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Especially in the 1950s, it was customary to portray aliens as hostile creatures whose only intention was to destroy the Earth, kidnap, enslave or kill its people. However, as time passed, it has become more common to not necessarily characterize the aliens as the evil ones. While there continue to be movies with villainous aliens, there is also a fair number of stories in which aliens are one of the good guys.
And in more cases than one, they join forces with humans and work side by side with them, even though it's sometimes difficult to initially overcome their differences. All science fiction fans who want to watch more optimistic stories about aliens and humans working together should pay attention to some of the movies that work with this theme.
5 Bumblebee (2018)
Technically, the whole Transformers franchise could be here. But since Bumblebee is set in the 1980s and is mostly separate from the Transformers movie series, it's more accessible to those who haven't seen any of the Transformers movies. Plus, Bumblebee comes across more as a feel-good family movie about growing up and friendship than many other science fiction movies.
It helps that Hailee Steinfeld is excellent as the young girl Charlie who fixes her new car only to realize that it's actually a Bumblebee, a soldier from another planet. From there on, the sad Charlie (because her dad died) and the lonely Bumblebee (because he left his planet behind) strike a close friendship and become an unexpected buddy duo. The movie is full of humor and action as well since Charlie helps Bumblebee take on the enemies of the Transformers, the Decepticons.
4 Venom (2018)
Charlie and Bumblebee aren't the only unexpected comedy duo. Eddie Brock and the alien symbiote, Venom, are even closer since they end up sharing the same body. That comes in handy later on when Venom has to take on another dangerous symbiote and save the planet.
The movie combines both action and humor, as Eddie and Venom are sometimes acting like an old married couple - a fact that even the sequel made fun of. Venom is a good example that even aliens with very different lifestyles and eating habits (Venom loves chocolate and human brains) can get along with humans under the right circumstances. What remains to be seen is whether Venom will get along with Peter Parker as well now that they're both a part of the MCU.
3 Guardians Of The Galaxy (2014)
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Of all the MCU movies, Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) and the 2017 sequel best fit the concept of humans working with aliens. Technically, Peter Quill is only half-human but since he doesn't know that at this point, it doesn't count. When the team gets together, it looks like they won't be able to get along with each other, but they're forced to make it work in order to stop Ronan the Accuser who works for Thanos.
The movie offers many humorous scenes based on the differences between the heroes and their arguments and banter. What's more, it created some memorable characters, two of whom stand out - the gun-toting, talking raccoon Rocket, and the master of few words (three, to be precise), the tree Groot. The Guardians then got to interact with even more humans in Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019).
2 Paul (2011)
When aliens arrive at Earth, they don't always have it easy since the government tends to pursue them. Paul, the main hero of this movie, learned this the hard way. After years of captivity, he escapes and finds unexpected help in the form of two British friends who are traveling to Comic-Con in the USA, Graeme (Simon Pegg) and Clive (Nick Frost). It's up to them to protect Paul from his enemies and help him return home safely.
While the plot of the movie might sound serious, Paul is, above all else, an excellent science-fiction comedy, ideal for everyone who knows this genre well since it pays homage to multiple science fiction classics. The main trio's effort to blend in and not to draw attention to themselves on their journey is hilarious, as well as their banter. Pegg, Frost, and Seth Rogen who voiced Paul, all give strong performances, and the movie stars other well-known names such as Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig and Sigourney Weaver.
1 The Star Trek Movies
Regardless of which Star Trek movie the viewers decide to watch, they're bound to see humans and aliens work side by side. In Starfleet, diversity is no strange word, so officers from Earth and other planets join forces to explore space and, of course, defend themselves from enemies, be it the Klingons or the Borg, to name just two.
Each fan of the series will have a different favorite, but some of the more prominent alien characters who appeared in the movies and not just the shows include the first officer and science officer Spock (played by Leonard Nimoy and Zachary Quinto), the first Klingon who joined Starfleet, Worf (Michael Dorn), or the half-Betazoid Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis).