Last updated March 2024
Looking for extraordinary Best Sci-Fi Movies 2011 that live up to any hype? Check out our handpicked collection of 30 marvelous, critic- and user-acclaimed Best Sci-Fi Movies 2011 ready to stream instantly. Backed by outstanding IMDB ratings and glowing praise from our knowledgeable user community, these first-rate titles represent the absolute cream of the crop in entertainment. Help fellow viewers find overlooked gems by voting for your personal favorites. We value members who contribute great recommendations!
X-Men: First Class (2011)
Plot Summary:
Before Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr took the names Professor X and Magneto, they were two young men discovering their powers for the first time. Before they were arch-enemies, they were closest of friends, working together with other mutants (some familiar, some new), to stop the greatest threat the world has ever known
Duration: 131 min
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
IMDB Votes: 715000
Genere: Action, Sci-Fi
Country: USA, UK
Plot tags: superhero, mutant, supernatural ability, supernatural power, superhuman powers, vengeance, vigilante, x men, superhuman, supernatural, comic book, genetics, cold war, female spy, teenage superhero, danger, tough guy, super villain, team, good versus evil, escapades, stripper, friendship, comic hero, alternate history
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
Plot Summary:
Scientist Will Rodman is determined to find a cure for Alzheimer's, the disease which has slowly consumed his father. Will feels certain he is close to a breakthrough and tests his latest serum on apes, noticing dramatic increases in intelligence and brain activity in the primate subjects – especially Caesar, his pet chimpanzee
Duration: 105 min
IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
IMDB Votes: 551000
Genere: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, UK, Canada
Plot tags: ape, planet of the apes, gorilla, rebelliousness, rebellion, chimpanzee, animal testing, imaginary, animal, dystopia, virus, monkey, animal cruelty, end of the world, experiment gone awry, intelligence, distopia, freedom, apocalypse, society, genetic engineering, earth, survival, humanity, mythology
Source Code (2011)
Plot Summary:
Decorated soldier Captain Colter Stevens wakes up in the body of an unknown man, discovering he's involved in a mission to find the bomber of a Chicago commuter train. He learns he's part of a top-secret experimental program that enables him to experience the final 8 minutes of another person's life. Colter re-lives the train incident over and over again, gathering more clues each time. But can he discover who is responsible for the attack before the next one happens?
Duration: 93 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 542000
Genere: Action, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada, France, Germany
Plot tags: time loop, time travel, train, alternate reality, parallel universe, memory, twists and turns, save the day, destiny, changing the past or future, bomb, race against time, terrorism, investigation, existence paradox, danger, time, imaginary, experiment, death, mission, sent to the past, courage, hopes, plot twist
Limitless (2011)
Plot Summary:
A paranoia-fueled action thriller about an unsuccessful writer whose life is transformed by a top-secret "smart drug" that allows him to use 100% of his brain and become a perfect version of himself. His enhanced abilities soon attract shadowy forces that threaten his new life in this darkly comic and provocative film
Duration: 105 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 603000
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: intelligence, success, drug, drug abuse, ambition, creativity, rise to the top, rags to riches, life turned upside down, prodigy, experimental drug, overnight success, wealth, superhuman powers, brain capacity, resourceful, hallucination, career change, pills, genius, consciousness, experiment, happy ending, life changing experience, greed
Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension (2011)
Plot Summary:
Perry's worst fear comes true when Phineas and Ferb finds out that he is in fact Secret Agent P, but that soon pales in comparison during a trip to the 2nd dimension where Perry finds out that Dr. Doofenshmirtz is truly evil and successful
Duration: 78 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Animation, Action, Adventure, Comedy, Family, Musical, Sci-Fi
Country: USA, Taiwan, China
Plot tags: parallel world, parallel universe, save the day, heroes, hidden identity, secret identity, daring rescue, undercover, rivalry, danger, resistance, teleportation, kids and family, battles, dating, alternate universe, mad scientist, teenager, inventor, occupation, alternate dimension, pets, alternate reality, monster, grownups
Take Shelter (2011)
Plot Summary:
Plagued by a series of apocalyptic visions, a young husband and father questions whether to shelter his family from a coming storm, or from himself
Duration: 121 min
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
IMDB Votes: 106000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: mental illness, paranoia, schizophrenia, insanity, nightmare, obsession, nervous breakdown, dream, end of the world, twists and turns, fear, delusion, storm, apocalypse, sanity, natural disaster, premonition, couple relations, disaster, prophecy, loneliness, mental disorder, character study, family relations, illness
Melancholia (2011)
Plot Summary:
Two sisters find their already strained relationship challenged as a mysterious new planet threatens to collide with Earth
Duration: 135 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 193000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: Denmark, Sweden, France, Germany
Plot tags: depression, end of the world, wedding, human nature, sister sister relationship, apocalypse, nihilism, collision, disaster, dysfunctional family, suicide, trippy, melancholy, mental disorder, mental illness, post apocalypse, psychology, illness, mental health, life is a bitch, wedding preparations and rituals, chaos, estrangement, doubts and hesitations, fate of humanity
Real Steel (2011)
Plot Summary:
In the near-future, Charlie Kenton is a washed-up fighter who retired from the ring when robots took over the sport. After Charlie's robot is trashed, he reluctantly teams up with his estranged son Max to rebuild and train an unlikely contender
Duration: 127 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 350000
Genere: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi, Sport
Country: USA, India
Plot tags: boxing, robot, father son relationship, underdog, androids and robots, technology, against the odds, parents and children, contests and competitions, artificial intelligence, arena, boy, robot vs. robot, father son reunion, gym, androids, giant robot, rags to riches, fight, bet, junkyard, cyborgs, family relations, life is a bitch, rise to the top
Perfect Sense (2011)
Plot Summary:
Susan is a scientist searching for answers to important questions. So important that she has given up on other things, like love - until she meets Micheal. Susan and Michael find themselves embarking on a sensual adventure while the world around them seems to be falling apart. A life-affirming look at what it means to love and be loved in turbulent times
Duration: 92 min
IMDB Rating: 7.0/10
IMDB Votes: 63000
Genere: Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi
Country: UK, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland
Plot tags: pandemic, apocalypse, love story, sex scene, end of the world, epidemic, love, chaos, female nudity, love affair, human existence, blindness, natural disaster, chef, suffering, memory, psychology, depression, post apocalyptic, scientist, food, one night stand, couples, rage, male full rear nudity
The Adjustment Bureau (2011)
Plot Summary:
A man glimpses the future Fate has planned for him – and chooses to fight for his own destiny. Battling the powerful Adjustment Bureau across, under and through the streets of New York, he risks his destined greatness to be with the only woman he's ever loved
Duration: 106 min
IMDB Rating: 7.0/10
IMDB Votes: 268000
Genere: Crime, Mystery, Romance, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: destiny, politics, alternate reality, love story, power of love, fall in love, fictional reality, changing the past or future, twists and turns, creator, mind control, forbidden love, teleportation, foreknowledge, supernatural, dystopic future, true love, conspiracy, plan, chance meeting, angel, manipulation, love and romance, love, political campaign
Super 8 (2011)
Plot Summary:
In 1979 Ohio, several youngsters are making a zombie movie with a Super-8 camera. In the midst of filming, the friends witness a horrifying train derailment and are lucky to escape with their lives. They soon discover that the catastrophe was no accident, as a series of unexplained events and disappearances soon follows. Deputy Jackson Lamb, the father of one of the kids, searches for the terrifying truth behind the crash
Duration: 112 min
IMDB Rating: 7.0/10
IMDB Votes: 365000
Genere: Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: childhood, monster, alien, ufo, small town, creature, young heroes, train crash, friendship, youth, boy, coming of age, filmmaking, alien invasion, space, investigation, evacuation, child, quarantine, children, extraterrestrial, giant, destruction, chaos, friends
Another Earth (2011)
Plot Summary:
On the night of the discovery of a duplicate Earth in the Solar system, an ambitious young student and an accomplished composer cross paths in a tragic accident
Duration: 92 min
IMDB Rating: 6.9/10
IMDB Votes: 99000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Romance, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Plot tags: parallel world, parallel universe, tragedy, guilt, grief, outer space, nasa, mysterious planet, space travel, solar system, cosmology, existentialism, space, human existence, storytelling, venus the planet, catastrophe, depression, earth, imagination, life philosophy, self discovery, character study, older man younger woman relationship, surrealism
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
Plot Summary:
Predominantly set during World War II, Steve Rogers is a sickly man from Brooklyn who's transformed into super-soldier Captain America to aid in the war effort. Rogers must stop the Red Skull – Adolf Hitler's ruthless head of weaponry, and the leader of an organization that intends to use a mysterious device of untold powers for world domination
Duration: 124 min
IMDB Rating: 6.9/10
IMDB Votes: 883000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Plot tags: superhero, heroism, heroes, mad scientist, world war two, military, soldier, superhuman powers, heroic mission, courage, nazi, danger, bravery, scientist, patriotism, comic book, army, super soldier, frozen alive, spy, villain, evil, captain, enemy, vigilante
Paul (2011)
Plot Summary:
For the past 60 years, a space-traveling smart-ass named Paul has been locked up in a top-secret military base, advising world leaders about his kind. But when he worries he’s outlived his usefulness and the dissection table is drawing uncomfortably close, Paul escapes on the first RV that passes by his compound in Area 51. Fortunately, it contains the two earthlings who are most likely to rescue and harbor an alien on the run
Duration: 104 min
IMDB Rating: 6.9/10
IMDB Votes: 263000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi
Country: USA, UK
Plot tags: alien, road trip, benign alien, chase, ufo, friendship, first contact, space and aliens, alien invasion, alien encounter, space travel, buddies, chases and races, nerd, geek, hitchhiker, silly humor, atheism, law enforcement, odd couple, on the road, weed, space, invisibility, stereotypes
All-Star Superman (2011)
Plot Summary:
Lex Luthor enacts his plan to rid the world of Superman, once and for all. Succeeding with solar radiation poisoning, the Man of Steel is slowly dying. With what little times remains, the Last Son of Krypton must confront the revealing of his secret identity to Lois Lane and face Luthor in a final battle
Duration: 76 min
IMDB Rating: 6.8/10
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Animation, Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Plot tags: supernatural ability, superhero, superman, save the world, justice, transformation, heroic mission, space and aliens, good versus evil, rivalry, danger, imaginary, secret identity, dishonesty, master villain, uninhibited rivalry, comic book, heroes, journalist, fight scenes, villain, monster, multiverse, comic hero, working class
In Time (2011)
Plot Summary:
In the not-too-distant future the aging gene has been switched off. To avoid overpopulation, time has become the currency and the way people pay for luxuries and necessities. The rich can live forever, while the rest try to negotiate for their immortality. A poor young man who comes into a fortune of time, though too late to help his mother from dying. He ends up on the run from a corrupt police force known as 'time keepers'
Duration: 109 min
IMDB Rating: 6.7/10
IMDB Votes: 438000
Genere: Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: time, immortality, fighting the system, dystopian future, survival, love, distopia, dystopic future, race against time, life & death, class differences, social differences, cyberpunk, wealth, dystopia, love story, destiny, humanity, love and romance, society, twists and turns, rich woman poor man, chase, life is a bitch, genetically altered
A Monster in Paris (2011)
Plot Summary:
Paris,1910. Emile, a shy movie projectionist, and Raoul, a colorful inventor, find themselves embarked on the hunt for a monster terrorizing citizens. They join forces with Lucille, the big-hearted star of the Bird of Paradise cabaret, an eccentric scientist and his irascible monkey to save the monster, who turns out to be an oversized but harmless flea, from the city's ruthlessly ambitious police chief
Duration: 90 min
IMDB Rating: 6.7/10
IMDB Votes: 22000
Genere: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Music, Romance, Sci-Fi
Country: France
Plot tags: transformation, music, heroes, obsessive quest, love and romance, friendship, monster, buddies, ambition, social misfits, unlikely partners, blind ambition, heroic mission, friends, escapades, unfulfilled love, chief of police, unfulfillment, terrorizing, misfit, fight, flood, inventor, insect, bully
Attack the Block (2011)
Plot Summary:
A teen gang in a grim South London housing estate must team up with the other residents to protect their neighbourhood from a terrifying alien invasion
Duration: 88 min
IMDB Rating: 6.7/10
IMDB Votes: 111000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK, France
Plot tags: gang, alien invasion, creature, alien, space and aliens, deadly creature, teenager, chase, children, teenage life, danger, apocalypse, violence, gangster, brutality, creature feature, stoner, survival, monster, drug dealer, alien encounter, youth, urban, black, friends
Green Lantern: Emerald Knights (2011)
Plot Summary:
As the home planet of the Green Lantern Corps faces a battle with an ancient enemy, Hal Jordan prepares new recruit Arisia for the coming conflict by relating stories of the first Green Lantern and several of Hal's comrades
Duration: 84 min
IMDB Rating: 6.7/10
IMDB Votes: 15000
Genere: Animation, Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Plot tags: superhero, transformation, comic book, save the world, good versus evil, heroic mission, supernatural, supernatural ability, escapades, rivalry, recruit, magical ring, chosen one, imaginary, fight, battles, multiverse, spaceship, green lantern, monster, villain, mature, comic hero, space, space battle
Sound of My Voice (2011)
Plot Summary:
A journalist and his girlfriend get pulled in while they investigate a cult whose leader claims to be from the future
Duration: 87 min
IMDB Rating: 6.6/10
IMDB Votes: 23000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: time travel, cult leader, manipulation, religions or cults, brainwashing, amnesia, investigation, journalist, twists and turns, sect, uncover truth, society, filmmaking, exploitation, haunted by the past, psychology, parallel universe, death of mother, hidden camera, religion, changing the past or future, dancing, school, time, time loop
7Aum Arivu (2011)
Plot Summary:
A genetic engineering student tries to bring back the skills of a legend of the past and use his skills to save India from a deadly virus attack by China
Duration: 168 min
IMDB Rating: 6.6/10
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: India
Plot tags: martial arts, bio weapon, biological warfare, supernatural, master warrior, danger, heroes, hypnosis, supernatural ability, good versus evil, save the day, buddhism, virus, genetic engineering, kung fu, hinduism, chases and races, rivalry, urban, student, tough guy, past, legend, genetics, car crash
Eva (2011)
Plot Summary:
Set in 2041, humans of planet Earth now live side-by-side with androids. A well-known cybernetic engineer, Alex Garel, is tasked with an assignment to create a robot in the form of a human child. He returns home to begin his work and finds that his childhood love Lana has married his brother David. Their daughter Eva seems to possess a superior intelligence and powerful charisma that immediately captivates Alex. Looking for inspiration, Alex asks Eva to be the muse of the new robot, which challenges everything Alex ever thought he knew about robots and humans alike
Duration: 94 min
IMDB Rating: 6.6/10
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi
Country: Spain, France
Plot tags: robot, artificial intelligence, child, prodigy, brother brother relationship, programmer, androids and robots, twists and turns, homecoming, memory, youth, creator, imaginary, androids, robotics, cyborgs, sex, machine, winter, technology, computer, underground, girl, truth, worship
Enter Nowhere (2011)
Plot Summary:
Three strangers arrive one by one to a mysterious cabin in the middle of nowhere after enduring separate life-altering predicaments. Searching for a way out of the woods, frustrated, hungry and battling to stay warm they discover their mysterious connection and realize what they have to do in order to get out of the woods alive
Duration: 90 min
IMDB Rating: 6.5/10
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: time paradox, group of strangers, time travel, cabin in the woods, survival, time loop, alternate reality, confined, woods, danger, teleportation, lost, isolation, stranger, mind game, escape attempt, twists and turns, supernatural, time, expedition, haunted house, trapped, butterfly effect, redneck, alternate timeline
Cars 2 (2011)
Plot Summary:
Star race car Lightning McQueen and his pal Mater head overseas to compete in the World Grand Prix race. But the road to the championship becomes rocky as Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage
Duration: 106 min
IMDB Rating: 6.2/10
IMDB Votes: 211000
Genere: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Family, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Sport
Country: USA, Japan
Plot tags: car race, car racing, friendship, auto racing, racing, car, conspiracy, fantasy world, car chase, secret agent, spy, friends, race car, undercover, heroes, escapades, rivalry, ambition, championship, disorder, chases and races, contests and competitions, buddies, heroic mission, kids and family
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
Plot Summary:
Sam Witwicky takes his first tenuous steps into adulthood while remaining a reluctant human ally of Autobot-leader Optimus Prime. The film centers around the space race between the USSR and the USA, suggesting there was a hidden Transformers role in it all that remains one of the planet's most dangerous secrets
Duration: 154 min
IMDB Rating: 6.2/10
IMDB Votes: 428000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Plot tags: robot, androids and robots, alien invasion, giant robot, transforming robot, alien, benign alien, good versus evil, heroes, destruction, battles, astronaut, moon, transformation, transformers, extraterrestrial, space travel, alien planet, space, superhero, comic book, outer space, chase, killer robot, end of the world
The Thing (2011)
Plot Summary:
When paleontologist Kate Lloyd travels to an isolated outpost in Antarctica for the expedition of a lifetime, she joins an international team that unearths a remarkable discovery. Their elation quickly turns to fear as they realize that their experiment has freed a mysterious being from its frozen prison. Paranoia spreads like an epidemic as a creature that can mimic anything it touches will pit human against human as it tries to survive and flourish in this spine-tingling thriller
Duration: 103 min
IMDB Rating: 6.2/10
IMDB Votes: 144000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: Canada, USA
Plot tags: monster, alien, gory, alien invasion, deadly creature, evil alien, chase, alien encounter, survival, apocalypse, danger, blood, transformation, space and aliens, survival horror, body horror, expedition, alien life-form, snow, bodies, shape shifting alien, mission gone awry, isolation, supernatural, paranoia
I Am Number Four (2011)
Plot Summary:
A teenage fugitive with an incredible secret races to stay one step ahead of the mysterious forces seeking destroy him in this sci-fi action thriller. With three dead and one on the run, the race to find the elusive Number Four begins. Outwardly normal teen John Smith never gets too comfortable in the same identity, and along with his guardian, Henri, he is constantly moving from town to town. With each passing day, John gains a stronger grasp on his extraordinary new powers, and his bond to the beings that share his fantastic fate grows stronger
Duration: 111 min
IMDB Rating: 6.1/10
IMDB Votes: 244000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, India
Plot tags: alien, supernatural, supernatural romance, youth, alien invasion, teenager, good versus evil, superpower, supernatural ability, young heroes, high school, friendship, teenage love, space and aliens, friends, teenage life, teenage boy, heroes, danger, fall in love, love and romance, imaginary, superhero, mentor, enemy
Cowboys & Aliens (2011)
Plot Summary:
A stranger stumbles into the desert town of Absolution with no memory of his past and a futuristic shackle around his wrist. With the help of mysterious beauty Ella and the iron-fisted Colonel Dolarhyde, he finds himself leading an unlikely posse of cowboys, outlaws, and Apache warriors against a common enemy from beyond this world in an epic showdown for survival
Duration: 119 min
IMDB Rating: 6.0/10
IMDB Votes: 230000
Genere: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller, Western
Country: USA, India
Plot tags: ufo, alien invasion, monster, extraterrestrial, alien, invasion, cowboy, space and aliens, evil alien, human versus alien, creature, alien abduction, catastrophe, superhero, space, survival, fantasy world, desert, horse, comic book, gunslinger, alien contact, combat, tough guy, spacecraft
Apocalypse (2011)
Plot Summary:
In 2016 the sun has turned the entire world into a scorched and barren wasteland. The humans who have survived are either resourceful or violent, and sometimes both. Marie, her little sister Leonie, and best friend Phillip, are in a car headed to the mountains - rumor has it there is water there. Along the way they meet Tom, a first-rate mechanic. But can they trust him? Fraught with deep distrust, the group is lured into an ambush where their real battle for survival begins
Duration: 89 min
IMDB Rating: 5.9/10
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Germany, Switzerland
Plot tags: post apocalypse, survival, heat wave, cannibalism, life is a bitch, post apocalyptic, apocalypse, chase, danger, on the run, dystopian future, distopia, society, disaster, epidemic, on the road, journey, end of the world, moral dilemma, cannibal, porn, pandemic, infection, fear, isolation
The Divide (2011)
Plot Summary:
Survivors of a nuclear attack are grouped together for days in the basement of their apartment building, where fear and dwindling supplies wear away at their dynamic
Duration: 112 min
IMDB Rating: 5.8/10
IMDB Votes: 38000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Germany, Canada, France
Plot tags: survival, confined, isolation, survival horror, torment, nuclear holocaust, losing-it hero, social decay, group of strangers, disaster, apocalypse, danger, nuclear war, bunker, violence, human nature, post apocalyptic, distopia, nuclear explosion, bomb shelter, radiation sickness, chaos, rape, torture, end of the world