Science fiction has long been a favorite subject of Hollywood film makers. Great science fiction movies were being made as early as the 1930s and have provided a solid foundation for modern day science fiction. Let’s take a closer look at just a few of these Hollywood Science Fiction Classics.

‘The Invisible Man’ was released in 1933 and was directed by James Whale. Based on the H.G. Wells novel of the same name, it tells the story of scientist Dr. Jack Griffin who has invented a serum that makes him completely invisible.

However, the serum comes with the terrible side effect of gradually driving its user insane. Under its influence, Dr. Griffin robs and kills a number of people. A very creepy film that starts out with a good deal of humor, but settles in to become deadly serious. The film features convincing special effects for a movie produced in the 1930s.

One of my favorite science fiction classics is ‘Forbidden Planet,’ directed by Fred M. Wilcox. Released in 1956, this is perhaps the most highly regarded sci-fi film of the 1950s. It tells the story of Dr. Edward Morbius and his daughter Altaira who are the last two remaining survivors of a colonization attempt on the planet Altair-4.

It is the year 2200 and a group of scientists on a space mission from Earth have just landed in search of Dr. Morbius and the previous missions crew. They find Dr. Morbius to be somewhat unreceptive to their arrival, as he wishes to remain isolated in order to continue his work studying the numerous remains of a once-flourishing society of Krell which is now extinct.

Using Krell technology, Morbius is able to greatly increase his IQ, and in doing so has brought to life a mysterious creature through his own subconscious mind. This is classic 1950s Sci-fi, and introduced what is probably the most popular robot of all-time – Robbie the robot.

Last, but certainly not least, we have 'War Of The Worlds', based on another H.G. Wells novel of the same name. This spectacular movie was released in 1953 and featured breath-taking special effects that were rewarded with an Oscar.

The plot revolves around a meteor crashing near a small town in the California Mountains. However, this is something more than just a meteor with many more having landed around the globe. These meteors are carrying Martians with the intention of destroying the unsuspecting human population.

Seemingly unstoppable, they begin to destroy the major cities of the world. All manor of defense, including the Atomic Bomb, are tried without success. Can anything stop this Martian invasion? Easily one of the greatest science fiction movies of the 1950s.

It was classic science fiction movies like these that helped kick start a whole new genre of films that capture our imagination to this day.