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The Day the Earth Stood Still poster

Movies that feel likeThe Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

An alien and a robot land on Earth after World War II and tell mankind to be peaceful or face destruction.

If you loved The Day the Earth Stood Still, the closest films we have are Europa Report (2013), The Andromeda Strain (1971) and Ikarie XB 1 (1963). All three share The Day the Earth Stood Still's cerebral feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is The Spacewalker (2017).

🍅 92% Rotten Tomatoes★ 7.7 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Robert Wisecerebraltensecontemplativeawe
8 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · Amazon Prime Video · Paramount Plus Premium

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If The Day the Earth Stood Still hit the spot, these will too

Europa Report poster
Europa Report
2013 · dir. Sebastián Cordero
🍅 81%★ 6.4science fiction · thriller · dramaNetflixPeacock

One thread runs through both: spacecraft

The difference: 62 years apart, and the 2010s show

A crew travels to Europa, Jupiter’s icy moon, to investigate signs of life in its subsurface ocean, but disaster cuts them off from Earth, leading to a tense and dangerous exploration.

The Andromeda Strain poster
The Andromeda Strain
1971 · dir. Robert Wise
🍅 68%★ 7.2science fiction · thriller · drama

The same hand behind both of them: Robert Wise

The difference: Goes its own way on the awe

When virtually all of the residents of Piedmont, New Mexico are found dead after the return to Earth of a space satellite, the head of the US Air Force's Project Scoop declares an emergency. A group of eminent scientists led by Dr. Jeremy Stone scrambles to a secure laboratory and tries first to isolate the life form while determining why two people from Piedmont - an old alcoholic and a six-month-old baby - survived. The scientists methodically study the alien life form, unaware that it has already mutated and presents a far greater danger in the lab, which is equipped with a nuclear self-destruct device designed to prevent the escape of dangerous biological agents.

Ikarie XB 1 poster
Ikarie XB 1
1963 · dir. Jindřich Polák
🍅 100%★ 6.9science fiction

The same preoccupation in both: black and white

The difference: Lighter on tension

The year is 2163. Starship Ikaria XB-1 embarks on a mission deep into space in search of alien life. During their perilous journey the crew confront the effects of a malignant dark star, the destructive legacy of the 20th century and, ultimately, the limits of their own sanity.

Sunshine poster
Sunshine
2007 · dir. Danny Boyle
🍅 77%★ 7.2science fiction · thrillerPrime Video

Cerebral and tense in the same breath

Fifty years into the future, the sun is dying, and Earth is threatened by arctic temperatures. A team of astronauts is sent to revive the Sun — but the mission fails. Seven years later, a new team is sent to finish the mission as mankind’s last hope.

Gravity poster
Gravity
2013 · dir. Alfonso Cuarón
🍅 96%★ 7.7science fiction · thriller · dramaParamount+

Both land stillness and awe at once

Dr Ryan Stone, an engineer on her first space mission, and Matt Kowalski, an astronaut on his final expedition, have to survive in space after they are hit by debris while spacewalking.

The Wandering Earth poster
The Wandering Earth
2019 · dir. Frant Gwo
🍅 70%★ 5.9science fiction · action · dramaRent or buy

Cerebral science fiction, and it commits to that

The difference: Played as action first

When the Sun begins to expand in such a way that it will inevitably engulf and destroy the Earth in a hundred years, united mankind finds a way to avoid extinction by propelling the planet out of the Solar System using gigantic engines, moving it to a new home located four light years away, an epic journey that will last thousands of years.

The Day the Earth Stood Still poster
The Day the Earth Stood Still
2008 · dir. Scott Derrickson
🍅 21%★ 5.5drama · science fiction · thrillerPrime Video

Common ground in both: ufo and social commentary

The difference: The critics' underdog of the pair

A representative of an alien race that went through drastic evolution to survive its own climate change, Klaatu comes to Earth to assess whether humanity can prevent the environmental damage they have inflicted on their own planet. When barred from speaking to the United Nations, he decides humankind shall be exterminated so the planet can survive.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture poster
Star Trek: The Motion Picture
1979 · dir. Robert Wise
🍅 51%★ 6.4science fiction · adventure · mysteryParamount+

Robert Wise working the same nerve twice

The difference: Leans further into adventure

When an unidentified alien destroys three powerful Klingon cruisers, Captain James T. Kirk returns to the newly transformed U.S.S. Enterprise to take command.

The Spacewalker poster
The Spacewalker
2017 · dir. Dmitry Kiselyov
★ 7.2adventure · drama · historyPrime Video

Common ground: spacecraft

March 1965. In the heat of the Cold War, the USA and the USSR are competing for supremacy in space. What both superpowers aim for in this race, is to be the first to have a man walk in outer space. To accomplish that, no price is too high and no risk is too great. Now it’s up to the unlikely duo of a seasoned war veteran and a hot-headed test-pilot to fulfill this mission. Two men in a tiny spaceship, without proper testing, facing the complete unknown. They were supposed to do what no man has done before—and no man imagined what would happen next.

Moonraker poster
Moonraker
1979 · dir. Lewis Gilbert
🍅 59%★ 6.3action · adventure · thrillerPrime Video

Tense thriller in both cases

After Drax Industries' Moonraker space shuttle is hijacked, secret agent James Bond is assigned to investigate, traveling to California to meet the company's owner, the mysterious Hugo Drax. With the help of scientist Dr. Holly Goodhead, Bond soon uncovers Drax's nefarious plans for humanity, all the while fending off an old nemesis, Jaws, and venturing to Venice, Rio, the Amazon...and even outer space.

Silent Running poster
Silent Running
1972 · dir. Douglas Trumbull
🍅 71%★ 6.6science fiction · adventure · drama

Drama built on stillness, twice over

After the entire flora goes extinct, ecologist Lowell maintains a greenhouse aboard a space station for the future with his android companions. However, he rebels after being ordered to destroy the greenhouse in favor of carrying cargo, a decision that puts him at odds with everyone but his mechanical companions.

Space Sweepers poster
Space Sweepers
2021 · dir. Jo Sung-hee
🍅 70%★ 6.5drama · fantasy · science fictionNetflix

Both lean on awe more than on science fiction

When the crew of a space junk collector ship called The Victory discovers a humanoid robot named Dorothy that's known to be a weapon of mass destruction, they get involved in a risky business deal which puts their lives at stake.

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The best-reviewed films that share The Day the Earth Stood Still’s defining feeling.