List of science fiction films of the 1930s

This is a list of science fiction films that premiered between January 1, 1930 and December 31, 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".^[1]

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.^[1] 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.^[1][2] Towards the middle of the decade, science fiction was prominent in low budget Poverty Row films and film series.^[1] 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.^[1] Towards the end of the 1930s as political climate was changing in Europe, films such as Bila Nemoc used science fiction elements to imagine the horrors of World War II.^[1]

Few films from the era have been nominated or won awards, these include Frederic March winning an Academy Award for Best actor for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde while the film received nominations for best writing and cinematography.^[3] Gilbert Kurland was nominated for Best Sound Recording for The Bride of Frankenstein.^[3]

Science fiction films of the 1930s

Title	Director	Release	Primary cast	Production country	Notes	Ref(s)
The Voice from the Sky	Wilson, Ben F.Ben F. Wilson	January 1, 1930	Wally Wales, Neva Gerber, Robert D. Walker	United States	Film serial with 10 chapters	[4][5]
Alraune	Oswald, RichardRichard Oswald	March 2, 1930	Brigitte Helm, Albert Bassermann, Harald Paulsen	Germany		[6][7][1]
Just Imagine	Butler, DavidDavid Butler	November 21, 1930	El Brendel, Maureen O'Sullivan, Marjorie White	United States		[8][9][10]
End of the World	Gance, AbelAbel Gance	January 23, 1931	Colette Darfeuil, Abel Gance, Victor Francen	France		[11][12][10]
Frankenstein	Whale, JamesJames Whale	November 21, 1931	Colin Clive, Boris Karloff, Mae Clarke	United States		[13][10][4]
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde	Mamoulian, RoubenRouben Mamoulian	December 31, 1931	Fredric March, Miriam Hopkins, Rose Hobart	United States		[14][15]
L'Atlantide	Pabst, G. W.G. W. Pabst	June 8, 1932	Brigitte Helm	Germany, France		[16][17]
Chandu the Magician	Varnel, MarcelMarcel Varnel, William C. Menzies	September 18, 1932	Edmund Lowe, Irene Ware, Bela Lugosi	United States		[18][19][15][20]
6 Hours to Live	Dieterle, WilliamWilliam Dieterle	October 16, 1932	Warner Baxter, Miriam Jordan, John Boles	United States		[21][22]
Island of Lost Souls	Kenton, Erle C.Erle C. Kenton	December 1932	Charles Laughton, Richard Arlen, Leila Hyams	United States		[23][24]
F.P.1 Antwortet Nicht	Hartl, KarlKarl Hartl	December 22, 1932	Hans Albers, Sybille Schmitz, Paul Hartmann	Germany		[15][25]
Men Must Fight	Selwyn, EdgarEdgar Selwyn	February 17, 1933	Diana Wynyard, Lewis Stone, Phillips Holmes	United States		[26][27]
It's Great to Be Alive	Werker, Alfred L.Alfred L. Werker	June 2, 1933	Raúl Roulien, Gloria Stuart, Edna May Oliver	United States		[28][29][30]
Deluge	Feist, Felix E.Felix E. Feist	August 18, 1933	Peggy Shannon, Sidney Blackmer, Lois Wilson	United States		[28][31]
Ein Unsichtbarer geht durch die Stadt	Piel, HarryHarry Piel	September 29, 1933	Harry Piel, Fritz Odemar, Lissy Arna	Germany		[32][33][34]
The Tunnel	Bernhardt, KurtKurt Bernhardt	October 27, 1933	Paul Hartmann, Olly von Flint, Gustaf Gründgens	France, Germany		[26][35][36]
The Invisible Man	Whale, JamesJames Whale	November 13, 1933	Claude Rains, Gloria Stuart, William Harrigan	United States		[28][37]
Die Welt ohne Maske	Piel, HarryHarry Piel	March 9, 1934	Harry Piel, Kurt Vespermann, Annie Markart	Germany		[38][39]
Gold	Hartl, KarlKarl Hartl	March 29, 1934	Hans Albers, Brigitte Helm, Michael Bohnen	Germany		[32][40]
The Vanishing Shadow	Landers, LewLew Landers	July 1934	Onslow Stevens, Ada Ince, Walter Miller	United States	Film serial with 12 chapters	[38][41][42]
Master of the World	Piel, HarryHarry Piel	August 11, 1934	Walter Janssen, Sybille Schmitz, Walter Franck	Germany		[32][43]
Once in a New Moon	Kimmins, AnthonyAnthony Kimmins	December 1934	Derrick de Marney, Vernon Kelso, John Clements	United Kingdom		[44][45][46]
The Lost City	Revier, HarryHarry Revier	February 14, 1935	William "Stage" Boyd, Kane Richmond, Claudia Dell	United States	Film serial with 12 chapters	[47][48][49][50]
The Phantom Empire	Brower, OttoOtto Brower, B. Reeves Eason	February 23, 1935	Gene Autry, Frankie Darro, Betsy King Ross	United States	Film serial with 12 chapters	[51][52][53][54]
Loss of Sensation	Andriyevsky, AlexandrAlexandr Andriyevsky	April 17, 1935	Sergey Vecheslov, Vladimir Gardin	Soviet Union		[55][56][57][58][59]
Bride of Frankenstein	Whale, JamesJames Whale	April 22, 1935	Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson	United States		[38][60][61]
Air Hawks	Rogell, Albert S.Albert S. Rogell	May 7, 1935	Ralph Bellamy, Tala Birell, Wiley Post	United States		[38][62][63]
The Tunnel	Elvey, MauriceMaurice Elvey	October 25, 1935	Richard Dix, Leslie Banks, Madge Evans	United Kingdom		[64][51]
The Invisible Ray	Hillyer, LambertLambert Hillyer	January 20, 1936	Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Frances Drake	United States		[65][66]
Kosmicheskiy reys	Jouravlev, VassiliVassili Jouravlev	January 21, 1936		Soviet Union		[47][67]
Things to Come	Menzies, William CameronWilliam Cameron Menzies	February 1936	Raymond Massey, Cedric Hardwicke, Edward Chapman	United Kingdom		[68][69]
Flash Gordon	Stephani, FrederickFrederick Stephani	April 6, 1936	Larry "Buster" Crabbe, Jean Rogers, Charles B. Middleton	United States	Film serial with 13 chapters	[51][70]
The Walking Dead	Curtiz, MichaelMichael Curtiz	March 14, 1936	Boris Karloff, Ricardo Cortez, Edmund Gwenn	United States		[71][72][73]
Undersea Kingdom	Eason, B. ReevesB. Reeves Eason, Joseph Kane	May 30, 1936	Ray "Crash" Corrigan, Lois Wilde	United States	Film serial with 12 chapters	[74][75]
Ghost Patrol	Newfield, SamSam Newfield	August 3, 1936	Tim McCoy, Claudia Dell, Walter Miller	United States		[65][76]
The Man Who Changed His Mind	Stevenson, RobertRobert Stevenson	September 1936	Boris Karloff, Anna Lee, John Loder	United Kingdom		[65][77]
Non-Stop New York	Stevenson, RobertRobert Stevenson	September 1937	John Loder, Anna Lee, Francis L. Sullivan	United Kingdom		[78][79]
Skeleton on Horseback	Haas, HugoHugo Haas	December 21, 1937	Hugo Haas, Bedrich Karen, Zdenek Stephanek	Czechoslovakia		[71][80]
Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars	Beebe, FordFord Beebe, Robert F. Hill	March 31, 1938	Larry "Buster" Crabbe, Jean Rogers, Charles B. Middleton	United States	Film serial with 15 chapters	[71][81]
Flight to Fame	Coleman Jr., C. C.C. C. Coleman Jr.	October 12, 1938	Charles Farrell, Jacqueline Wells, Hugh Sothern	United States		[82][83][84]
Son of Frankenstein	Lee, Rowland V.Rowland V. Lee	January 13, 1939	Basil Rathbone, Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi	United States		[85][86][87]
Buck Rogers	Beebe, FordFord Beebe, Saul A. Goodkind	April 11, 1939	Larry "Buster" Crabbe, Constance Moore, Jackie Moran	United States	Film serial with 12 chapters	[88][89]
The Man They Could Not Hang	Grinde, NickNick Grinde	August 17, 1939	Boris Karloff, Lorna Gray, Robert Wilcox	United States		[90][91][92]
The Phantom Creeps	Beebe, FordFord Beebe	August 1939	Bela Lugosi, Robert Kent, Dorothy Arnold	United States	Film serial with 12 chapters	[90][93][94]
The Return of Doctor X	Sherman, VincentVincent Sherman	November 23, 1939	Humphrey Bogart, Rosemary Lane, Wayne Morris	United States		[95][96]

See also

• History of science fiction films

Notes

1. Hardy 1984, p. 82.
2. Johnston 2013, p. 127.
3. Hardy 1984, p. 391.
4. Hardy 1984, p. 84.
5. Bradley 2005, p. 462.
6. "Alraune". Filmportal.de. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
7. Erickson, Hal. "Alraune". AllMovie. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
8. "Just Imagine". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
9. Brennan, Sandra. "Just Imagine". AllMovie. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
10. Hardy 1984, p. 83.
11. "La Fin du monde". Bifi.fr. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
12. "La Fin Du Monde". AllMovie. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
13. "Frankenstein". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
14. "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
15. Hardy 1984, p. 86.
16. "L'Atlantide". Filmportal.de. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
17. Hardy 1984, p. 87.
18. "Chandu the Magician". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
19. Hardy 1984, p. 85.
20. Erickson, Hal. "Chandu the Magician". AllMovie. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
21. "6 Hours to Live". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
22. Hardy 1984, p. 88.
23. "Island of Lost Souls". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
24. Erickson, Hal. "Island of Lost Souls". AllMovie. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
25. "F.P. 1 antwortet nicht". Filmportal.de. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
26. Hardy 1984, p. 90.
27. "Men Must Fight". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
28. Hardy 1984, p. 89.
29. "It's Great to Be Alive". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
30. Brennan, Sandra. "It's Great to Be Alive". AllMovie. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
31. "Deluge". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
32. Hardy 1984, p. 91.
33. "Ein Unsichtbarer geht durch die Stadt". Filmportal.de. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
34. "Ein Unsichtbarer geht durch die Stadt". AllMovie. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
35. "Der Tunnel". Filmportal.de. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
36. Bock 2009, p. 41.
37. "The Invisible Man". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
38. Hardy 1984, p. 92.
39. "Die Welt ohne Maske". Filmportal.de. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
40. "Gold". Filmportal.de. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
41. Rainey 2005, p. 706.
42. Kinnard, p. 11.
43. "Der Herr der Welt". Filmportal.de. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
44. Hunter, I. Q. (2002). British Science Fiction Cinema. Routledge. p. 28. ISBN 0-203-00977-0.
45. Brennan, Sandra. "Once in a New Moon (1935)". AllMovie. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
46. 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.
47. Hardy 1984, p. 94.
48. Kinnard, p. 14.
49. Kinnard, p. 16.
50. "The Lost City". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
51. Hardy 1984, p. 95.
52. Kinnard, p. 22.
53. Kinnard, p. 27.
54. Cusic, p. 50.
55. Hardy 1984, p. 93.
56. Brennan, Sandra. "Gibel Sensatsii". AllMovie. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
57. Johnston 2013, p. 60.
58. Johnston 2013, p. 61.
59. "Гибель сенсации" (in Russian). KinoPoisk. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
60. "http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/DetailView.aspx?s=&Movie=5831". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015. External link in |title= (help)
61. Erickson, Hal. "The Bride of Frankenstein". AllMovie. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
62. "Air Hawks". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
63. Erickson, Hal. "Air Hawks". AllMovie. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
64. "Transatlantic Tunnel". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
65. Hardy 1984, p. 96.
66. "The Invisible Ray". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
67. "Космический рейс" (in Russian). KinoPoisk. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
68. Hardy 1984, p. 97.
69. Hochscherf, p. 17.
70. Kinnard 2008, p. 25.
71. Hardy 1984, p. 98.
72. "The Walking Dead". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
73. Betzold, Michael. "The Walking Dead". AllMovie. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
74. Cline 1997, p. 215.
75. Wollstein, Hans J. "Undersea Kingdom". AllMovie. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
76. "Ghost Patrol". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
77. "The Man Who Lived Again". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
78. Hardy 1984, p. 99.
79. "Non-Stop New York". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
80. "Bílá nemoc". CSFD. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
81. Kinnard 2008, p. 86.
82. Hardy 1984, p. 100.
83. "Flight to Fame". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
84. Erickson, Hal. "Flight to Fame". AllMovie. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
85. Hardy 1984, p. 103.
86. "Son of Frankenstein". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
87. Soister 2005, p. 153.
88. Hardy 1984, p. 101.
89. Kinnard 2008, p. 161.
90. Hardy 1984, p. 102.
91. "The Man They Could Not Hang". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
92. Johnston 2013, p. 57.
93. Rhodes 1997, p. 151.
94. Erickson, Hal. "The Phantom Creeps". AllMovie. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
95. "The Return of Doctor X". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
96. Brennan, Sandra. "The Return of Doctor X". AllMovie. Retrieved November 23, 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 0786430613.

• 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 0786484837.
• Johnston, Keith M. (2013). Science Fiction Film. Berg. ISBN 1847884784.
• 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 0786455004.
• Rainey, Buck (2015). Serials and Series: A World Filmography, 1912-1956. McFarland. ISBN 1476604487.
• 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.

This film-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.