I was discussing the 2019 version of the movie “Godzilla” with a friend of mine. We both agreed the special effects were excellent even though the story was weak. By coincidence, I had just watched the 1956 version of “Godzilla” (an Americanized version of the original 1954 Japanese film). I was reminded of how the period from 1950 to 1959 was a golden age for science fiction movies. There are at least 40 movies from that decade that I’d rate as B+ or better.

Here are 10 movies from that period. They’re not necessarily the best ones, but they’re ones I’d take with me on a trip if I could only take 10. Listed by release date.

1. The Thing from Another World (1951) – Scientists at a military base near the North Pole find a crashed flying saucer embedded in ice. The flying saucer has a passenger who thaws out. The scientists try to communicate with The Thing. Not a good idea. Intelligent plot, good production values, excellent acting.

2. Invaders from Mars (1953) – A young boy thinks he sees a flying saucer land in the sandpits behind his house during a thunderstorm at night. The next morning his dad investigates and comes back . . different. Everyone I know who first saw this movie when they were 10 years old or younger, had nightmares for years. Including me. Don’t go to the sandpits!

3. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954) – A Disney production. During the 1860s, Captain Nemo with his submarine Nautilus wants to stop war. Fantastic special effects highlighted by the Nautilus itself and the fight with the giant squid.

4. Gog (1954) – Mysterious deaths at a secret underground laboratory in the desert. Gog is one of the research projects – an artificial intelligence robot. With a flame thrower.

5. Them! (1954) – The original giant insect (ants) movie. The scenes shot in the desert during a wind storm are very tense and are among the most memorable in the history of science fiction films.

6. Godzilla (1956) – The scene where Godzilla first appears, rising up over the crest of a hill on small island, is another scene that is burned into my memory.

7. Forbidden Planet (1956) – This movie holds up well, in terms of visual effects, sound effects, and story, more than 60 years after it was made. In the 23rd century, the crew of a starship C-57D land on planet Altair IV to determine what happened to a scientific expedition from 20 years previously. They find only two survivors, Dr. Morbius and his daughter Altaira. What happened?

8. Quatermass 2 (1957) – A British film known as “Enemy From Space” in the U.S. Something strange is going on in the small village of Winnerden Flats. It turns out to be parasitic aliens preparing for inasion. Luckily professor Bernard Quatermass (not “Quartermass”) figures out what’s going on.

9. The Trollenberg Terror (1958) – Another British film, known as “The Crawling Eye” in the U.S. This movie is not highly regarded by critics, but it’s one of my favorites. A strange fog descends upon a mountain in the Swiss alps. Those who go into the fog do not come back. It’s an alien invasion where the aliens are giant eyeballs with long antennae like arms.

10. The Atomic Submarine (1959) – Another film that’s not highly regarded my most people but it’s iconic to me. In “the near future” relative to 1959, ships and submarines are disappearing in the oceans near the North Pole. It’s an alien space ship that can travel underwater. The crew of the nuclear submarine Tigershark find the alien ship, ram it, go inside, and find a very unpleasant occupant.