boeing 747 and its slain pilot.
The film is praised for its strong suspense and thrilling railroad chase that concludes the trilogy and beautifully recalls the other outlandish antics. However, fans of the franchise disagree since the film doesn’t live up to its predecessors and tries to include a lot of concepts, but none of them really make sense.
3 ‘Vivarium’ (2019)
Critics Score: 73% / Audience Score: 39%
Vivarium follows a young couple who is considering purchasing their first home. Thus, they go to a real estate office where they are greeted by an odd salesperson who drives them to a single-family home in a brand-new, enigmatic, unusual housing complex. There, they are entangled in a bizarre maze-like nightmare.
Many reviewers consider Vivarium to be a scathingly satirical and surreal satire on gender roles, losing oneself to parenthood, societal expectations, and commercialized notions of happiness. Yet, according to viewers, the movie’s plot is predictable, dull, and slow-moving, which makes viewers disinterested in watching it through to the end.
2 ‘Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow’ (2004)
Critics Score: 70% / Audience Score: 46%
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow follows a fearless reporter (Gwyneth Paltrow) in New York City in 1939 who connects the dots between the subject she’s covering—famous scientists are mysteriously disappearing around the globe—and a recent robot attack on the city. She turns to her ex-boyfriend (Jude Law), the captain of a mercenary legion of pilots, for assistance in her quest to discover the cause of these events.
The film is a thrilling homage to matinee serials from the 1930s, which is drenched in pure escapism across every frame. Yet, it wasn’t enough to keep viewers entertained: it felt too heavy on exposition and had a corny tone, ruining many viewers’ experience.
1 ‘The Arrival’ (1996)
Critics Score: 66% / Audience Score: 44%
The Arrival follows the young and cordial astronomer Zane (Charlie Sheen), who finds an extraterrestrial radio signal. He risks learning the truth: his job is not what it seems and a terrible conspiracy is at play, getting sacked from his organization for telling his supervisor about it. Meanwhile, the aliens are hiding a lethal secret, and they will do anything to prevent Zane from finding out.
The writing in the movie is tight and powerful, moving rapidly with nothing going to waste, and nothing going as the audience would anticipate. Fans, nevertheless, believe that The Arrival is an ineffective amalgam of Men in Black and Contact with a clumsy alien introduction and narrative, giving it a terrible audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
