Space Madness: A Primer

Space Madness: A Primer

The psychological terror and incomprehensibility of outer space has produced decades of iconic sci-fi horror

by Leslie Lee III

On April 12th, 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first human to journey into outer space. It was one of humanity’s most astonishing achievements, granting Gagarin—who a few years earlier was in training to be a steelworker—a perspective on existence previously undiscovered by man. His supervisors feared it would drive him mad.

According to Beyond, a new book documenting the Vostok 1 mission on its 50th anniversary by documentarian Stephen Walker, some scientists speculated that “ultimate loneliness or isolation in the vacuum of space” would be too much for one mind to handle. They called this hypothetical condition space horror.

Though Gagarin completed his mission without falling into an existential abyss, the possibility of this and other horrors meeting us out in space remains one of the most fertile grounds for horror. Here are some of the most interesting, important, and chilling entries.

Solaris (1961)

While Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1972 film adaptation has overshadowed its source material, Stanislaw Lem’s contemplative science fiction classic Solaris remains a foundational work of the genre. The novel follows a crew tasked with the doomed mission of understanding and communicating with a vast alien intelligence. Published the same year as Gagarin’s flight, the book uses the psychological stress of its characters as a metaphor for the dangers of exploring a universe you are not ready to understand.

Note: A newer English translation approved by the author is only available in digital Kindle and Audible versions in the U.S.

Alien (1979)

If one wanted to use a single image to encapsulate everything fascinating about horror set in space it would be the image of the space jockey in Ridley Scott’s Alien. The breathtaking tableau lets the characters and viewer know immediately that they now exist in a world far more terrifying than they imagined.

The questions raised by the image—How long has it been here? Who was the jockey? For what purpose was it transporting these creatures? How could an intelligent being capable of creating this ship fall prey to a mindless animal? Why didn’t the jockey’s people find the ship?—are never answered in the film.

Subsequent films in the franchise focus more on the problem of dealing with the xenomorph itself instead of what the creature’s existence implies about the nature of the universe, while Scott’s follow-ups Prometheus and Covenant expand (at times clumsily) on the mythological underpinnings of his original work—fortunately, without completely demystifying the galaxy.

Hellraiser: Bloodline (1996)

Typically, when a movie franchise gets to the “…in space” phase of its life-cycle, any hope of artistic integrity has long been shuttered. Hellraiser IV: Bloodline is a film with far more thought put into its themes than you’d expect from a movie where the hell-priest Pinhead takes over an industrial space station.

This low-budget film takes its and the material seriously, even delving into demonic philosophy and the politics of hell. Bloodline serves its iconic horror villain better than 2001’s Jason X, though that film too has gained a cult following.

Event Horizon (1997)

Event Horizon remains a monument to ‘90s mid-budget genre filmmaking. The too-often-maligned Paul W.S. Anderson delivers gore, scares, and absolutely stunning set and visual design in this 95-minute horror music video. An excellent cast—topped by an unrestrained Sam Neill— and bleak ending make Event Horizon an unforgettable addition to the horror cannon.

Revelation Space (2000)

In Alistair Reynold’s multi-part sci-fi epic, genetic mutation, technological advancement, and the rempages of interstellar capitalism have taken humanity down several divergent but equally grotesque paths.

When the endless warring of humanity triggers a failsafe created by a vast, dark, and ancient artificial intelligence, you won’t always be rooting for the survival of the humans. A collection of slavers, war criminals, and sociopathic immortals see if they can stop killing each other long enough to be wiped out fighting the nigh-unstoppable AI.

Unto Leviathan (aka. Ship of Fools) (2001)

Richard Paul Russo’s Unto Leviathan is possibly the greatest science fiction horror novel ever written, and is almost certainly the scariest. In the far future, a generational seedship has flown aimlessly for centuries under military rule and violent oppression. Aimless, until the crew picks up a mysterious signal of possibly alien origin.

Saying anything more would begin to spoil an incredible read.

Blindsight (2006)

The prose of Peter Watts’ Blindsight seems at times opaque for a sci-fi novel featuring space vampires, but the journey through the technical prose is worth it. Watts may spend too much time meticulously explaining how the engines work, but he put just as much thought into crafting multiple mind-bending terrors to challenge humanity. Blindly malevolent entities and a pitch black ending makes Blindsight a book that will haunt you long after you finish reading it.

Dead Space (2008)

Though there are several excellent video games that explore horror in space, Dead Space is the quintessential example. Borrowing the aesthetics of Event Horizon, the mythology of Lovecraft, and the gameplay of Resident Evil 4, Dead Space is one of the most finely crafted and immersive video game experiences ever made. The tie-in novel Dead Space: Martyr by growing horror icon Brian Evenson and the prequel animated film Dead Space: Deadfall are also worth tracking down.

Star Trek: The Continuing Mission 08: Cathedral In the Void (2014)

Even Gene Roddenberry’s socialist space utopia is no escape from the terrors of space. If one merely documented the numerous eldritch entities, mind-flaying aliens, and incomprehensible truths that the average Starfleet officer encounters on a tour of duty on the Enterprise, it would surely fill up a Necronomicon.

Running with this idea, the high-quality fanmade podcast series Star Trek: The Continuing Mission went full Cthulhu. The Cathedral of the Void is a bloody, violent, modern Lovecraftian horror story that just happens to take place in the Star Trek universe. The always capable and rational Federation are ill-equipped to deal with a supernatural cult using warp technology to call forth the Old Gods.

Prospect (2018)

Sometimes the real monster is capitalism. In the free enterprise world of Prospect, abandonment, enslavement, and death await anyone who ends up on the wrong side of a ledger, and a teenaged girl is forced to team up with a ruthless gunman for survival. The constant tension, haunting environment, acidic aesthetic, and class consciousness make this the only sci-fi western starring Pedro Pascal you need to see.

Aniara (2018)

And other times, the most terrifying thing is space is space itself. Aniara follows a passenger vessel that drifts off-course on its way from Earth to Mars. The film documents the slow collapse of the crew and passengers as the chance of rescue becomes impossible. The film is light on violence or scares, but the ending is so devastating in its finality and its condemnation of all human endeavors, you’ll wish they had just run into some monsters.