The 1960s was an interesting time in the world of movies. Special effects were starting to advance, with creative people using simple but brilliant tricks like miniatures, costumes, make-up, and camera work like different filters or horizon illusion.
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Knowing now that these practical effects tend to age better than bad CGI, the old science fiction movies of the 1960s are even more fun today than they once were. Aside from the corny and fantastic stories that no studio would dare to touch in the modern era, these movies also boast some creative, entertaining, and just outright funny scenes and plotlines.
7The Absent-Minded Professor (1961)
Credit where it’s dueto Disney for some of the best examplesof loveable and cheesy science fiction of the 1960s. One of the earliest and most endearing isThe Absent-Minded Professor,which is often nicknamed “Flubber” because of the movie’s signature fictional invention. The sequel was calledSon of Flubberwhich is no doubt also a contributing factor.
This movie was re-made in 1997, but, despite the star power of Robin Williams, the charm of the practicalFlubberversus its CGI counterpart was lost in the modern version. It’s easier to believe the black-and-white fantasy of Flubber compared to the fully-computerized version.
6King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)
These movies never really looked good when it came to special effects, but they never really needed to. Their original release in North America was limited, heavily redacted, and people had to travel to theaters in big cities or stay up late to watch the televised versions.
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What makes this movie interesting is the plotline that includes both the media and a large pharmaceutical company exploiting both monsters for entertainment, fun, and profit. Laugh at the giant ape and atomic lizard all you want, but those visions are prescient.
5Monster a Go-Go! (1965)
Monster a Go-Go!is famously bad, which is also part of its charm and why so many fans have elevated it to cult status. Itwas one of the movies featured on the television showMystery Science Theater 3000and the crew that filmed it agreed that it was the worst movie that they had ever seen.
It’s not only the lack of special effects, with a monster that’s little more than a really tall man with bad skin, but the absence of other basic movie functions, like direction or acting. Even the main characters are little more than glorified extras reading their lines from cue cards.
4Barbarella (1968)
This cheesy science fiction classic was one of the few that was also a commercial success in its own time.It still enjoys a thriving fanbasethat continues to grow to this day. Mercifully, there haven’t yet been any remakes or sequels, although several have been proposed over the years.
Jane Fonda stars as the titular character in a series based on a French comic book series, and it’s one of her most iconic roles. Critics focused on the weak and cheesy storyline, but the movie actually got a lot of positive attention for its cinematography and special effects, which really have stood the test of time.
3Thunderbirds Are Go (1968)
The cheese factor of anything involving “Supermarionation” was amped up considerably with the raunchy satireTeam America: World Police.These older movies take themselves so seriously that it’s hard not to laugh at them, even in the midst of the various miniatures and unique settings that these movies actually succeed in creating.
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Early critics didn’t like the long sequences that included action and special effects, a feature of the movie that fans point out as one of the things that they like most. A sequel was released a few years later,Thunderbird 6,so those viewers who love their cheesy puppets have plenty to enjoy.
2Jules Verne’s Rocket to the Moon (1967)
What Jane Austin is to social intrigue and movie adaptations, Jules Verne is to thescience fiction section of the literary genre. His books seem to be the first reference for most film producers looking for a movie to adapt to the point where it becomes a satire of itself, as evidenced byJules Verne’s Rocket to the Moon.
The movie is intended as a comedy that makes fun of the popular science-fiction trend that seemed to be sweeping the world of entertainment media. To make it even cheesier, the film was released in the United States under the wacky title,Those Fantastic Flying Fools, which isn’t quite as cerebral.
1The Time Machine (1960)
The 2002 remake with Guy Pierce sure looked great, and that was why nobody liked it. The old movie has aged surprisingly well, considering the costumes, make-up, sets, and other cheesy details. It wasn’t just the recreation of the world of the dystopian future but also the Victorian aesthetic,making it an example of Steampunkform and style on top of everything else.
George, the main character, invents a time machine that looks like a cross between an antique sewing machine and an amusement park ride. He discovers the distant future of humanity in the world of the beautiful, childlike Eloy and the evil subterranean Morlocks. It’s all portrayed with miniatures, make-up, and some of the most elaborate stop motion animation ever produced.
