Silent Running
D: Douglas Turnbull (1971) 89m

Earth's surviving trees and plants have been exiled to giant spaceships. The anti-ecology lobby couldn't care less and it falls back to Freeman Lowell to save botanical heritage in a desperate dash into the lonely reaches of deep space. His only companions are three personality-charged robotic 'drones'. Classic social commentary.

Westworld
D: Michael Crichton (1973) 88m

Non-stop sci-fi thriller with Yul Brynner playing a gun-slinging amusement park robot who has fused his microchips. Park visitors play out their fantasies in theme 'worlds' populated by amazingly lifelike robots. Despite the fact that nothing can go wrong - everything goes wrong. The premise was later revived for Jurassic Park.

Blade Runner
D: Ridley Scott (1991) Various lengths

Director's Cut sees the silly voice-over narration and upbeat ending of the 1982 version replaced with something much closer to what the original Philip K Dick story intended. Marlowe-style detective (Harrison Ford) tracks rebellious android 'replicants' in bleak near-future Los Angeles. Other cuts have since emerged leaving plenty of room for debate as to which is the definitive rendering.

The Terminator
D: James Cameron (1984) 108m

Man vs machine in this superior Schwarzenegger action flick about a cyborg 'terminator' sent back from the near-future to prevent the rise of the human resistance movement by killing its leader's mother before she gives birth. Hard to imagine anyone but Big Arnie in the role, which he paradoxically reprises in the brilliant 1991 sequel.

RoboCop
D: Paul Verhoeven (1987) 102m

The Detroit police force has been privatised along with everything else and, as fate would have it, incorrigible corporate crooks are running the show. A badly injured cop gets some cybernetic implants and is programmed to bring all criminals to justice - except for the ones in charge. High-octane action with a dash of humanity.

The Iron Giant
D: Brad Bird (1999) 86m

ET-style plot has a young boy trying to hide a big-hearted giant robot in the backwoods of Maine. There's lots of Cold War intrigue as nosy neighbours and a government agent close in. Absolutely delightful animated film featuring the voices of Jennifer Aniston and Harry Connick Jr amongst others. Great family entertainment.

A.I. - Artificial Intelligence
D: Steven Spielberg (2001) 145m

The Pinocchio fascination continues in this Spielberg effort inherited from the late Stanley Kubrick. The film traces the fortunes of a cybernetic boy through futures near and far as he strives to become a 'real boy' with a loving family. Kubrick's influence is evident in the more noirish aspects of the future. Time will tell on this one.

I, Robot
D: Alex Proyas (2004) 115m

Will Smith flashes some unexpectedly hunky pecs while Asimov's famous robot stories fade into the background. Smith plays detective Del Spooner who suspects that the laborious robots of the year 2035 may be about to turn on humankind. Suspicions surrounding the death of a robotics scientist may provide some clues. A capable action flick with Smith in trademark form.