Plot: When a drug to replicate plant cells creates a sentient form of flower, the planet is overtaken by flora and humankind is depleted. A Chinese task force, a widowed father and his young daughter fight to survive in a mission to inject an antidote to the core of the plants to reverse their growth.

KBZ’s Take: We’re not going to mislead our readers by calling this a ‘great’ film. It’s not. There are multiple issues with the film from poor acting, a confusing and predictable script and some great to horrible special effects. But for all the negatives we just listed, it’s still a fun film.

We wouldn’t advise rushing out to see this but if you’re a fan of the Day of the Triffids novel by John Wyndham and similar Post-Apocalypse Films featuring genetic engineering gone wrong, there’s a good chance you’ll like certain aspects of Restart the Earth. Or then again, you could just watch the 1963 or 2009 film adaptations of Day of the Triffids.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: Four circus freaks with superpowers find themselves trapped in Nazi-occupied Rome after their owner and father figure goes missing in the aftermath of the 1943 surrender of Italy to the Allies.

KBZ’s Take: Freaks Out is a bit hard to describe as it involves mutant circus performers with psychic powers, Nazi occult experiments and an iPhone somehow appearing in 1943 Nazi-occupied Italy. If all that sounds interesting to you, then we firmly believe you’ll love this film.

While the film also is a War Drama set during World War II and involves themes of The Holocaust, it’s ultimately a Film About Superheroes and Comics. And we have to say it’s one of the most original films we have seen in a while and highly recommend for fans of this subgenre.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: A prisoner in a state-of-the-art penitentiary begins to question the purpose of the emotion-controlling drugs he’s testing for a pharmaceutical genius.

KBZ’s Take: There’s likely to be a love it or hate it reaction to this film from fans of the subgenre. While it doesn’t deal with typical human genetic experimentation involving mutations or psychic powers, it does have an interesting premise with altering the physiology of a person through drugs.

We personally enjoyed the suspense of the film and the performances of Chris Hemsworth, Miles Teller and Jurnee Smollett. And while we recognize the film won’t be for everyone, we would still encourage fans of the subgenre to check it out.

Where to Stream / Buy: Netflix

Plot: While under heavily armed guard, the dangerous convicts aboard a cargo ship unite in a coordinated escape attempt that soon escalates into a bloody, all-out riot. But as the fugitives continue their brutal campaign of terror, they soon discover that not even the most vicious among them is safe from the horror they unknowingly unleashed from the darkness below deck.

KBZ’s Take: We feel we have to start by warning our readers that Project Wolf Hunting is likely the bloodiest and goriest film released in the last few years. There’s a lot of blood in this film and we mean A LOT. It’s also one of the scariest and action-packed films about genetic engineering from the last few years.

While the squeamish might want to pass on this film, for other hardened horror fans, it’s a must-see film. Once the prisoners arrive on the cargo ship, it’s wall-to-wall action and violence that is only surpassed once the ‘thing’ below deck is discovered. Then it turns into a suspenseful (and even bloodier) Survival Horror Film with quite a few revelations and twists.

We don’t want to reveal too much to spoil it for others, but we can confidently say this is one film you won’t soon forget after watching.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: As the human species adapts to a synthetic environment, the body undergoes new transformations and mutations. Accompanied by his partner Caprice, celebrity performance artist Saul Tenser showcases the metamorphosis of his organs. Meanwhile, a mysterious group tries to use Saul’s notoriety to shed light on the next phase of human evolution.

KBZ’s Take: We had mixed feelings about this film. While it was great to see David Cronenberg return to Body Horror, we had hopes from the trailers that Crimes of the Future would be one of his best films. The body horror segments throughout the film don’t disappoint and are some of the most interesting of that subgenre. However, it’s the dystopian elements that falter on initial viewing only because they aren’t explained very well.

The film has a very good dystopian backdrop focused on biological evolution and a government conspiracy to suppress the rise of these ‘evolutionists’ that can consume plastic and have no need to consume organic food. But this conspiracy is not very well defined in the film and results in a confusing narrative.

The reason we still have the film listed so high and strongly recommend the film, is that after reading various explanations of the film and rewatching it, the film’s novel dystopian themes make much more sense – as do the themes of genetic and biological engineering. In fact, they are some of the best of the subgenre and we would encourage anybody that has seen the film and was disappointed in it, to read the explanations and watch it again. You won’t be disappointed!

Additional Lists: Top Recent Dystopian Films You Haven’t Seen #2, Best Recent Body Horror Films #4, Best Cronenberg Body Horror Films #8

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: After the collapse of Earth’s ecosystem, Vesper, a 13-year-old girl struggling to survive with her paralyzed Father, meets a mysterious Woman with a secret that forces Vesper to use her wits, strength and bio-hacking abilities to fight for the possibility of a future.

KBZ’s Take: This is one of the best recent Dystopian Films with amazing visuals and worldbuilding. It’s a film that’s beautiful to look at (in a dystopian type of way) and you really get immersed in the world that Vesper creates.

The film also has some great ideas about genetic engineering – how it led to a worldwide collapse and how the rich now control food production via genetically coded seeds that can grow only once.  But the film’s weaknesses lie with its slow-paced narrative and lack of details and backstory for some of the elements presented in the film.

It’s still a film we would recommend to fans of the subgenre as you don’t often see a dystopian film as beautifully dark as this one.

Additional Lists: Top Recent Dystopian Films You Haven’t Seen #6

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: When Cecilia’s abusive ex takes his own life and leaves her his fortune, she suspects his death was a hoax. As a series of coincidences turn lethal, Cecilia works to prove that she is being hunted by someone nobody can see.

KBZ’s Take: This current iteration of The Invisible Man is updated with contemporary themes involving domestic abuse. While the film doesn’t delve into the deteriorating psychological condition of the invisible like previous films, it focuses on the psychological condition of the abused – which is a better story alteration for modern audiences.

As with other films involving invisibility, the special effects go a long way in making the story believable. And this film excels with its various depictions of the now invisible Adrian Griffin (Oliver Jackson-Cohen) tormenting his wife, Cecillia Kass (Elisabeth Moss). The restaurant scene in particular is one of the best moments of the film where the subtle special effects add to the growing psychological breakdown of Cecillia.

The Invisible Man’s theatrical run was cut short by Covid-19 closures and released soon thereafter on VOD. If you somehow missed this film during lockdowns, it’s one of the best (and scariest) films of the subgenre worth seeing from the last few years – just try not to watch it alone…

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: Ja-yoon is a high school student who struggles with memory loss after she endured some unknown trauma during her childhood. While trying to uncover the truth, she is unwittingly dragged into a world of crime and finds herself on a journey that will awaken many secrets hidden deep within.

KBZ’s Take: This is a film that will likely end up on our “Best Of” lists for both Psychic Powers Films and Genetic Engineering Films. It’s a lesser-known South Korean from 2018 that has developed a cult following. Those who have seen the film (ourselves included) cannot stop raving about it.

The Witch: Part 1 is an action-packed and bloody film about a group of genetically engineered children that develop psychic powers. It also features a great story as Ja-yoon (Kim Da-mi) can’t seem to remember her violent past or how she developed powers.

This is a must-see film of the subgenre. Though it starts slowly, it quickly accelerates to a third act filled with telekinetic battles that are some of the best you’ll ever see. We’re 100% confident fans of telekinesis and genetically engineered humans will love this film.

Note: The Witch Part 1 was released in 2018 and it’s sequel, The Witch: Part 2. The Other One, was released in 2022. We have listed the first film here even though it was released 5 years ago. You have to see the first film to understand a few of the plot points of the second.

Additional Lists: Best Films About Telekinesis #3

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: Peter Parker is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a super-hero. When he asks for help from Doctor Strange the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.

KBZ’s Take: The entire franchise of Spider-Man revolves around one saying (and theme): With great power comes great responsibility. In no other film of the franchise is that theme more apparent than in this Multiverse blockbuster.

The film is a greatest hits of the characters and themes of the entire Spider-man franchise all rolled into one exciting journey. Though there are likely few readers of this list who have not yet seen the film, we don’t want to ruin some of the Multiverse surprises in the film. You’ll already be able to tell from the film’s poster that the film includes Spider-man’s various enemies all brought together somehow by Doctor Strange.

What we can say is that of all the Multiverse films on our list, no other film seamlessly integrates the emotional connection between parallel worlds in the Multiverse. The film is action-packed with amazing Multiverse sequences yet anchored by the simple code Peter Parker lives by. A code that is universal even in the Multiverse.

Additional Lists: Best Multiverse Films #1

Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/42n98SB

Plot: Still reeling from the loss of Gamora, Peter Quill must rally his team to defend the universe and protect one of their own. If the mission is not completely successful, it could possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.

KBZ’s Take: This is the most recent film on our list and the best film of the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy. While all the films have an emotional core at the center of their Space Adventures, this third entry focuses on Rocket’s (Bradley Coopers) backstory and is one of the most heart-wrenching of the entire subgenre.

Though the film also has some great Space Adventure sequences (especially with the Orgocorp Heist scenes), it’s the Genetic Engineering subplot of the film that will give even the most hardened Sci-Fi fan some tear-filled eyes.

Even if you’re not a fan of Films About Superheroes and Comics, we would implore fans of the subgenre to see this film as the genetic engineering (and animal experimentation) themes of the film are some of the best of the entire subgenre.

Additional Lists: Best Space Adventures #6

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon