Science Fiction is notorious for containing a broad range of themes: dystopia, social commentary, cyberpunk, solar punk, and many more. These themes may be found as a sole driver of a story, or work in combination with any of the others.

What about horror in Science Fiction? Horror in science fiction is interesting, as it may contain all the elements of horror we’re so familiar with: slasher, pyschological, paranormal, etc., but with the added elements of advanced technology, futuristic environments, or even space. This lends itself to a whole new exploration of horror, which is both terrifying and exciting!

For our cinematic list this week, we offer you three flavors of horror set in space: body horror, with an invasive alien species, in Ash; psychological horror, where madness drives the narrative, in Pandorum; and paranormal horror, signifying evil can be found anywhere, including the farthest reaches of space, in Event Horizon.

What follows are brief reviews on each film, highlighting the elements making each film worth watching, and the terror they raise. We hope you enjoy a weekend out in space as you follow the exploits of Riya, Corporal Bower and Lieutenant Payton, and Captain Miller and Doctor Weir.

Find the list on Letterboxd here: