The Time Machine

In 1960, director George Pal followed up his legendary War of the Worlds adaption, with this genre defining film. Much like The Omega Man, this production suffered from rotten make-up and creature design, but I'd be lying if I said the Morlocks (future cannibalistic creatures) of this production didn't vastly out-scare the ones from the remake, starring Guy Pearce in 2002.

The original, starring another Australian-Rod Taylor (Gulliver's Travels) makes use of the now iconic time machine (cameo in Gremlins) and sends the character of H. George Wells into the future, making use of Oscar winning time-lapse photography, charting the passage of time at a glance. Prof Wells travels through from 1900 into the near and ultimately distant future, experiencing shocks from revealing ladies clothing to WWIII and more.

While this feature may seem dated in it's style, the story in itself is (pardon the pun) timeless.

Fun Fact: the 2002 remake was directed by Simon Wells, the author's great-grandson.