Beyond the 22nd century lies a time period that's so vague, it's hard to predict what exactly will take place or what it will look like. Will mankind finally achieve its biggest dream of casual space travel? Will it finally encounter aliens? Or will it finally destroy itself on Earth? These are the questions that 23rd-century science fiction films love to answer.
The common theme, of course, is space travel. Some filmmakers think that a bright future awaits humanity once it has learned to travel to space while others think that more wars and struggles await. But regardless of whether it's utopia or apocalypse that awaits humans in the future, these films will do more than entertain these viewers with their portrayal of the 23rd century.
7 Star Trek (2009)
- Release year: 2009
- Available on Netflix
All Star Trek films count here, but for a good balance of contemporary cinema, while retaining a faithfulness to the lore, the 2009 reboot is a solid choice. It's a separate Star Trek story set in an alternate universe. This outing still follows the same popular polar opposite duo of Spock and Kirk.
Star Trek films portray an intergalactic mixed-race society that's debatably socialist or communist in structure. Hence, most violent encounters aren't between humans, but against alien races that refuse to integrate into the peaceful Federation.
6 The Fifth Element
- Release year: 1997
- Available on Netflix
The Fifth Element imagines an unconventional and eccentric future where cab drivers still exist alongside literal personifications of elements and a Great Evil. It takes place in the 23rd century, specifically 2263; their aesthetics and tech are otherworldly, which was intentional given the time period it chose to cover.
In any case, the story is about a cabbie in New York (which surprisingly still exists) who has a fated encounter with Leeloo who's the manifestation of the fifth element. Apparently, she must combine with the other four elements to ward off a Great Evil that will destroy the world; in their way, however, is an industrialist named Zorg who works for the Great Evil.
Viewers might be able to discern the symbolism here which is nature versus industry, marking the film's version of the 23rd century as an industrial nightmare that only nature can solve. Not quite subtle as a call to action against global warming.
5 Starship Troopers
- Release year: 1997
- Available on Disney+
Starship Troopers offers a simpler premise for the 23rd century. There are humans who have entered a fascistic state, and then there are aliens who are hive-minded huge insects. Both are at war. They kill each other, and it's also a semi-parody movie about military propaganda and culture. That somewhat excuses the B-movie horror acting.
Despite the rather lukewarm reception to Starship Troopers back in its heyday, that didn't stop the film from becoming a cult classic and an inspiration for many succeeding films and even video games. Also, for 1997, the CGI was quite impressive, and it's worth seeing the film for its nostalgic value and bug animation.
4 Space Battleship Yamato: Resurrection
- Release year: 2009
- Available on your favorite "anime streaming websites"
Space Battleship Yamato: Resurrection takes place in the year 2220, which is around 21 years after the first Yamato film. In this sequel, a mobile and expansive black hole is threatening the very existence of Earth and mankind. They have to move 300 million people from Earth, which is not exactly an easy feat in this Noah's Ark parallel.
To add to the chaos, Earth's enemy, the S.U.S. Empire (pretty sus name), attacked Earth's transport ships just for kicks. So it's up to the legendary Space Battleship Yamato to aid in Earth's defense as its citizens evacuate to safety. This space opera classic is one of the most promising belated sequels that both older and younger viewers will appreciate.
3 Forbidden Planet
- Release year: 1956
- Available on Amazon Prime
It's not often one gets to see a Shakespeare adaptation turned into a sci-fi movie about the 23rd century. That's what makes Forbidden Planet special. It's an old sci-fi interpretation of Shakespeare's The Tempest. And despite being older than most grandparents these days, the movie held up more than well back in its heyday.
It's about an expedition to a distant planet called Altair IV with a mission to discover what happened to the three scientists sent there decades prior. What Commander John Adams (played by Leslie Nielsen) discovered was more bizarre; the lead scientist and his daughter are the only people left on the deserted planet and it's up to the crew to unveil the planet's mysteries.
2 Cargo
- Release year: 2009
- Available on Netflix
The year is 2270 in Cargo and in this Swiss suspense and sci-fi movie, Earth has become uninhabitable. The people have since migrated to a planet called Rhea where most human beings live in orbiting space stations. One of the people hoping to migrate to Rhea was a young doctor named Laura Portmann, but she had no money.
So, she accepted a shady cargo ship job which was supposed to be unmanned save for her and one companion. The couple soon discovered, however, that the cargo craft wasn't exactly as deserted as they think. Strange noises, movements, and even tools and switches out of place test their resolve and trust.
1 The Matrix Trilogy (Speculated)
- Release year: 1999
- Available on Netflix
The Matrix supposedly starts off in the non-Matrix year of 2199, and continues on for months or years after Neo was rescued, all the way to the Reloaded and Revolutions sequel. In this time period in the movies, humans have been nearly wiped out by machines save for one city called Zion.
In order to combat their machine conquerors and overlords, the humans have devised a way to fight them with guerilla tactics by hacking through the cyber domain called The Matrix. We do recommend re-watching the original trilogy of the films again since oftentimes, their storylines and plot points can be confusing or confounded, or both.