The 10 best films about aliens Under the Skin (2013; Jonathan Glazer)

Alien movies are unusual in that they’re always driven by outsiders and extra-terrestrials, yet almost always anchored by us, the humans. Under the Skin, a characteristically trippy experiment from visionary filmmaker Jonathan Glazer (Birth, Sexy Beast), is us as seen through the eyes of a beguiling and curious alien played by Scarlett Johansson. She marvels at human idiosyncrasies and our faces, or else delights in our chocolate cake. And in a further twist, she finds that she likes us. Under the Skin is uncomfortable and horrifying yet also unusually tender, and proof that we haven’t yet run out of new ways to depict alien visitors.

Under the Skin