First Man takes a quieter, more personal look at Neil Armstrong, showing the toll the space race took on him and his family. Ryan Gosling plays Armstrong with a reserved, almost distant edge, which makes the moon landing feel both intimate and monumental. It’s not the rousing drama some expected, but as a portrait of the first man on the Moon, it has a unique place among space films. | © Universal Pictures
Apollo 11 isn’t a dramatization – it’s the real thing, told through stunningly restored 70mm footage of the moon landing. Watching it feels less like a documentary and more like being dropped right into 1969, standing shoulder to shoulder with history. It’s simple, powerful, and one of the most awe-inspiring space films you’ll ever see. | © Universal Studios
Alien still feels just as sharp and unsettling today as it did in 1979. The ship looks lived-in and real, the cast plays it straight, and H.R. Giger’s creature design is the stuff of nightmares. It’s part horror, part sci-fi, and part art film – the kind of movie that set the standard for everything that came after. | © 20th Century Studios
Guardians of the Galaxy is pure fun from start to finish. The music, the colors, the dumb jokes, and the big action scenes all come together in the best way. Even if you’re not into Marvel movies, this one feels different, more laid-back, and it’s the kind of space adventure you can throw on again and again without getting tired of it. | © Walt Disney Pictures
Interstellar pushed space movies into a whole new league with Christopher Nolan’s mix of spectacle and emotion. Matthew McConaughey leads a mission through wormholes and distant planets, while the film balances scientific ideas with the story of a father fighting to see his daughter again. It’s breathtaking, heartbreaking, and already feels like a modern classic. | © Paramount Pictures
The Wrath of Khan is often called the best Star Trek movie, and for good reason. William Shatner’s Kirk faces both his own aging and the return of an old enemy, played with scene-stealing flair by Ricardo Montalbán. Even if you’re not a Trekkie, it’s a tight, emotional space adventure that stands on its own as one of the greats. | © Paramount Pictures
Treasure Planet took Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic tale and launched it into space with bold animation. Blending 2D and early CGI, Disney created a unique world of solar-sailing ships and alien outlaws. It didn’t find its audience at release, but it’s since become a cult favorite and one of the most creative space adventures ever made. | © Walt Disney Pictures
Outland put Sean Connery on one of Saturn’s moons for a gritty mix of sci-fi and western. As a lone marshal facing corruption and danger in a mining colony, the film plays like High Noon in space. It’s tense, rough around the edges, and still a cult favorite for fans of Connery and classic space thrillers. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
A Trip to the Moon is where space movies began. Georges Méliès used groundbreaking tricks and set design to imagine a lunar voyage decades before rockets were real, giving us the famous image of the capsule landing in the Moon’s eye. Over a century later, it’s still magical to watch and remains the foundation for everything that followed. | © Star-Film
The Right Stuff tells the story of America’s first astronauts with the kind of scope and detail that makes history feel alive. Ed Harris shines as John Glenn, and the whole cast brings both humor and humanity to these larger-than-life figures. It’s long, but never dull, a true classic about the people who turned the Space Race into legend. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
WALL·E proved that a nearly wordless robot story could be one of Pixar’s most emotional films. The opening minutes alone, just a lonely robot cleaning up Earth and discovering love, feel unforgettable. With gorgeous visuals and themes about hope, humanity, and caring for the planet, it’s both a space adventure and a modern classic. | © Walt Disney Pictures
Galaxy Quest is both a love letter and a parody of Star Trek and its fandom. A washed-up cast of TV space heroes suddenly has to become the real thing when aliens mistake their show for reality. With a sharp cast and plenty of heart, it turned into one of the funniest and most beloved space comedies ever made. | © Universal Studios
Star Wars: A New Hope turned space adventure into a global phenomenon. Luke, Leia, Han, and Darth Vader became household names, backed by a world so rich it felt real from the very first scene. With John Williams’ unforgettable score and groundbreaking visuals for its time, it set the standard for every space movie that followed. | © 20th Century Studios
The Martian makes survival on Mars feel both terrifying and surprisingly funny. Matt Damon carries the film as an astronaut left behind, transforming disco music, potatoes, and sheer determination into tools for survival. It’s grounded in real science, full of heart, and one of the most entertaining space stories ever put on screen. | © 20th Century Studios
2001: A Space Odyssey isn’t just a movie; it’s the space epic that changed cinema forever. Kubrick’s haunting vision of monoliths, HAL 9000, and humanity’s leap into the unknown made space feel both breathtaking and terrifying. Decades later, its imagery and ideas remain the gold standard for science fiction. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
Space has always been one of the biggest stages for storytelling, whether it’s about survival, discovery, or just pure imagination. Over the years, filmmakers have taken us from the Moon to distant galaxies, giving us movies that feel larger than life. These are the space films that stuck with us, the ones everyone remembers.
