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The Science Fiction Horror and Fantasy Film Review

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Theme: Parasites

In biology, a parasite is a lifeform that lives on, in or by attaching itself to a host and feeding from them. Genre cinema has adapted the idea to its own uses and gives us a variety of lifeforms that attach themselves to humans (almost always) and control or feed upon them.

The most famous parasite in genre cinema would be the chestburster in Alien (1979). Body Snatchers films are filled with a good many other parasitic alien lifeforms that take over and control humans or even the dead as part of an Alien Invasion. The horror genre has developed a number of variations of their own.


The 5th Wave (2016)

31 January 201617 May 2022

Rating: ★

Alien Invasion/Young Adult

Director: J. Blakeson
Actors: Chloe Grace Moretz, Alex Roe, Nick Robinson, Liev Schreiber, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Abomination (1986)

4 March 202022 November 2024

Rating: 0­

Monster Tumor/Bad Movie

Director: Bret McCormick
Category: Horror

Alien (1979)

2 May 199920 August 2024

Rating: ★★★★★

Alien Nasty on a Spaceship

Director: Ridley Scott
Actors: Sigourney Weaver, Ian Holm, John Hurt, Yaphet Kotto, …
Category: Science Fiction

Aliens vs Titanic (2017)

26 January 20187 July 2019

Rating: ★★

Stranded on a Planet with Alien Parasites

Director: Jeff Leroy
Actors: Tasha Tacosa, Jin N Tonic, Jennifur Miller, Kelly Erin Decker, …
Category: Science Fiction

Apollo 18 (2011)

9 September 20117 July 2025

Rating: ★★★

NASA Moon Landing/Alien Possession Found Footage Film

Director: Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego
Actors: Warren Christie, Lloyd Owen, Ryan Robbins
Category: Science Fiction

The Arrival (1991)

5 September 20049 July 2019

Rating: ★★

Alien Vampire Parasite

Director: David Schmoeller
Actors: Joseph Culp, John Saxon, Robert Sampson, Robin Frates, …
Category: Science Fiction

Baby Blood (1990)

4 July 202329 June 2024

Rating: ★★★

Woman Impregnated by a Blood-Drinking Parasite

Director: Alain Robak
Actors: Emmanuelle Escourrou, Christian Sinniger, Alain Chabat
Category: Horror

Bad Milo! (2013)

13 December 201314 April 2025

Rating: ★½

Demon Inhabits a Man’s Ass Comedy

Director: Jacob Vaughan
Actors: Ken Marino, Peter Stormare, Gillian Jacobs, Patrick Warburton, …
Category: Horror

Batman and Superman: Battle of the Super Sons (2022)

13 November 202231 May 2024

Rating: ★★★

Comic-Book Superheroes/Animation

Director: Matt Peters
Actors: Jack Dylan Grazer, Jack Griffo, Travis Willingham, Troy Baker, …
Category: Science Fiction

Battle for Pandora (2022)

16 September 20244 February 2025

Rating: ★★

Planetary Exploration/Alien Body Snatchers

Director: Noah Luke
Actors: Natalie Storrs, Tom Sizemore, Mark Andrew Ricketson, Kristos Andrews, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Beach House (2019)

17 July 202017 July 2020

Rating: ★★★

Fog Brings Environmental Mutations

Director: Jeffrey A. Brown
Actors: Liana Liberato, Noah Le Gros, Jake Weber, Maryann Nagel
Category: Science Fiction, Horror

Brain Damage (1987)

3 April 200021 December 2021

Rating: ★★★★

Addictive Brain Parasite

Director: Frank Henenlotter
Actors: Rick Herbst, Jennifer Lowry
Category: Horror

Brain Dead (2007)

24 May 201119 December 2024

Rating: ★½

Alien Zombie Splatter

Director: Kevin S. Tenney
Category: Horror, Science Fiction

The Brain Eaters (1958)

17 November 20044 March 2020

Rating: ★★

Alien Body Snatchers

Director: Bruno VeSota
Actors: Ed Nelson, Jack Hill, Joanna Lee, Leonard Nimoy
Category: Science Fiction

Branded (2012)

8 November 20165 March 2020

Rating: ★★

Brand Names Revealed as Parasitic Entities

Director: Jamie Bradshaw, Alexander Doulerain
Actors: Ed Stoppard, Leelee Sobieski, Jeffrey Tambor, Max Von Sydow
Category: Science Fiction

Breach (2020)

14 April 202514 April 2025

Rating: ★★

Parasites Aboard a Space Mission

Director: John Suits
Actors: Bruce Willis, Rachel Nichols, Thomas Jane, Coody Kearsley, …
Category: Science Fiction

Bunker (2022)

7 March 20247 March 2024

Rating: ★★½

Haunted WWI Bunker

Director: Adrian Langley
Actors: Eddie Ramos, Patrick Moltane, Julian Feder, Luke Baines, …
Category: Horror

Burnt Offerings (1976)

4 June 200011 February 2020

Rating: ★★

Parasitic House

Director: Dan Curtis
Actors: Oliver Reed, Karen Black, Bette Davis, Lee Harcourt Montgomery, …
Category: Horror

Candy Stripers (2006)

1 January 200920 March 2020

Rating: ★

Bimbo Alien Body Snatchers

Director: Kate Robbins
Actors: Brian Lloyd, Tori White, Eliza Swenson, Andrew Welsh
Category: Science Fiction

Don’t Fuck in the Woods 2 (2022)

5 October 20235 October 2023

Rating: ★

Body-Snatching Parasites

Director: Shawn Burkett
Actors: Cheyenne Gordon, Brittany Blanton, Kenzie Phillips, Nessa Moore, …
Category: Horror

Dreamcatcher (2003)

27 March 200327 December 2024

Rating: ★★

Alien Parasite Invasion/Stephen King Adaptation

Director: Lawrence Kasdan
Actors: Thomas Jane, Morgan Freeman, Jason Lee, Timothy Olyphant, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Faculty (1998)

16 December 199919 July 2024

Rating: ★★★½

Alien Body Snatchers Take Over a High School

Director: Robert Rodriguez
Actors: Elijah Wood, Josh Hartnett, Shawn Hatosy, Laura Harris, …
Category: Science Fiction

Green Lantern: Beware My Power (2022)

24 July 202222 August 2024

Rating: ★★

Animation/DC Comics Superhero

Director: Jeff Wamester
Actors: Aldis Hodge, Jimmi Simpson, Jamie Gray Hyder, Brian Bloom, …
Category: Science Fiction

Growth (2010)

19 September 201924 April 2020

Rating: ★★★

Deadly Parasites

Director: Gabriel Cowan
Actors: Mircea Monroe, Christopher Shand, Nora Kirkpatrick, Brian Krause, …
Category: Horror

Halo Legends (2010)

30 March 201228 May 2022

Rating: ★★½

Compilation of Anime Shorts/Videogame Adaptation/Space War

Director: Hideki Futamura, Keiichi Sugiyama, Takahiro Tanaka, Hiroshi Yamazaki, …
Category: Science Fiction

Hell Hole (2024)

27 September 202427 September 2024

Rating: ★★★

Parasitic Monster

Director: John Adams, Toby Poser
Actors: Toby Poser, John Adams, Max Portman, Olivera Perunicic, …
Category: Horror

The Hidden (1987)

2 February 200311 December 2024

Rating: ★★★★

Body-Hopping Alien

Director: Jack Sholder
Actors: Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Nouri, Claudia Christian, Clarence Felder, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Hidden II (1994)

16 December 200919 July 2021

Rating: ½

Body-Hopping Alien

Director: Seth Pinsker
Actors: Rafael Sbarge, Kate Hodge
Category: Science Fiction

The Host (2013)

29 March 201326 December 2020

Rating: ★★★

Alien Body Snatchers

Director: Andrew Niccol
Actors: Saoirse Ronan, William Hurt, Diane Kruger, Max Irons, …
Category: Science Fiction

The House Next Door (2006)

8 May 201130 August 2021

Rating: ★★

Parasitic House

Director: Jeff Woolnough
Actors: Lara Flynn Boyle, Colin Ferguson, Mark Paul Goselaar, Heidi von Palleske, …
Category: Horror

Isolation (2005)

24 September 201417 December 2024

Rating: ★★★

Parasitic Infections

Director: Billy O'Brien
Actors: John Lynch, Sean Harris, Ruth Negga, Essie Davis, …
Category: Horror

Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993)

1 January 200115 February 2020

Rating: ★★★

Slasher/Mind-Control Parasite

Director: Adam Marcus
Actors: John D. LeMay, Kari Keegan, Steven Williams, Steven Culp, …
Category: Horror

The Kiss (1988)

6 April 20045 October 2023

Rating: 0­

Sinister Aunt

Director: Pen Densham
Actors: Joanna Pacula, Meredith Salenger, Mimi Kuzyk, Peter Dvorsky
Category: Horror

Meatball Machine (2005)

22 June 201611 October 2023

Rating: ★★★

Gonzo Japanese Splatter Film/Bio-Mechanoid Creatures Battle

Director: Yudai Yamaguchi, Junichi Yamamoto
Actors: Issei Takahashi, Aoba Kawai, Toru Tezuka, Kenichi Kawasaki, …
Category: Science Fiction

Meatball Machine: Kodoku (2017)

9 December 20196 June 2025

Rating: ★★

Gonzo Japanese Splatter Film/Bio-Mechanoid Mutations

Director: Yoshihiro Nishimura
Category: Science Fiction

Night of the Creeps (1986)

13 December 200219 January 2025

Rating: ★★

Alien Slugs/Resurrection of the Dead/Genre Homage

Director: Fred Dekker
Actors: Tom Atkins, Jason Lively, Jill Whitlow
Category: Science Fiction

No One Will Save You (2023)

16 February 202416 February 2024

Rating: ★★★

Woman Fights Off Alien Invaders

Director: Brian Duffield
Actors: Kaitlyn Dever, Elizabeth Kaluev, Evangeline Rhodes, Dane Rhodes, …
Category: Science Fiction

Parasite (1982)

19 October 200223 September 2024

Rating: ½

Chestbursting Nasty

Director: Charles Band
Actors: Robert Glaudini, Demi Moore, Luca Bercovici, James Davidson, …
Category: Science Fiction

Parasitic (2012)

11 November 202111 November 2021

Rating: ½

Parasite Creature

Director: Timothy R. Martin
Actors: Bianca Holland, Miguel de la Rosa, Amanda Beck, Bjorn Jiskoot Jr, …
Category: Horror

Parasyte Part 1 (2014)

14 February 201716 December 2024

Rating: ★★★

Body-Snatching Shapeshifting Parasites

Director: Takashi Yamazaki
Actors: Shota Sometani, Eri Fukatsu, Ai Hashimoto, Jun Kunimura, …
Category: Science Fiction

Parasyte Part 2 (2015)

20 January 202011 May 2020

Rating: ★★★½

Body-Snatching Shapeshifting Parasites

Director: Takashi Yamazaki
Actors: Shota Sometani, Eri Fukatsu, Nao Omori, Tadanobu Asano, …
Category: Science Fiction

Phantoms (1998)

25 January 200316 April 2020

Rating: ★★★★

Evil Force Takes Over a Small Town/Dean R. Koontz Adaptation

Director: Joe Chappelle
Actors: Peter O'Toole, Joanna Going, Rose McGowan, Liev Schreiber, …
Category: Horror

Planet Hulk (2010)

19 October 202019 October 2020

Rating: ★★½

Animation/Marvel Comics Superhero

Director: Sam Liu
Actors: Rick D. Wasserman, Mark Hildreth, Liam O'Brien, Kevin Michael Richardson, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Puppet Masters (1994)

15 December 20079 April 2021

Rating: ★★½

Alien Body Snatchers

Director: Stuart Orme
Actors: Eric Thal, Donald Sutherland, Julie Warner, Keith David, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Quatermass Xperiment (1955)

2 February 200122 August 2020

Rating: ★★★★

Mutating Astronaut

Director: Val Guest
Actors: Brian Donlevy, Richard Wordsworth, Thora Hird, Gordon Jackson
Category: Science Fiction

Rabid (1977)

11 December 19993 February 2020

Rating: ★★★

Parasitic Skin Graft

Director: David Cronenberg
Actors: Marilyn Chambers, Frank Moore, Joe Silver, Susan Roman, …
Category: Horror

Rabid (2019)

26 October 201930 July 2024

Rating: ★★½

Parasitic Skin Graft

Director: Jen Soska, Sylvia Soska
Actors: Laura Vandervoort, Benjamin Hollingsworth, Ted Atherton, Hanneke Talbot, …
Category: Horror

[Rec]4: Apocalypse (2014)

3 May 20158 March 2023

Rating: ★★½

Zombie Outbreak on a Ship

Director: Jaume Balaguero
Actors: Manuela Velasco, Paco Manzanedo, Ismael Fritschi, Crispulo Cabezas, …
Category: Horror

Resident Evil: Damnation (2012)

7 November 20237 November 2023

Rating: ★★

Anime/Videogame Adaptation

Director: Makoto Kamiya
Actors: Matthew Mercer, Wendee Lee, Courtenay Taylor, Robin Sachs, …
Category: Horror, Science Fiction

Revealer (2022)

7 January 202331 October 2023

Rating: ★★★

Stripper and Fundamentalist Trapped Together During the Apocalypse

Director: Luke Boyce
Actors: Caito Aase, Shaina Schrooten, Bishop Stevens, Buzz Leer, …
Category: Horror

Sea Fever (2019)

16 May 202011 June 2025

Rating: ★★★

Sea Monster/Parasitic Infection

Director: Neasa Hardiman
Actors: Hermione Corfield, Dougray Scott, Connie Nielsen, Jack Hickey, …
Category: Science Fiction

Sella Turcica (2010)

29 January 20112 July 2025

Rating: ★★½

Mutating Gulf War Veteran

Director: Fred Vogel
Actors: Camille Keaton, Damien Marusack, Jade Risser
Category: Horror

Shivers (1975)

17 August 20001 July 2022

Rating: ★★★★

Sexual Fetishism Parasites

Director: David Cronenberg
Actors: Paul Hampton, Lynn Lowry, Barbara Steele, Joe Silver, …
Category: Horror, Science Fiction

Slither (2006)

21 June 200622 November 2024

Rating: ★★★

Alien Mutation and Zombies

Director: James Gunn
Actors: Nathan Fillion, Elizabeth Banks, Michael Rooker, Gregg Henry, …
Category: Science Fiction, Horror

Smile 2 (2024)

30 November 202430 November 2024

Rating: ★★★

Viral Curse

Director: Parker Finn
Actors: Naomi Scott, Rosemarie DeWitt, Lukas Gage, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, …
Category: Horror

Smilla’s Sense of Snow (1997)

31 October 20058 July 2025

Rating: ★★★★

Scandanavian Murder Mystery/SF Twist

Director: Bille August
Actors: Julia Ormond, Gabriel Byrne, Richard Harris, Robert Loggia, …
Category: Science Fiction

Snatchers (2019)

28 June 202128 June 2021

Rating: ★★★

Body Snatching Parasite Comedy

Director: Stephen Cedars, Benji Kleiman
Actors: Mary Nepi, Gabrielle Elyse, Austin Fryberger, JJ Nolan, …
Category: Science Fiction

Spider-Man 3 (2007)

5 May 200721 December 2024

Rating: ★★★

Comic-Book Superhero

Director: Sam Raimi
Actors: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Thomas Haden Church, …
Category: Science Fiction

Sputnik (2020)

22 August 202022 August 2020

Rating: ★★★½

Cosmonaut Returns Infected by a Parasitic Alien Organism

Director: Egor Abramenko
Actors: Oksana Akinshina, Fyodor Bondarchuk, Pyotr Fyodorov, Anton Vasilev, …
Category: Science Fiction

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

31 August 20028 February 2025

Rating: ★★★★

Intergalactic Adventures

Director: Nicholas Meyer
Actors: William Shatner, Ricardo Montalban, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, …
Category: Science Fiction

Superman: Man of Tomorrow (2020)

4 September 20205 December 2020

Rating: ★★★

Comic-Book Superhero/Animation

Director: Chris Palmer
Actors: Darren Criss, Alexandra Daddario, Zachary Quinto, Ike Amadi, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Tingler (1959)

10 May 200926 June 2022

Rating: ★★★★

Capturing the Spirit of Fear

Director: William Castle
Actors: Vincent Price
Category: Horror

Venom (2018)

5 January 201919 December 2024

Rating: ★★★

Marvel Comics Superhero

Director: Ruben Fleischer
Actors: Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed, Jenny Slate, …
Category: Science Fiction

Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021)

4 December 202119 December 2024

Rating: ★

Marvel Comics Superhero

Director: Andy Serkis
Actors: Tom Hardy, Woody Harrelson, Michelle Williams, Naomie Harris, …
Category: Science Fiction

Venom: The Last Dance (2024)

21 December 20246 April 2025

Rating: ★

Marvel Comics Superhero

Director: Kelly Marcel
Actors: Tom Hardy, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans, …
Category: Science Fiction

Viral (2016)

26 December 20163 June 2025

Rating: ★★½

Plague Outbreak/Zombie Parasites

Director: Henry Joost, Ariel Schulman
Actors: Sofia Black D'Elia, Analeigh Tipton, Travis Tope, Michael Kelly, …
Category: Horror

Zombie Ass: The Toilet of the Dead (2011)

14 January 20149 December 2019

Rating: ★★

Gonzo Japanese Horror/Zombie Ass Parasites

Director: Noboru Iguchi
Category: Horror

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Contact Moria

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Theme Essays

  • Films About Atlantis
  • Werewolf Films
  • Virtual Reality
  • Imprisonment Thrillers
  • Films Depicting NASA and the Space Program
  • Human Bloodsports and Death Games
  • Animals Attack Films
  • Films About Plague and Pandemic
  • Disaster Movies
  • Steampunk Films
  • Documentaries
  • Films About Halloween
  • Films About Prophecy
  • Magicians and Sorcerers
  • Secret Societies
  • Real-Life People in Fiction
  • Techno-Thrillers
  • Twins in Fantastic Cinema
  • Asylums
  • Possession Films
  • Films About Imaginary and Magical Lands
  • Religion in Fantastic Cinema
  • Romantic Comedies
  • Film Noir
  • Spy Films
  • Jekyll and Hyde Films
  • Films That Make Dubious Claims to Being True Stories
  • Coming of Age Stories in Fantastic Cinema
  • Films About Cryogenics and Suspended Animation
  • Alternate History Films
  • Disturbed Psychology as Portrayed on Film
  • Law Enforcement in Fantastic Cinema
  • Weird Westerns
∧

Copyright Richard Scheib 1999-2025

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