Over 50 Vintage Science Fiction, Horror, And Fantasy Films That You Can Watch For Free (And Probably Should)

Every time I visit The Internet Archive, I’m overwhelmed by the sheer number of options. I could spend hours searching the database for something worth my time, something that fits the mood of the moment. One day I might want classic Windows and Dos games, and another I might want to watch some weird Soviet cartoon I don’t understand. Something we can all appreciate is classic cinema. The way they used to make films was a lot more akin to a theatre production with studios and stages with hand-made special effects. The older the film, the more rudimentary the technology and technique. When we trace back storylines and character development, we can see themes and similarities that still prevail today.  
 
When we want to examine the depth of the human imagination and film industry inventiveness, turning to fantasy and sci-fi is probably going to yield a good harvest. The boat is pushed with each fantastical idea, the methods of getting the shot, the costumes and the effects, we can enjoy the production for what it is for its own place in time. So, we love to complain about the modern film with its CGI and AI generated what nots. So why not submerge your cultural imagination in something from a time when computers were counting machines.  
 
To save you time and effort, I’ve created this list of some top watch-worthy films from the Science Fiction and Fantasy genre that are completely free and downloadable on The Internet Archive. You can watch the online from the website or select the video file for download and take it with you. There are plenty of others on the site for you to browse if you have time. These selected ones are the titles that have stood out as unusual and entertaining.  
 
Fantastic Planet by Rene Laloux 1973 
 
The Revenge of a Kinematograph Cameraman (silent) by Wladyslaw Starewicz 1912 
 
Lady Frankenstein by Umberto Borsato 1970 
 
Satan’s Cheerleaders by Greydon Clark 1977 
 
Inner Sanctum by Lew Landers 1948 
 
House On Haunted Hill by William Castle 1959 
 
Day The Earth Stood Still starring Micheal Rennie (colourised) 1951 
 
Spellbound by Alfred Hitchcock 1945 
 
Gulliver’s Travels (animation) by Fleischer Studios 1939 
 
Kagemusha by Akira Kurosawa 1980 
 
Earth Vs The Flying Saucers by Sam Katzman (colourised) 1956 
 
Cosmos War Of The Planets by Louis Alex 1977  
 
 The Lost World by Jamie White 1925 
 
Creature From The Black Lagoon starring Richard Carlson (colourised) 1954 
 
Tarantula starring John Agar (colourised) 1955 
 
Horror Express with Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing 1973 
 
Bloody Pit Of Horror by Francesco Merli and Ralph Zucker 1965 
 
Killers From Space by W. D. Wilder 1954 
 
Daughters Of Darkness by Harry Kumel 1971 
Grave Of The Vampire by John Hayes 1974 
 
Nosferatu 1922 
 
Waxworks by Conrad Veidt 1929 
 
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers by Walter Wanger (colourised) 1956 
 
The Deadly Mantis starring Craig Stevens (colourised) 1957 
 
It Came From Outer Space Starring Richard Carlson and Barbara Rush (colourised) 1953 
 
Kronos by Jeff Morrow (colourised) 1957 
 
Destroy All Planets by Masaichi Nagata 1968 
 
The Golem starring Paul Wegener 1920 
 
The Crawling Eye starring Forrest Tucker (colourised) 1958 
 
Silent Night, Bloody Night by Theodore Gershuny 1972 
 
Alice In Wonderland by W.W. Young (silent) 1915 
 
 The Monster That Challenged The World starring Tim Holt (colourised) 1957 
 
First Spaceship On Venus by Hans Mahlich 1960 
 
Captain Kronos Vampire Hunter by Brian Clemens 1974 
In The Year 2889 by Larry Buchanan 1967 
 
When Worlds Collide by Rudolph Mate and George Pal 1951 
 
The Yesterday Machine 1963 
 
Haxan (silent) 1922  
 
Attack From Space Koreyoshi Akasaka 1969 
 
Nightmare Castle by Carlo Caiano 1965 
 
Beat The Devil starring Humphrey Bogart 1953 
 
Revenge Of The Creature From The Black Lagoon by Jack Arnold 1955 
 
Driller Killer uncut by Abel Ferrara 1979 
 
The Terror by Roger Corman 1963 
 
City Of The Dead / Horror Hotel by Ben Arbeid 1960 
 
Curse Of The Demon starring Dana Andrews (colourised) 1957 
 
White Zombie by Edward Halperin 1932 
 
Utopia by Raymond Egar 1951 
 
I Eat Your Skin by Del Tenney 1971 
Attack Of The Monsters by Masaichi Nagata 1968 
 
The Monolith Monsters 1957 
 
Evil Brain From Outer Space starring Ken Utsui 1964 
 
The Creature Walks Among Us by John Sherwood 1956 
 
So, there are plenty of titles here for you to enjoy, and it’s just a select pick from the massive list on the archive. I’ve done my best to ignore things that are well-known or not on theme. Here are some fun and creepy, sometimes fascinating, films to download, play, put on over parties with the volume down, or whatever you want. Have fun. PS. The Internet Archive is a crowd funded resource much like Alterative Fruit. Once you’ve tipped this journal, make sure to give them a little something too.  
 
If making films and the art of film making is a subject you’re interested in, there’s nothing quite like learning from professional tutors, with experience, reviews, and the human touch. Browse today.  
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