List of science fiction films of the 1930s
This is a list of science fiction films that premiered between 1 January 1930 and 31 December 1939. In Phil Hardy 's book Science Fiction (1983), the 1930s were described as a period where both science fiction literature and cinema were "in turmoil" and that by examining films of decade that "it is clear that Science Fiction, in no sense, can be seen as an ongoing genre in the thirties".
In the United States, films would use a science fiction plot device or character such as a mad scientist , but more closely resembled contemporary genres like horror, thriller and detective films. The films enhanced other genres such as melodrama (Six Hours to Live ), Westerns (The Phantom Empire ) and most predominantly horror films such as Frankenstein or Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde . Towards the middle of the decade, science fiction was prominent in low budget Poverty Row films and film series . European films such as End of the World and F.P.1 antwortet nicht and Things to Come continued the line of prophetic speculation of Fritz Lang's film Metropolis . Towards the end of the 1930s as the political climate was changing in Europe, films such as Bila Nemoc used science fiction elements to imagine the horrors of World War II .
Few films from the era have been nominated or won awards, these include Fredric March winning an Academy Award for Best actor for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde while the film received nominations for best writing and cinematography. Gilbert Kurland was nominated for Best Sound Recording for Bride of Frankenstein
List
Science fiction films of the 1930s
1930
Title
Director
Release
Primary cast
Production country
Notes
Ref(s)
The Voice from the Sky
Ben F. Wilson
1 January 1930
Wally Wales , Neva Gerber , Robert D. Walker
United States
Film serial with 10 chapters
Alraune
Richard Oswald
2 March 1930
Brigitte Helm , Albert Bassermann , Harald Paulsen
Germany
[ 6] [ 7]
Just Imagine
David Butler
21 November 1930
El Brendel , Maureen O'Sullivan , Marjorie White
United States
[ 8] [ 9]
1931
Title
Director
Release
Primary cast
Production country
Notes
Ref(s)
End of the World
Abel Gance
23 January 1931
Colette Darfeuil , Abel Gance , Victor Francen
France
[ 11] [ 12]
Frankenstein
James Whale
21 November 1931
Colin Clive , Boris Karloff , Mae Clarke
United States
[ 13]
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Rouben Mamoulian
31 December 1931
Fredric March , Miriam Hopkins , Rose Hobart
United States
[ 14]
1932
Title
Director
Release
Primary cast
Production country
Notes
Ref(s)
L'Atlantide
G. W. Pabst
8 June 1932
Brigitte Helm
Germany, France
[ 16]
Doctor X
Michael Curtiz
3 August 1932
Lionel Atwill , Fay Wray , Lee Tracy
United States
Science fiction horror[ 18]
Chandu the Magician
Marcel Varnel , William C. Menzies
18 September 1932
Edmund Lowe , Irene Ware , Bela Lugosi
United States
[ 19] [ 21]
6 Hours to Live
William Dieterle
16 October 1932
Warner Baxter , Miriam Jordan , John Boles
United States
[ 22]
F.P.1 antwortet nicht
Karl Hartl
22 December 1932
Hans Albers , Sybille Schmitz , Paul Hartmann
Germany
[ 24]
Island of Lost Souls
Erle C. Kenton
23 December 1932
Charles Laughton , Richard Arlen , Leila Hyams
United States
[ 25] [ 26]
1933
Title
Director
Release
Primary cast
Production country
Notes
Ref(s)
Men Must Fight
Edgar Selwyn
17 February 1933
Diana Wynyard , Lewis Stone , Phillips Holmes
United States
[ 28]
It's Great to Be Alive
Alfred L. Werker
2 June 1933
Raúl Roulien , Gloria Stuart , Edna May Oliver
United States
[ 30] [ 31]
Deluge
Felix E. Feist
18 August 1933
Peggy Shannon , Sidney Blackmer , Lois Wilson
United States
[ 32]
Ein Unsichtbarer geht durch die Stadt [de ]
Harry Piel
29 September 1933
Harry Piel , Fritz Odemar , Lissy Arna
Germany
[ 34] [ 35]
F.P.1 Doesn't Answer
Karl Hartl
22 December 1932
Conrad Veidt Jill Esmond Leslie Fenton
Germany
English version of 1932 German movie
The Invisible Man
James Whale
13 November 1933
Claude Rains , Gloria Stuart , William Harrigan
United States
[ 36]
Der Tunnel "The Tunnel"
Kurt Bernhardt
27 October 1933
Paul Hartmann , Olly von Flint , Gustaf Gründgens
Germany
Multiple Language Film
[ 37]
Le Tunnel "The Tunnel"
Kurt Bernhardt
15 December 1933
Jean Gabin , Madeleine Renaud , Robert Le Vigan , Edmond Van Daële
France
Multiple Language Film
1934
Title
Director
Release
Primary cast
Production country
Notes
Ref(s)
Die Welt ohne Maske
Harry Piel
9 March 1934
Harry Piel , Kurt Vespermann , Annie Markart
Germany
[ 40]
Gold
Karl Hartl
29 March 1934
Hans Albers , Brigitte Helm , Michael Bohnen
Germany
[ 41]
The Vanishing Shadow
Lew Landers
13 April 1934
Onslow Stevens , Ada Ince , Walter Miller
United States
Film serial with 12 chapters
Master of the World
Harry Piel
11 August 1934
Walter Janssen , Sybille Schmitz , Walter Franck
Germany
[ 44]
Once in a New Moon
Anthony Kimmins
December 1934
Derrick de Marney , Vernon Kelso , John Clements
United Kingdom
[ 45] [ 46] [ 47]
1935
Title
Director
Release
Primary cast
Production country
Notes
Ref(s)
The Lost City
Harry Revier
14 February 1935
William "Stage" Boyd , Kane Richmond , Claudia Dell
United States
Film serial with 12 chapters
[ 50]
The Phantom Empire
Otto Brower , B. Reeves Eason
23 February 1935
Gene Autry , Frankie Darro , Betsy King Ross
United States
Film serial with 12 chapters
Loss of Sensation
Alexandr Andriyevsky
17 April 1935
Sergey Vecheslov , Vladimir Gardin
Soviet Union
[ 55] [ 58]
Bride of Frankenstein
James Whale
22 April 1935
Boris Karloff , Colin Clive , Valerie Hobson
United States
[ 59] [ 60]
Air Hawks
Albert S. Rogell
7 May 1935
Ralph Bellamy , Tala Birell , Wiley Post
United States
[ 61] [ 62]
The Tunnel AKA Transatlantic Tunnel
Maurice Elvey
25 October 1935
Richard Dix , Leslie Banks , Madge Evans
United Kingdom
Multiple Language Film
[ 63]
1936
Title
Director
Release
Primary cast
Production country
Notes
Ref(s)
The Invisible Ray
Lambert Hillyer
20 January 1936
Boris Karloff , Bela Lugosi , Frances Drake
United States
[ 65]
Kosmicheskiy reys
Vassili Jouravlev
21 January 1936
Soviet Union
[ 66]
Things to Come
William Cameron Menzies
20 February 1936
Raymond Massey , Cedric Hardwicke , Edward Chapman
United Kingdom
The Walking Dead
Michael Curtiz
14 March 1936
Boris Karloff , Ricardo Cortez , Edmund Gwenn
United States
[ 70] [ 71]
Flash Gordon
Frederick Stephani
6 April 1936
Larry "Buster" Crabbe , Jean Rogers , Charles B. Middleton
United States
Film serial with 13 chapters
Undersea Kingdom
B. Reeves Eason , Joseph Kane
30 May 1936
Ray "Crash" Corrigan , Lois Wilde
United States
Film serial with 12 chapters
[ 74]
Ghost Patrol
Sam Newfield
3 August 1936
Tim McCoy , Claudia Dell , Walter Miller
United States
[ 75]
The Man Who Changed His Mind
Robert Stevenson
11 September 1936
Boris Karloff , Anna Lee , John Loder
United Kingdom
[ 76]
1937
Title
Director
Release
Primary cast
Production country
Notes
Ref(s)
Non-Stop New York
Robert Stevenson
13 September 1937
John Loder , Anna Lee , Francis L. Sullivan
United Kingdom
[ 78]
Skeleton on Horseback
Hugo Haas
21 December 1937
Hugo Haas , Bedrich Karen , Zdenek Stephanek
Czechoslovakia
[ 79]
1938
Title
Director
Release
Primary cast
Production country
Notes
Ref(s)
Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars
Ford Beebe , Robert F. Hill
31 March 1938
Larry "Buster" Crabbe , Jean Rogers , Charles B. Middleton
United States
Film serial with 15 chapters
Flight to Fame
C. C. Coleman Jr.
12 October 1938
Charles Farrell , Jacqueline Wells , Hugh Sothern
United States
[ 82] [ 83]
1939
Title
Director
Release
Primary cast
Production country
Notes
Ref(s)
The Phantom Creeps
Ford Beebe
7 January 1939
Bela Lugosi , Robert Kent , Dorothy Arnold
United States
Film serial with 12 chapters
[ 86]
Son of Frankenstein
Rowland V. Lee
13 January 1939
Basil Rathbone , Boris Karloff , Bela Lugosi
United States
[ 88]
Buck Rogers
Ford Beebe , Saul A. Goodkind
11 April 1939
Larry "Buster" Crabbe , Constance Moore , Jackie Moran
United States
Film serial with 12 chapters
The Man They Could Not Hang
Nick Grinde
17 August 1939
Boris Karloff , Lorna Gray , Robert Wilcox
United States
[ 92]
The Return of Doctor X
Vincent Sherman
23 November 1939
Humphrey Bogart , Rosemary Lane , Wayne Morris
United States
[ 94] [ 95]
See also
Notes
^ "Alraune" . Filmportal.de . Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ Erickson, Hal . "Alraune" . AllMovie . Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Just Imagine" . American Film Institute . Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ Brennan, Sandra. "Just Imagine" . AllMovie. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "La Fin du monde" . Bifi.fr. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "La Fin Du Monde" . AllMovie. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Frankenstein" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "L'Atlantide" . Filmportal.de. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Doctor X (1932) - Michael Curtiz | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related | AllMovie" .
^ "Chandu the Magician" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ Erickson, Hal. "Chandu the Magician" . AllMovie. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "6 Hours to Live" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "F.P. 1 antwortet nicht" . Filmportal.de. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Island of Lost Souls" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ Erickson, Hal. "Island of Lost Souls" . AllMovie. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Men Must Fight" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "It's Great to Be Alive" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ Brennan, Sandra. "It's Great to Be Alive" . AllMovie. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Deluge" . Afi Catalog . American Film Institute. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Ein Unsichtbarer geht durch die Stadt" . Filmportal.de. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Ein Unsichtbarer geht durch die Stadt" . AllMovie. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "The Invisible Man" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Der Tunnel" . Filmportal.de. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Die Welt ohne Maske" . Filmportal.de. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Gold" . Filmportal.de. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Der Herr der Welt" . Filmportal.de. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ Hunter, I. Q. (2002). British Science Fiction Cinema . Routledge. p. 28. ISBN 0-203-00977-0 .
^ Brennan, Sandra. "Once in a New Moon (1935)" . AllMovie. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ This was released in December 1934, and is frequently listed as a 1935 film. See:
Low, Rachael; Manvell, Roger; Richards, Jeffrey (2005). History of British Film . Routledge. p. 367. ISBN 0-415-15652-1 .
^ "The Lost City" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ Brennan, Sandra. "Gibel Sensatsii" . AllMovie. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Гибель сенсации" (in Russian). KinoPoisk . Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Bride of Frankenstein" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 7 August 2016 .
^ Erickson, Hal. "The Bride of Frankenstein" . AllMovie. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Air Hawks" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ Erickson, Hal. "Air Hawks" . AllMovie. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "Transatlantic Tunnel" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "The Invisible Ray" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "Космический рейс" (in Russian). KinoPoisk. Retrieved 22 November 2015 .
^ "The Walking Dead" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ Betzold, Michael. "The Walking Dead" . AllMovie. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ Wollstein, Hans J. "Undersea Kingdom" . AllMovie. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "Ghost Patrol" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "The Man Who Lived Again" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "Non-Stop New York" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "Bílá nemoc" . CSFD. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "Flight to Fame" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ Erickson, Hal. "Flight to Fame" . AllMovie. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ Erickson, Hal. "The Phantom Creeps" . AllMovie. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "Son of Frankenstein" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "The Man They Could Not Hang" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ "The Return of Doctor X" . American Film Institute. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
^ Brennan, Sandra. "The Return of Doctor X" . AllMovie. Retrieved 23 November 2015 .
References
Bock, Hans-Michael, ed. (2009). The Concise Cinegraph . Berghahn Books. ISBN 978-1-57181-655-9 .
Bradley, Edwin M. (2005). The First Hollywood Sound Shorts, 1926–1931 . McFarland. ISBN 1476606846 .
Cline, William C., ed. (1997). In the Nick of Time: Motion Picture Sound Serials . McFarland. ISBN 078640471X .
Cusic, Don (2007). Gene Autry: His Life and Career . McFarland. ISBN 978-0786430611 .
Hardy, Phil, ed. (1984). Science Fiction . New York : Morrow. ISBN 0-688-00842-9 .
Hochscherf, Tobias, ed. (2011). British Science Fiction Film and Television: Critical Essays . McFarland. ISBN 978-0786484836 .
Johnston, Keith M. (2013). Science Fiction Film . Berg. ISBN 978-1847884787 .
Kinnard, Roy (1998). Science Fiction Serials . McFarland. ISBN 0786437456 .
Kinnard, Roy; Crnkovich, Tony; Vitone, R. J. (2008). The Flash Gordon Serials, 1936–1940 . McFarland. ISBN 978-0786455003 .
Rainey, Buck (2015). Serials and Series: A World Filmography, 1912–1956 . McFarland. ISBN 978-1476604480 .
Rhodes, Gary Don (1997). Lugosi: His Life in Films, on Stage, and in the Hearts of Horror Lovers . McFarland. ISBN 0786402571 .
Soister, John T. (2005). Of Gods and Monsters: A Critical Guide to Universal Studios' Science Fiction, Horror and Mystery Films, 1929–1939 . McFarland. ISBN 1476604991 .
External links