Journey Through Sci-Fi: Science Fiction Film History

David Bowie lands in New Mexico, a visitor who speaks only in musical tones lands on a foggy Scottish moor, and we don't treat either of them very well. Episode 5 of We Come In Peace, our series on the friendly alien, pairs Edgar G. Ulmer's 1951 B-movie with Nicolas Roeg's cult classic. 

In this episode:
- A 1951 alien film shot in six days on leftover Joan of Arc sets
- Californian Scots, and a Scotland Yard in the wrong country
- An alien who talks in music, 26 years before Close Encounters 
- Bowie's first st...

The 27th Day (1957) and The Space Children (1958). Two films that hand humanity a weapon and
watch what happens next.

Journey Through Sci-Fi continues We Come in Peace, our series tracing the history of friendly
aliens on screen. This time, one alien picks five adults at random and gives them all the power
to end the world. The other skips the adults entirely and goes to the children.

First, The 27th Day. Five strangers from five countries are abducted, handed capsules that can
kill every human within 3,000 miles, and dropped straight back...

It Came from Outer Space (1953) and Warning from Space (1956). Two sets of aliens who mean us no
harm, and both decide the safest thing to do is put on a human face.

Journey Through Sci-Fi continues We Come in Peace, our series tracing the history of friendly
aliens on screen. This time, two films where the visitors are not hostile, and nobody believes it
until they see it with their own eyes.

First, Ray Bradbury's desert. A meteor that isn't a meteor, an amateur astronomer nobody listens
to, and townspeople going...

The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) and its 2008 remake. The alien who comes in peace and brings a threat with him.

Journey Through Sci-Fi continues We Come in Peace, our series tracing the history of friendly aliens on screen. This time, the foundational one. A saucer lands on a Washington baseball field, a man walks out with a gift and a message, and he is shot for it inside a minute.

Klaatu is polite, patient and 78 years old in a 35 year old body. Behind him stands Gort, seven foot seven of rubber suit and near...

Where does the friendly alien begin? Not with E.T., but with a Martian exiled to Edwardian London to reform the most selfish man alive.

Journey Through Sci-Fi returns with a brand new series. We Come in Peace traces the history of friendly aliens on screen. In this opener we set out the stall: what makes a visitor friendly rather than hostile, why everything gets measured against E.T., and how one mistranslated Italian word put Martians in our heads.

Then we go back to 1913 and A Message from Mars, widely held to be the...

Some of them came to warn us. Some of them just wanted to go home.

We Come in Peace is a new series from Journey Through Sci-Fi, tracing the friendly alien across a century of film and television. We start in the earliest days of visitors from other worlds and work our way to the present, asking how and why that image kept changing.

Along the way: The Day the Earth Stood Still, It Came from Outer Space, Warning from Space, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T., Starman, Cocoon, Alien Nation, Coneheads, Men...

New to Journey Through Sci-Fi? Start here.

Before we launch our next full series on friendly aliens, we're taking a journey back through the archive with a special starter pack episode, featuring some of our favourite clips from past series.

Across this episode, we revisit some of the biggest ideas in sci-fi cinema: the mythic storytelling of the original Star Wars trilogy, the artificial intelligence and uneasy humanity of Blade Runner, the time-loop perfection of Groundhog Day, the simulated reality of The Matrix, the collapsing world of Mad Max, and the haunted-house-in-space horror of Event H...

A little bonus transmission from the JTSF Patreon feed.

We've been chatting about Spielberg's Disclosure Day, and because our next main-feed series is all about the history of friendly aliens in sci-fi cinema, this felt like the perfect thing to share.

In this spoiler-light extract, we talk Spielberg returning to alien territory, why big first-contact movies feel rarer now, and how Disclosure Day turns the friendly alien story into something closer to a conspiracy thriller for the misinformation age.

The full spoiler episode is available now on Patreon, where we get into the...

We close out our Mad Science series the only way we know how: with a very serious, deeply prestigious and completely unofficial Mad Science Film Awards.

After 58 films and more than a century of sci-fi cinema, we look back at the scientists, monsters, labs, experiments and terrible decisions that defined the season.

From Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and The Invisible Man to The Fly, Re-Animator, Jurassic Park, Get Out and Poor Things, we trace how mad science evolved from gothic cautionary tales to atomic-age anxiety, body horror, corporate genetics, surveillance, consent and control.<...

This week on Journey Through Sci-Fi, we head into the Star Trek universe to explore one of its most enduring mad science taboos: genetic engineering. From Space Seed and the rise of Khan to Enterprise's Augments arc and Deep Space Nine's shocking Bashir reveal, we trace how Star Trek keeps returning to the dangers of trying to "improve" humanity.

Along the way, we get into the Eugenics Wars, creator-creation relationships, scientific hubris, and why a utopian future still casts a long shadow over forbidden science.

Plus: Brent Spiner being superbly awful, Bashir's identity crisis, and...

What happens when one of sci-fi's oldest stories is reimagined for a modern audience?

In this episode of Journey Through Sci-Fi, we return to the origin of mad science — Mary Shelley's Frankenstein — through two new adaptations: Frankenstein (2025), directed by Guillermo del Toro, and The Bride! (2026), directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal.

This isn't just another adaptation.

It's a full-circle moment for the genre.

From the obsessive creator who dares to make life… to the creation who refuses to belong to him, these films show how the Frankenstein myth has evolved over 200 years of scienc...

In this episode of Journey Through Sci-Fi, we dive into the terrifying idea of mad science controlling the human mind through two modern sci-fi horror films: Get Out (2017) and Possessor (2020).

Jordan Peele's Get Out hides a chilling science-fiction twist beneath its social horror story, revealing a sinister procedure designed to take over another person's body and consciousness. Meanwhile, Brandon Cronenberg's brutal cyberpunk thriller Possessor imagines a world where corporations use technology to possess people's minds and carry out assassinations.

We explore how both films tap into classic sci-fi ideas about identity, consciousness and control, while...

Two kidnappings and two grotesque transformations. 

Listener discretion advised...

This week on Journey Through Sci-Fi, we head into the grisliest corner of our Mad Science season as we explore The Human Centipede (2009) and Tusk (2014).

From Tom Six's clinically cold, torture-era nightmare to Kevin Smith's surreal walrus transformation, both films twist the mad scientist archetype into something deeply insular... not driven by progress, but by obsession.

In The Human Centipede, Dr Heiter's experiment is cold, clinical and cruel - a Frankenstein figure filtered through torture cinema.

In Tusk, Howard Howe i...

Two Marvel origin stories. Two very different mad scientists. Only one built a cinematic empire.

This week, we revisit Hulk (2003) and Iron Man (2008) to explore the science behind the superheroes and why one experiment failed while the other changed blockbuster cinema.

Ang Lee's Hulk is a tragic tale of inherited trauma, gamma radiation and fractured identity, a full-blown mad science horror hiding inside a superhero movie.

Iron Man flips the formula: no monster, no accident, just a billionaire engineer weaponising his own genius and building the future in a cave.

From Fr...

This week on Journey Through Sci-Fi, we're heading into murkier, creepier territory as we pair Mimic and Splice - two films that take mad science out of the lab and straight into body-horror nightmare fuel.

Directed by Guillermo del Toro and Vincenzo Natali, they arrive from very different moments in sci-fi cinema. Mimic comes out of the late-90s creature-feature era, mixing practical effects with early CGI and big studio ambition. Splice, released over a decade later, taps into anxieties around gene splicing, biotech, and scientists who really should know better.

We look back at the biggest sci-fi moments of 2025 — franchise returns, standout TV, Marvel's slump, DC's revival, and the auteur films that kept the genre interesting. From Superman and 28 Years Later to Severance and Alien: Earth, we break down what landed, what didn't, and what comes next for JTSF.

This week on Journey Through Sci-Fi, we revisit Flubber (1997) and The Nutty Professor (1996) to explore how both films became showcases for the 90s CGI boom.

We look at how early digital effects, morphing tech, ILM's rubbery animation, and ambitious makeup and prosthetics reshaped the mad-scientist trope for a family audience. From Eddie Murphy's multi-character transformations to Flubber's bouncy CGI flying rubber, we break down the moment Hollywood shifted from practical FX to digital spectacle and what effect it had on the depiction of Mad Science.

"Remember, no matter where you go… there you are."
This week on Journey Through Sci-Fi, we're looking at two very different visions of genius at work - one saving the world, the other stealing dreams. We discuss The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984) - now say that five times fast - and The City of Lost Children (La Cité des enfants perdus, 1995) to explore the heroes and villains of mad science.

We're back with another Future Frontiers episode, covering all the latest sci-fi hitting screens this month.

We chat about Predator: Badlands, Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein, Yorgos Lanthimos' Bugonia and the upcoming Running Man remake from Edgar Wright - plus we try to decode what on earth Vince Gilligan's mysterious new series Pluribus might be.

We also talk about what we've been watching lately - Peacemaker S2, Gen V, Foundation, and Demon Slayer - and tackle your big listener questions. Should The Thing and Predator start one minute later? 

Chapters

"Who's going to believe a talking head? Get a job in a sideshow!"
We're diving head-first (literally) into the weird world of Frankenstein's legacy once again, with Re-Animator (1985) and Poor Things (2023). From glowing green serums to brain-swapping brilliance, we explore how both films rewire the Frankenstein formula mixing horror, humour, and the eternal question of whether a mad science creation can ever truly go 'right'.

To celebrate the upcoming Predator: Badlands and the big-screen re-release of Prey on November 5th (for a very limited cinema run) we're bringing one of our favourite Patreon episodes to the main feed.

In this bonus epsiode we revisit Prey (2022), and discuss how it re-energised the franchise, why it works as sci-fi horror, and where it fits in the Predator legacy.

🩸 Predator: Badlands lands Nov 7 — we'll be covering it exclusively on Patreon.
🎧 Join us at patreon.com/journeythroughscifi

What happens when unlicensed nuclear accelerators meet ancient rituals?

This week we look at what happens when mad science collides with the world of ghosts, gods, and monsters. From proton packs in Ghostbusters (1984) - Oh the nostalgia! - to underground experiments in The Cabin in the Woods (2011), we explore how science and the supernatural crash together in hilarious and horrifying ways. A perfect pairing for the spooky Halloween season!

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As we've just revisited Tron and Tron: Legacy, you knew we couldn't resist jacking back into the Grid for Tron: Ares.

This is a spoiler-free sneak peek of our full Patreon episode, where we talk Jared Leto's turn as Ares, the film's take on AI, and whether that Nine Inch Nails soundtrack hits as hard as promised. Does this long-awaited sequel push the Tron universe forward, or just coast on nostalgia? That's what we plan to find out...

👉 Hear the full spoiler-filled episode on Patreon: patreon.com/JourneyThroughSciFi

Visit our website https://www.journ...

What happens when humanity steps inside the machine?

This week we're diving back into the grid! In anticipation of Tron: Ares, we revisit both Tron (1982) and Tron: Legacy (2010). Two landmark films that imagined what life might look like inside a computer. From the neon glow of 80s cyberspace to Daft Punk's sleek digital symphony, we explore how these films evolved our ideas about artificial intelligence and virtual reality. Featuring archive clips from our AI and VR series, this episode connects the dots between man, machine, and the legacy of Tron.

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What happens when mad science pushes the human mind and body to their absolute limits?

Our latest journey through sci-fi takes us from swirling cosmic vortices to larval mind-control worms. We explore how Ken Russell's Altered States (1980) turns science into body horror and how Shane Carruth's Upstream Colour (2013) transforms trauma into an arthouse mystery about love and memory. 

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Would you kill baby Hitler? That classic moral dilemma sits at the heart of The Boys from Brazil (1978), where Gregory Peck's Josef Mengele pursues a chilling plan to revive the Reich. Adapted from Ira Levin's Nazi-hunter thriller, the film blends real history with speculative science fiction in unsettling ways. After that, we tackle Das Experiment (2001), a dramatic take on the Stanford Prison Experiment. We talk through how the film captures the terrifying speed at which normal people can be dehumanised, corrupted, and broken by power.

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We've been on a little break over the summer, but we're back for a brand-new Future Frontiers episode! In this episode, we catch up on everything sci-fi we've been watching (and missing) while the Mad Science series has been on pause.

We chat about the big blockbusters of the summer that we caught - Superman, Jurassic Park: Rebirth, and Fantastic Four – plus horror highlights Weapons and Together. On TV, we get into The Studio, Slow Horses, Upload, and share our first thoughts on Alien: Earth.

Looking ahead, we break down the latest trailers for Tron: Are...

Who knew artificial intelligence could get so emotional?

In this bonus compilation, we count down our Top 5 A.I. characters in sci-fi cinema - from HAL 9000 in 2001: A Space Odyssey to Samantha in Her, the replicants of Blade Runner, and the lovable WALL-E.
Drawn from our archives, these clips explore how A.I. in film has challenged what it means to be human - sometimes terrifying, sometimes tragic and sometimes completely adorable.

If you enjoyed this episode make sure you go back and listen to our previous epsiodes in full:

Her

This month's Future Frontiers is stacked with killer creatures, AI dolls gone rogue and one of the most anticipated sequels in sci-fi horror.

We preview the biggest upcoming sci-fi movies and TV shows hitting in June and July - from Predator: Killer of Killers and 28 Years Later to M3GAN 2.0, Ironheart, and the return of Foundation.
Plus, we share what we've been watching (Invincible, The Last of Us finale) and open up the mailbag to tackle your sci-fi questions - including just how "mad" Reed Richards really is, and which Doctor rules the TARDIS.

...

From sentient tomatoes plotting global domination to meatballs falling from the sky - is it delicious, disgusting… or both?

This week on Journey Through Sci-Fi, we're serving up a double helping of food-fuelled madness with Return of the Killer Tomatoes (1988) and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009).

Join us as we chew over the bizarre origins of these culinary sci-fi comedies, explore their surprising link to The Muppets and ask the ultimate question: would you eat that?

Want to watch the classics we're chatting about on the podcast? Grab your copies of the mov...

In this week's episode of our Mad Science series, we slip into our fishnets and fire up the floppy disks as we delve into the horny world of The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) and Weird Science (1985). From Frank-N-Furter's glitter-soaked lab to an '80s teenage boys pervy fantasy, we explore two more takes on the Frankenstein myth.

Expect cult cinema, born-sexy-yesterday tropes, and a lot of talk about Tim Curry.

Want to watch the classics we're chatting about on the podcast? Grab your copies of the movies through our affiliate links 🎬

The Rocky Hor...

In this month's bonus Future Frontiers episode, we dive into the future of AI-dubbed films, featuring the Swedish sci-fi Watch the Skies hitting cinemas. We also discuss the highly anticipated returns of Andor and The Last of Us, take a closer look at Thunderbolts (what's up with the asterisk in the title?), and unpack Apple's intriguing new Murderbot series, based on Martha Wells' novel (don't let the title fool you!). Plus, we explore the growing trend of video games adapted into films and answer your latest questions in the mailbag.

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Two films. One mind-blowing concept: what if you could go inside the body?
This episode, we explore the micro-madness of Fantastic Voyage (1966) and Innerspace (1987) - two very different takes on internal exploration.
From high-concept sci-fi to comedic calamity, we look at how the trope of the shrunken scientist has mutated through the decades.

Want to watch the classics we're chatting about on the podcast? Grab your copies of Fantastic Voyage and Innerspace through our affiliate links 🎬

Fantastic Voyage (1966)

Innerspace (1987)

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It's alllliiiiiiiive!...again

This week, we continue our journey through mad science examining two continuations of the Frankentesin cinematic legacy: James Whale's Bride of Frankenstein (1935) and Kenneth Branagh's Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994).

We delve into how Whale's Gothic flair and camp sensibility redefined the story, while Branagh's Shakespearean touch added tragic depth and a fair share of melodrama to the tale.

Want to watch the classics we're chatting about on the podcast? Grab your copies of Bride of Frankenstein and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein through our affiliate links 🎬

Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

Mar...

This week on Journey Through Sci-Fi, we examine how Stanley Kubrick's Doctor Strangelove (1964) and Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein (1974). cleverly parody the mad scientist archetype. Whether it's triggering global catastrophe or reanimating the dead, these films remind us that playing god can lead to comedic—and catastrophic—consequences.

Want to watch the iconic films we're discussing on the podcast? Check out Dr. Strangelove and Young Frankenstein through our affiliate links 🎬

Dr. Strangelove (1964)

Young Frankenstein (1974)

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​In this episode, we take a comedic detour into 60s sci-fi as we revisit Disney's "The Absent-Minded Professor" and Jerry Lewis' "The Nutty Professor." From gravity-defying Flubber to the egotistical Buddy Love, we unpack how these eccentric inventors helped shape the mad scientist archetype. Expect flying cars, chaotic labs, and a surprising amount of heart as we explore the cultural legacy of these iconic sci-fi comedies.

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Bong Joon-ho's Mickey 17 is here—but can it live up to the hype? Meanwhile, Netflix drops The Electric State with a mind-blowing $250M budget… and audiences aren't impressed. Plus, Daredevil: Born Again gets brutal, The End gives us a sci-fi musical, and we dig into Wheel of Time season 3. All that, plus listener questions! 

(Oh, and gold star if you catch Matt's cat's podcast cameo)

Want to be a part of the podcast? Got a burning sci-fi question, recommendations for movies or shows, or thoughts on past episodes? Share your personal experiences, predictions, or debates with...

When science and obsession collide. We break down Eyes Without a Face (1960) and The Skin I Live In (2011), two chilling films about stolen faces, extreme body modifications, and the horror of losing yourself—literally. With guest Mike Muncer (Evolution of Horror), we discuss mad scientists, surgical nightmares, and the disturbing legacy of these two films.

Want to watch the films we're covering on the podcast? Grab your copies of Eyes Without a Face and The Skin I Live In through our affiliate links 🎬

Eyes Without a Face (1960)

The Skin I Live In (2011)

Vi...

From The Brain That Wouldn't Die's predatory surgeon to The Man with Two Brains's lusty neurosurgeon, mad science films often mix unethical experiments with unchecked libido. We examine how these films handle (or fail to handle) their problematic gender dynamics and how exploitation cinema shaped the portrayal of scientists on screen.

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This week, we're discussing The Fly—both the 1958 and 1986 versions—to talk about teleportation experiments gone very, very wrong. From the old-school murder mystery of the original to Cronenberg's stomach-churning body horror, we dissect what makes these films ultimate mad science nightmares.

Listen now... before your DNA gets scrambled

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