The second part of our sci-fi extravaganza begins with District 9. Director Neill Blomkamp lends a fresh documentary feel to the well-worn "aliens land on Earth" saga while Weta Digital are in charge of the impressive CGI effects. Out on December 28th, District 9 comes with DTS-HD 5.1 audio, a 3-part film-makers log, interactive maps and a visual effects featurette. If you prefer funny-looking aliens to the slobbering prawns of District 9 then how about Galaxy Quest? It's not available here until March 2010 but it's out now in America. The region-free US disc has TrueHD 5.1 sound and extras such as a Galactopedia trivia track, The Story of Galaxy Quest, a visual effects featurette and, bizarrely, Sigourney Weaver performing a rap.

Ever been buried kid? Just wait till your next film comes out...

More aliens now with Close Encounters of the Third Kind: 30th Anniversary Ultimate Edition. Shockingly this is the first of just two Spielberg works available on Blu-ray - the other being Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Encounters allows viewers to branch between any of the three cuts of the film as they watch it (finally!) while the extras include a first class hour-long documentary, Spielberg interview, deleted scenes, galleries and trailers. Skull, should you perchance give a monkeys, is a slick 2-disc affair with comprehensive production diaries, featurettes and photo galleries. Whatever you think of the film you have to admit the Blu-ray transfer is incredible. Admit iiiit...

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) isn't available, nor is the 1956 original (or the 1993 version for that matter), leaving just The Invasion starring Nicole Kidman and- What's that? Go jump off a pier? Okay, moving on to slightly more friendly aliens now and Robert Zemeckis' adaptation of Carl Sagan's novel Contact. It's one of the lesser sung sci-fi classics, but a classic it is, helped along by some clever ILM effects and Jodie Foster firing on all cylinders. The Blu-ray extras aren't that bountiful but there are three brilliant commentaries by Zemeckis, Foster and the effects guys that more than make up for it.

Another visually striking sci-fi film, albeit one with a much lighter tone, is Luc Besson's gloriously OTT action-comedy-in-space The Fifth Element. Sort of like a French Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy (more on that in a mo) it made an action star of Milla Jovovich, showed Bruce Willis could do funny and bizarre (don't mention Hudson Hawk) and was the last film of merit that Luc Besson directed. You'll have to import The Fifth Element from America, but make sure you get the remastered 2007 edition as the 2006 version is worse in quality than Sleepy Hollow's UK release. There are practically no extras but seeing the film itself in 1080p with TrueHD 5.1 sound makes upgrading a no-brainer.