So, we have looked at the best science fiction books and movies, but how about the worst? I have scoured the net looking for the worst of the worst, and after a lot of tough decision making, here it is! The ten worst science fiction films ever made - with youtube clips! Ordered from worst to worstest. [Yes, I know that is bad English.]
10. Star Trek: The Final Frontier, Director: William Shatner [1989]
I had to include at least one Star Trek film. It was a tough pick between this and Nemsis, but this one wins. The crew of the Federation starship Enterprise is called to Nimbus III, the Planet of Intergalactic Peace. They are to negotiate in a case of kidnapping only to find out that the kidnapper is a relative of Spock. This man is possessed by his life long search for the planet Shaka-Ri which is supposed to be the source of all life. Together they begin to search for this mysterious planet
9. Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, Director: Sidney Furie [1987]
The clip is short - but you get the point - falling in space? What happened to gravity? Lex Luthor steals a hair of Superman’s head from a museum and uses it to create Nuclear Man, an android that gets energy from the Sun. His purpose of course is to use him as a weapon to kill Superman, so that Luthor will be free to realize his criminal plans.
8. Frankenstein Conquers the World, Director: Ishirô Honda [1965]
During WWII, a human heart taken from a certain lab in Europe (Dr. Frankenstein’s) is kept in a Japanese lab, when it gets exposed to the radiation of the bombing of Hiroshima. The heart grows in size, mutates and sprouts appendages, and eventually grows into a complete body and escapes. Later, a feral boy with a certain physical deformity (a large head with a flat top) is captured by scientists who refer to the boy as Frankenstein. The creature grows to the height of 20 feet, escapes again, fights police and army, and is practically indestructible. Later, a reptilian monster goes on a rampage. Eventually the Frankenstein creature and the reptile face off in a terrible battle.
7. Robot Monster, Director: Phil Tucker [1953]
Watching this clip, I think I understand why women were not in the military in 1953! The Robot Monster has been sent to Earth as the advance party of an impending invasion. Ordered by The Great One to capture several humans, the Robot Monster becomes confused once it learns more about humans.
6. Sant Claus Conquers the Martians, Director: Nicholas Webster [1964]
My favorite line: Martian1: “You stay away from those children!” Martian 2: “That will be easy to do. They’ve escaped!”. Martians, upset that their children have become obsessed with TV shows from Earth which extoll the virtues of Santa Claus, start an expedition to Earth to kidnap the one and only Santa. While on Earth, they kidnap two lively children that lead the group of Martians to the North Pole and Santa. The Martians then take Santa and the two children back to Mars with them.
5. Monster a go-go, Director: Bill Rebane [1965]
“When you walk out, you will wonder what you have seen!” - I think the voice-over guy was having a premonition! An astronaut comes back to Earth and crashes in a field, incredibly irradiated and wreaking havoc. Just as they have him cornered, he disappears, and the “real” astronaut is found 7,500 miles away in the Pacific Ocean, “alive, well, and of normal size.”
4. Turks in Space (Dünyayı Kurtaran Adam in Oglu), Director: Kartal Tibet [2006]
Hmm - where have I seen those light-sabers before? This one is so bad that I can’t even find a synopsis for it! I will just say, this is rated the 6th worst film by IMDB (including non-SF films).
3. Plan 9 from Outer Space, Director: Edward D Wood Jr [1959]
“Can your heart stand the shocking facts about Graverobbers from Outer Space?” That’s the question on the lips of the narrator of this tale about flying saucers, zombies and cardboard tombstones. A pair of aliens, angered by the “stupid minds” of planet Earth, set up shop in a California cemetery. Their plan: to animate an army of the dead to march on the capitals of the world. (The fact that they have only managed to resurrect three zombies to date has not discouraged them.)
2. The Beast of Yucca Flats, Director: Coleman Francis [1961]
A defecting Russian scientist is transformed by an atomic test into a hulking monster, Tor Johnson, of course. Not much else except some people are killed, boys get lost, and a rabbit sniffs Tor’s corpse. If you liked the clip, watch the whole thing here.
1. Battlefield Earth, Director: Roger Christian [2000]
How could this have not been a disaster? It is effectively a Scientology advert in film format. Someone put together a nice little clip of the best/worst bits so I have used that here. In the year 3000, man is no match for the Psychlo’s, a greedy, manipulative race of aliens on a quest for ultimate profit. Led by the seductive and powerful Terl (Travolta), the Psychlo’s are stripping Earth clean of its natural resources, using the broken remnants of humanity as slaves. What is left of the human race has descended into a near primitive state, believing the invaders to be demons and technology to be evil.