The 1970s saw a lot of interesting science fiction movies hit the theaters. It also saw a lot of bad ones. Some companies thought they could put anything on the screen and make a few bucks.

One of my favorite movies of this era was Colossus: The Forbin Project. It came out in 1971 and was directed by Joseph Sargent and starred Eric Braden. In some ways we might be heading in the direction the movie suggested. It is about a supercomputer which is given control over deciding when to launch our nuclear missiles. The computer is encased inside a mountain and is impervious to weapons, so when it decides to act on its own, no one can stop it. It seems the Soviets also have a similar computer called Guardian and Colossus decides to establish communication with it and locks it creator Dr. Forbin in his smart home. The computer is connected to a voice synthesiser and announces it and Guardian are now one system. The computer takes on human characteristics and gives the famous line, “freedom is just an illusion” and says “In time you will come to regard me not only with respect and awe, but with love.” Dr. Forbin answers. “Never!” I think this movie is a must see for all Sci-Fi fans.

Another very good science fiction movie came out in 1971 called The Andromeda Strain. It was directed by Robert Wise and starred James Olson, Arthur Hill and David Wayne. A deadly alien virus is spreading across the country and scientists don’t seem to be able to stop it. The story was written by Michael Crichton and was responsible for his establishment as a great writer. The disease came to earth on one of our fallen satellites and it kills everyone where it lands. We are talking about everyone in the town of Piedmont, Arizona. A government project is launched called Wildfire meant to deal with such a situation. When the bodies are examined it is found the residents either died instantly or went slowly nuts. The movie deals with some of the fears about satellites falling back to earth and what we could do to stop an alien virus. It has great effects and plenty of suspense.

Another of my favorites came out in 1971. The title was the The Omega Man. The director was Boris Sagal and the movie starred Charlton Heston. Usually a remake is not as good as the original. In this case the original was The Last Man On Earth. This remake had a lot more money put into it and I believe the story was improved. Heston is a military doctor who has been inoculated with a test drug. He thinks everyone else on earth is infected with a disease which has caused them to go crazy and reject technology and they are all after him since he is still normal. They are sensitive to light so they come out every night and attack his fortified building and every day he goes out and shoots them where ever he can find them.

Silent Running came out in 1972 and was a beautiful movie. It was directed by Douglas Trumbull and starred Bruce Dern. It was actually a warning to those who would destroy earth’s environment. In the future there are huge freighters with domes in space near Saturn. Their purpose is to house what is left of the trees and plants. Bruce Dern is a botanist and one of the people charged with taking care of the foliage and does so with the help of several service robots. Then the order comes from earth, jettison and blow up the domes and destroy what is left of earth’s trees and plants and put the freighters back into service. This is another must see movie.

1973 saw two very good science fiction movies come out. The first was Soyent Green. It was directed by Richard Fleischer and starred Charlton Heston and Edward G. Robinson. The world of the future is very overcrowded. In 2022 New York City has a population of over 40 million people. Half are unemployed and the streets are full of homeless. Even those with jobs are barely making it. Food is scarce and the Soyent Corporation is manufacturing green wafers that most people need for food. The company says the wafer known as Soyent Green contains high-energy plankton, but Heston has stumbled across a terrifying fact.

The other really good movie was Westworld. It was written and directed by Michael Crichton and starred Yul Brynner as a robotic gunslinger gone wrong along with Richard Benjamin and James Brolin. Brynner was a great actor and his portrayal of the robot is downright chilling. Benjamin goes to a future Disney World type park only this one has very human like robots who will do anything you want. The park is divided into different worlds and he visits Westworld. Brynner the robotic gunslinger is challenged by Benjamin dressed as a fast gun after being told by Brolin there is no danger, but things don’t turn out as expected and all the robots in the park go crazy.

Rollerball came out in 1974 and a whole new sport was invented for the film. It was directed by Norman Jewison and starred James Caan and John Houseman. The future world is a completely different place and it is run by corporations not countries. To keep people’s minds off things the corporations sponsor Rollerball and Caan is its greatest star. The idea of the game is to prove no one can win and yet he leads his team to victory every time and is becoming a hero to the people. The corporation calls him in and wants him to retire but he refuses. After this event the corporation keeps changing the rules to make the game more dangerous, but Caan keeps playing.

We can’t forget Logan’s Run. It came out in 1976. It was directed by Michael Anderson and starred Michael York. People in the future have a great life, but they are the remnants of society and live in a domed city. A computer runs the city. At 30 years old they have to endure the ritual of Carrousel. They are told they are renewed, but they are really vaporized. York escapes and is pursued by what is known as a Sandman. Logan is also a Sandman and is beginning to suspect there is more to the Carrousel then renewal.

Capricorn One came out in 1977, but some say 1978. It was directed by Peter Hyams and starred Elliott Gould, James Brolin and Brenda Vaccaro. Astronauts have been training for a mission to Mars, but the government decides to fake it. There is a problem and it is with the astronauts. The government doesn’t want them to let the cat out of the bag and they are hunted down with the ultimate goal of killing them. This film is a conspiracy theorists dream and some will say there is some truth behind it.

The next movie which came out in 1977 is considered one of the greatest. It is Close Encounters Of The Third Kind. It was written and directed by Steven Spielberg and starred Richard Dreyfuss, François Truffaut and Teri Garr. Probably everyone out there knows the plot, but I will go over it anyway. A line worker has a UFO encounter and then feels drawn to an isolated area in the wilderness. He is being consumed by this idea and finally has to leave to find it. When he gets to the area he finds a huge government project which is contacting a UFO which is landing.

Another big film came out in 1977 and I am sure you are also familiar with this one. It was Star Wars. It was written and directed by George Lucas and starred Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher along with James Earl Jones. The evil Darth Vader is the leader of the Imperial Forces which are trying to destroy the rebels and have captured Princess Leia. Hamill discovers his father was a Jedi Knight and goes off to train to become one and meets Han Solo and Chewbacca who all eventually join forces. They attack a partially built moon sized battle station known as the Death Star which has the power to destroy planets and is run by the Imperial Force. Of course they rescue princess Lia first.

In 1978 The Boys From Brazil was released. It was directed by Franklin J. Schaffner and starred Gregory Peck, Laurence Olivier and James Mason. With such a powerful cast it just cannot be ignored. There is a plot by the Nazis to restore them to power. It turns out Dr. Josef Mengele is still alive and living in Paraguay and he has cloned Hitler many times over and these children are now growing up and almost ready to launch a new Nazi era. The acting is superb and the story is very interesting.

The same year saw another very famous science fiction movie come out and that was The Invasion Of The Body Snatchers. This one scared many a child. It was a remake of a 1956 movie of the same name. It was directed by Philip Kaufman and starred Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams and Jeff Goldblum and was at least as good as the original. People are being replaced by aliens who are grown from pods and look just like the people they replace. The goal is to replace the entire human race. The alien’s world is dying and earth looks very inviting to them. The only way you can tell the difference between the original person and the replacement is the replacement is devoid of emotions.

Okay I admit it, I absolutely loved this film and think it is one of the greats. I am talking about a 1979 movie directed by Ridley Scott and staring Sigourney Weaver called Alien. Following a distress call a space freighter lands on an unexplored planet. They never should have done that and even worse they find big eggs and bring them aboard. The bulk of the movie is about what happens after the eggs hatch. They produce monsters that cannot be killed. No matter what the crew does including spacing one, that is sending it into space while it is attached to a line, doesn’t kill the creature. This is not only one of the all-time great science fiction movies, but probably one of the best horror movies as well.

The last movie I consider very good from the 1970s was released in 1979 and is Time After Time. It was directed by Nicholas Meyer and starred Malcolm McDowell, Mary Steenburgen and David Warner. H.G. Wells is after Jack the Ripper in 1893, but he escapes using Wells’ time machine. He goes into the future, but Wells has a device to bring back the time machine and gets it back and goes to the same point in the future the Ripper did and pursues him. The Ripper and Wells battle it out as Wells chases him. There is a lot going for this film and I recommend it.