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Movies that feel like Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

If you loved Star Trek: The Motion Picture, the closest films we have are 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970) and The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951). All three share Star Trek: The Motion Picture's cerebral and awe feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 6 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video and Hulu and others, checked against today's data.

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.

πŸ… 51% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 6.4 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Robert Wisecerebralepictwistyawe
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If Star Trek: The Motion Picture hit the spot, these will too

2001: A Space Odyssey poster
2001: A Space Odyssey
1968 Β· dir. Stanley Kubrick
πŸ… 90%β˜… 8.3science fiction Β· mystery Β· adventure

The same two preoccupations: man vs machine, and artificial intelligence

The difference: Critics rated this one higher still

Humanity finds a mysterious object buried beneath the lunar surface and sets off to find its origins with the help of HAL 9000, the world's most advanced super computer.

Feels alike?
Beneath the Planet of the Apes poster
Beneath the Planet of the Apes
1970 Β· dir. Ted Post
πŸ… 37%β˜… 6adventure Β· science fiction Β· mystery

The same mix in both: ideas, then scale

The sole survivor of an interplanetary rescue mission lands on the planet of the apes, and uncovers a horrible secret beneath the surface.

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The Day the Earth Stood Still poster
The Day the Earth Stood Still
1951 Β· dir. Robert Wise
πŸ… 92%β˜… 7.7science fiction Β· thriller Β· drama

The same hand behind both of them: Robert Wise

The difference: Not nearly as epic

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

Feels alike?
Forbidden Planet poster
Forbidden Planet
1956 Β· dir. Fred M. Wilcox
πŸ… 96%β˜… 7.5science fiction Β· adventure

Science fiction built on awe, twice over

The difference: Lighter on twists

Starship C57D travels to planet Altair 4 in search of the crew of spaceship "Bellerophon," a scientific expedition that has been missing for twenty years. They find themselves unwelcome by the expedition's lone survivor and warned of destruction by an invisible force if they don't turn back immediately.

Feels alike?
Moonraker poster
Moonraker
1979 Β· dir. Lewis Gilbert
πŸ… 59%β˜… 6.3action Β· adventure Β· thriller

Adventure with a pulse of ideas, in both cases

The difference: Leans further into action

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.

Feels alike?
Dune poster
Dune
1984 Β· dir. David Lynch
πŸ… 36%β˜… 6.3action Β· science fiction Β· adventure

Epic mystery, and it commits to that

In the year 10,191, the most precious substance in the universe is the spice Melange. The spice extends life. The spice expands consciousness. The spice is vital to space travel. The spice exists on only one planet in the entire universe, the vast desert planet Arrakis, also known as Dune. Its native inhabitants, the Fremen, have long held a prophecy that a man would come, a messiah who would lead them to true freedom.

Feels alike?
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker poster
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
2019 Β· dir. J.J. Abrams
πŸ… 51%β˜… 6.3adventure Β· action Β· science fiction

Common ground: space opera

The difference: 40 years apart, and the 2010s show

The surviving Resistance faces the First Order once again as the journey of Rey, Finn and Poe Dameron continues. With the power and knowledge of generations behind them, the final battle begins.

Feels alike?
Stargate poster
Stargate
1994 Β· dir. Roland Emmerich
πŸ… 53%β˜… 7action Β· adventure Β· science fiction

The same preoccupation in both: teleportation

An interstellar teleportation device, found in Egypt, leads to a planet with humans resembling ancient Egyptians who worship the god Ra.

Feels alike?
Dark Star poster
Dark Star
1974 Β· dir. John Carpenter
πŸ… 74%β˜… 6.1comedy Β· science fiction

Both keep coming back to the same thing: artificial intelligence

A group of scientists are sent on a mission to destroy unstable planets. Twenty years into their mission, they have to battle their alien mascot as well as a "sensitive" and intelligent bombing device that starts to question the meaning of its existence.

Feels alike?
Explorers poster
Explorers
1985 Β· dir. Joe Dante
β˜… 6.4science fiction Β· adventure Β· family

One thread runs through both: spacecraft

Middle schooler Ben spends his free time watching sci-fi films, playing video games and reading comic books. Surprisingly, his affinity for all things fantastical yields a real result – when he has a vivid dream about technology, his prodigy best friend Wolfgang manages to create a working spacecraft. Joined by their buddy Darren, the boys take off into outer space and encounter some very odd extraterrestrial life.

Feels alike?
Kin-dza-dza! poster
Kin-dza-dza!
1986 Β· dir. Georgiy Daneliya
β˜… 7.8comedy Β· science fiction Β· adventure

Both are built on the same subject: spacecraft

Two Soviet humans previously unknown to each other are transported to the planet Pluke in the Kin-dza-dza galaxy due to a chance encounter with an alien teleportation device. They must come to grips with a language barrier and Plukian social norms (not to mention the laws of space and time) if they ever hope to return to Earth.

Feels alike?
Silent Running poster
Silent Running
1972 Β· dir. Douglas Trumbull
πŸ… 71%β˜… 6.6adventure Β· science fiction Β· drama

Both lean on awe more than on science fiction

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.

Feels alike?

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The best-reviewed films that share Star Trek: The Motion Picture’s defining feeling.