Epic Lairs and Fortresses
by grendelkhan | created - 01 Jan 2014 | updated - 14 Jan 2014 | PublicI've always had an interest in architecture and design; but, the structures that have always fascinated me are those grandiose fortresses, castles, underground complexes, and villain's lairs of comics, tv, and movies. The following are memorable shows and movies with equally memorable hideouts, lairs, headquarters and similar structures. look for a lot of Ken Adams' work on this one.
- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
Passed | 93 min | Horror
A mad, disfigured composer seeks love with a lovely young opera singer.
Directors: Rupert Julian, Lon Chaney, Ernst Laemmle, Edward Sedgwick | Stars: Lon Chaney, Mary Philbin, Norman Kerry, Arthur Edmund Carewe
Votes: 20,118 | Gross: $3.75M
Eric has some pretty cool digs, underneath the Paris Opera House. No self-respecting madman should be without a pipe organ.
2. Dracula (1931)
Passed | 75 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Transylvanian vampire Count Dracula bends a naive real estate agent to his will, then takes up residence at a London estate where he sleeps in his coffin by day and searches for potential victims by night.
Directors: Tod Browning, Karl Freund | Stars: Bela Lugosi, Helen Chandler, David Manners, Dwight Frye
Votes: 58,665
Drac has a fairly standard castle, though with some lovely ladies.
3. Frankenstein (1931)
Passed | 70 min | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
Dr Henry Frankenstein is obsessed with assembling a living being from parts of several exhumed corpses.
Director: James Whale | Stars: Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, Boris Karloff, John Boles
Votes: 79,755
The Baron's castle is nothing special, but the laboratory sets it apart. Just don't spill your drink around all of that electrical equipment.
4. The Mask of Fu Manchu (1932)
G | 68 min | Adventure, Horror, Sci-Fi
Englishmen race to find the tomb of Genghis Khan before the sinister Fu Manchu does.
Directors: Charles Brabin, Charles Vidor | Stars: Boris Karloff, Lewis Stone, Karen Morley, Charles Starrett
Votes: 3,714 | Gross: $0.82M
As is befitting, Fu has a hidden lair, complete with dacoits, torture chambers, a lab, and a lounge area. I'm not sure, but he may have had a breakfast nook (probably with trap door seating, leading to a chamber filled with giant spiders and scorpions).
5. Flash Gordon (1936)
Passed | 245 min | Action, Adventure, Family
Flash Gordon, Dale Arden and Dr. Alexis Zarkov visit the planet Mongo to thwart the evil schemes of Emperor Ming the Merciless, who has set his planet on a collision course with Earth.
Directors: Frederick Stephani, Ray Taylor | Stars: Buster Crabbe, Jean Rogers, Charles Middleton, Priscilla Lawson
Votes: 2,660
Sky City anyone? The Hawkmen have the best locale, though Ming's palace is suitably ornate. Plenty of art deco, though some of it is a bit tacky, around the edges.
6. Things to Come (1936)
Not Rated | 100 min | Drama, Sci-Fi, War
The story of a century: a decades-long second World War leaves plague and anarchy, then a rational state rebuilds civilization and attempts space travel.
Director: William Cameron Menzies | Stars: Raymond Massey, Edward Chapman, Ralph Richardson, Margaretta Scott
Votes: 9,077
The underground city is pretty spectacular, but I preferred the Wings Over the World Basra hangar; and, especially, the super-bombers! The film is a triumph of art deco, which helps compensate for some overacting.
7. Lost Horizon (1937)
Approved | 132 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
When a revered diplomat's plane is diverted and crashes in the peaks of Tibet, he and the other survivors are guided to an isolated monastery at Shangri-La, where they wrestle with the invitation to stay.
Director: Frank Capra | Stars: Ronald Colman, Jane Wyatt, Edward Everett Horton, John Howard
Votes: 14,460
Shangri La is an art deco paradise, hidden away somewhere in Tibet.
8. Dick Tracy (1937)
Approved | 70 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
A master criminal called The Spider puts the famous detective's brother under a hypnotic spell and turns him against Dick.
Directors: Alan James, Ray Taylor | Stars: Ralph Byrd, Kay Hughes, Smiley Burnette, Lee Van Atta
Votes: 652
The Spider has a hidden island hangar and a flying wing!
9. The Green Archer (I) (1940)
Passed | 285 min | Action, Adventure, Crime
The struggle over the Bellamy estate ends with Michael Bellamy accused of murder and killed on the way to prison, while his brother Abel Bellamy takes control of the estate for his own nefarious plans.
Director: James W. Horne | Stars: Victor Jory, Iris Meredith, James Craven, Robert Fiske
Votes: 198
A castle with all kinds of hidden passages and murderers. Just the thing for an Edgar Wallace mystery.
10. The Phantom (1943)
Passed | 299 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
The Phantom's clan has ruled the jungle tribes for centuries. He battles Dr. Bremmer who plans to build an airfield and gets greedy when Professor Davidson and his niece Diana arrive to search for the treasure of the lost city of Zoloz.
Director: B. Reeves Eason | Stars: Tom Tyler, Jeanne Bates, Ernie Adams, John Bagni
Votes: 474
Skull Cave rivals the Batcave, though it lacks the nuclear reactor. It makes up for it with the Skull Throne.
11. Batman (1943)
Approved | 260 min | Action, Crime, Family
The very first serial to adapt the comic book character of the Batman. In it, the Batman is a secret U.S. government agent, attempting to defeat the schemes of Japanese agent Dr. Daka operating in Los Angeles at the height of World War II.
Director: Lambert Hillyer | Stars: Lewis Wilson, Douglas Croft, J. Carrol Naish, Shirley Patterson
Votes: 2,474
The evil villain, Daka, has a nice set-up, hidden inside an amusement park horror ride. It comes complete with labs and alligator pit. The Batcave is a little drab, but it does have a desk and a filing cabinet!
12. Mask of the Avenger (1951)
Approved | 83 min | Adventure, Drama, History
During the European revolutionary fervor of 1848, Italian Captain Renato Dimorna tries to avenge his father's death, goes against the corrupt local military governor Larocca and prevents an Austrian military invasion.
Director: Phil Karlson | Stars: John Derek, Anthony Quinn, Jody Lawrance, Arnold Moss
Votes: 302
This was a lightweight Zorro ripoff, but he has a pretty good hidden passage to the stable for his horse, via a fireplace.
13. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)
G | 127 min | Adventure, Drama, Family
A ship sent to investigate a wave of mysterious sinkings encounters the advanced submarine, the Nautilus, commanded by Captain Nemo.
Director: Richard Fleischer | Stars: Kirk Douglas, James Mason, Paul Lukas, Peter Lorre
Votes: 37,199 | Gross: $28.20M
The Nautilus is the ultimate in mobile command centers, complete with pipe-organ and observation port.
14. Forbidden Planet (1956)
G | 98 min | Adventure, Sci-Fi
A starship crew in the 23rd century goes to investigate the silence of a distant planet's colony, only to find just two survivors, a powerful robot, and the deadly secret of a lost civilization.
Director: Fred M. Wilcox | Stars: Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis, Leslie Nielsen, Warren Stevens
Votes: 53,255 | Gross: $3.00M
Dr Morbius has a nice house, but the Krell underground complex is amazing!
15. The Mysterians (1957)
Approved | 85 min | Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Shortly after a giant robot destroys a village, aliens from outer space arrive offering friendship. Will the people of Earth tie these two events together?
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Kenji Sahara, Yumi Shirakawa, Momoko Kôchi, Akihiko Hirata
Votes: 1,900 | Gross: $0.98M
Nice underground set-up for the alien Mysterians. Lots of space machinery and passages; good stuff!
16. Swiss Family Robinson (1960)
G | 126 min | Adventure, Family
A Swiss family must survive being shipwrecked on a deserted island.
Director: Ken Annakin | Stars: John Mills, Dorothy McGuire, James MacArthur, Janet Munro
Votes: 18,177 | Gross: $40.36M
Disney went to town on the treehouse home for the Robinsons, one of the more fun elements of the book.
17. The Guns of Navarone (1961)
Not Rated | 158 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A team of Allied saboteurs is assigned an impossible mission: infiltrate an impregnable Nazi-held Greek island and destroy the two enormous long-range field guns that prevent the rescue of 2,000 trapped British soldiers.
Director: J. Lee Thompson | Stars: David Niven, Gregory Peck, Anthony Quinn, Anthony Quayle
Votes: 55,437 | Gross: $28.90M
The German have an awesome setup, with their radar-controlled guns set in caves, with an elaborate bunker complex to support their operations. Just the kind of things for commandos to target.
18. Master of the World (1961)
Approved | 102 min | Adventure, Sci-Fi
In 1868, an American scientist and his team become hostages of fanatical pacifist Robur who uses his airship Albatross to destroy military targets on Earth.
Director: William Witney | Stars: Vincent Price, Charles Bronson, Henry Hull, Mary Webster
Votes: 3,522
The Albatross wasn't quite the Nautilus but it was pretty cool, and made of paper!
19. Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1961)
PG | 105 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
When the Earth is threatened by a burning Van Allen Radiation Belt, U.S. Navy Admiral Harriman Nelson plans to shoot a nuclear missile at the Belt, using his experimental atomic submarine, the Seaview.
Director: Irwin Allen | Stars: Walter Pidgeon, Joan Fontaine, Barbara Eden, Peter Lorre
Votes: 6,667
The movie launched the tv series, but the star of both was the Seaview.
20. The Jetsons (1962–1963)
TV-Y7 | 25 min | Animation, Comedy, Family
The misadventures of a futuristic family.
Stars: George O'Hanlon, Janet Waldo, Mel Blanc, Penny Singleton
Votes: 24,004
This launched my love of space-age and mid-century modern design, especially the Skypad Apartments.
21. Dr. No (1962)
PG | 110 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
A resourceful British government agent seeks answers in a case involving the disappearance of a colleague and the disruption of the American space program.
Director: Terence Young | Stars: Sean Connery, Ursula Andress, Bernard Lee, Joseph Wiseman
Votes: 179,489 | Gross: $16.07M
Ken Adams didn't do as much here, though an interrogation chamber was one of his doings. The villain has a pretty cool underground hideout on a Carribean cay, complete with stolen paintings, decontamination areas, torture obstacle courses and an atomic reactor. He also had the area patrolled by a mechanical swamp buggy, disguised as a dragon. Not bad for a Fu Manchu ripoff.
22. From Russia with Love (1963)
PG | 115 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond willingly falls into an assassination plot involving a naive Russian beauty in order to retrieve a Soviet encryption device that was stolen by S.P.E.C.T.R.E.
Director: Terence Young | Stars: Sean Connery, Robert Shaw, Lotte Lenya, Daniela Bianchi
Votes: 145,428 | Gross: $24.80M
This one was kind of sedate, but Kerim Bey showed us some hidden wonders, with secret access to the sewers of Istanbul and a submarine periscope that terminated inside the Soviet Embassy.
23. Atragon (1963)
TV-Y7 | 94 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
When an ancient underground civilization and their snake-like guardian plots to reclaim the surface world, those of the surface fights back.
Directors: Ishirô Honda, Shûe Matsubayashi | Stars: Tadao Takashima, Yôko Fujiyama, Yû Fujiki, Kenji Sahara
Votes: 1,525
The sub pen is nice, but the sub is better. It's all suitably grandiose.
24. Goldfinger (1964)
PG | 110 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
While investigating a gold magnate's smuggling, James Bond uncovers a plot to contaminate the Fort Knox gold reserve.
Director: Guy Hamilton | Stars: Sean Connery, Gert Fröbe, Honor Blackman, Shirley Eaton
Votes: 202,644 | Gross: $51.08M
Goldfinger had his own headquarters set ups in a factory complex and a Kentucky ranch (complete with table mock-up of Fort Knox. However, it all paled in comparison to Adams' grandiose rendering of Fort Knox. The real thing is rather boring. They missed out on the steel roads that are hydraulically lifted into a wall that surrounds the depository, as in Fleming's book. Could you imagine such a thing, built by government contractors? It would probably be stuck at some odd angle.
25. The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964–1968)
TV-PG | 50 min | Action, Adventure, Crime
The two top Agents of the United Network Command for Law and Enforcement (U.N.C.L.E.) fight the enemies of peace, particularly the forces of T.H.R.U.S.H.
Stars: Robert Vaughn, David McCallum, Leo G. Carroll, John Herman Shaner
Votes: 6,269
UNCLE HQ is the cream of spy headquarters, with secret tailor shop entrance, elaborate security set-up, computer banks, conference room, and other facilities. THRUSH never rose to these levels.
26. Gilligan's Island (1964–1992)
TV-G | 30 min | Comedy, Family
Four men and three women are stranded on an uncharted island following a torrential storm.
Stars: Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr., Jim Backus, Natalie Schafer
Votes: 16,890
The Mad doctor Boris Balinkov had a suitably creepy island manor house, complete with hidden dungeon and lab. The castaway huts were pretty good, considering their alleged lack of resources. One wonders, though, why they didn't build a defensive wall around the huts, after their first encounter with headhunters. I guess they needed a bicycle powered washing machine and foot powered bamboo car more.
27. Jonny Quest (1964–1965)
TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
The Quest family and their bodyguard investigate strange phenomena and battle villains around the world.
Stars: Mike Road, Tim Matheson, Don Messick, Danny Bravo
Votes: 5,328
So many great hideouts: the Himalayan secret lab, from "Calcutta Adventure," the Lizard Men's set-up in the Sargasso Sea, the various command centers for Dr Zinn, Dr Ashida's castle, the blockhouse where Gen. Fong operated, the House of 7 Gargoyles. It's hard to pick a favorite. Dr Quest's lab on Palm key was a pretty cool piece of Space Age architecture.
28. Stingray (1964–1965)
30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
Follows the adventures of the World Aquanaut Security Patrol, particularly the crew of its most advanced combat submarine called Stingray.
Stars: Ray Barrett, David Graham, Robert Easton, Don Mason
Votes: 1,429
WASP has a pretty decent HQ, though not up to either the Thunderbirds or Captain Scarlet set-up. The characters rode down chair elevators to the sub pen and launched through a tube. Can't get much better than that.
29. Thunderball (1965)
PG | 130 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond heads to the Bahamas to recover two nuclear warheads stolen by S.P.E.C.T.R.E. Agent Emilio Largo in an international extortion scheme.
Director: Terence Young | Stars: Sean Connery, Claudine Auger, Adolfo Celi, Luciana Paluzzi
Votes: 127,157 | Gross: $63.60M
SPECTRE had the coolest conference room in the spy business, hidden behind the walls of a refugee service. Meanwhile, Largo had a pretty good set up in Nassau, with his shark pool, and his hydrofoil yacht, the Disco Volante.
30. The Face of Fu Manchu (1965)
G | 89 min | Action, Crime, Drama
After cheating death, master criminal Dr. Fu Manchu returns with a plot to contaminate the River Thames with a powerful toxin extracted from Tibetan poppies.
Director: Don Sharp | Stars: Christopher Lee, Nigel Green, Joachim Fuchsberger, Karin Dor
Votes: 2,022 | Gross: $2.83M
Fu's got a complex hidden under the Thames and a mountain fortress in China. Not too shabby.
31. She (I) (1965)
Unrated | 106 min | Adventure, Fantasy
An Edwardian archaeologist and two companions stumble upon a lost city in East Africa, run by a beautiful queen whose love holds the promise of immortality.
Director: Robert Day | Stars: Ursula Andress, Peter Cushing, Bernard Cribbins, John Richardson
Votes: 3,627
Ayesha's home was nicely done, with Greco-Roman architecture in the African desert.
32. Hogan's Heroes (1965–1971)
TV-PG | 25 min | Comedy, War
The inmates of a German World War II prisoner of war camp conduct an espionage and sabotage campaign right under the noses of their warders.
Stars: Bob Crane, Werner Klemperer, John Banner, Robert Clary
Votes: 12,352
Colonel Hogan and crew had a nice set-up underneath the camp, especially the entrance underneath the guard dog house and the tree stump exterior entrance. I'd like to know how they dug those tunnels and shored up such big areas, without anyone catching on. Klink was a fool but no one is that big of a moron.
33. Thunderbirds (1965–1966)
TV-G | 50 min | Action, Adventure, Family
In the year 2065, the Tracy family run International Rescue - a top-secret organization whose ongoing mission is to rescue people trapped in extraordinarily dangerous situations using their advanced Thunderbirds machines.
Stars: Sylvia Anderson, Peter Dyneley, David Graham, Shane Rimmer
Votes: 5,114
The International Rescue set up is pretty nifty, with the Roundhouse base, the underground launch points and the space station. They weren't the most efficient designers when it came to access to their vehicles, though. For a rescue team, they sure took a long time to launch.
34. Get Smart (1965–1970)
TV-G | 25 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Maxwell Smart, a highly intellectual but bumbling spy working for the CONTROL agency, battles the evil forces of rival spy agency KAOS with the help of his competent partner Agent 99.
Stars: Don Adams, Barbara Feldon, Edward Platt, Robert Karvelas
Votes: 13,797
CONTROL had a nice HQ, though the entrance to it was a bit overly elaborate. Never quite got the Cone of Silence to work properly.
35. Batman (1966–1968)
TV-G | 25 min | Action, Crime, Fantasy
The Caped Crusader and his young ward battle evildoers in Gotham City.
Stars: Adam West, Burt Ward, Alan Napier, Neil Hamilton
Votes: 26,174
How can you top the Batcave? You have the Batpoles, taking you from Bruce Wayne's study down to the hidden lair, the Batcomputer, the atomic reactor, the Batmobile turntable, and the tunnel exit to the highway. This is one of the few hero headquarters to match the best villain's lair.
36. The Silencers (1966)
TV-PG | 102 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Retired agent Matt Helm is re-activated in order to stop an evil organization from exploding an atom bomb over the USA and starting WWIII.
Director: Phil Karlson | Stars: Dean Martin, Stella Stevens, Daliah Lavi, Victor Buono
Votes: 3,796
Big O has a decent underground complex, complete with laser defense system. I like the access tunnels, complete with golf cart transportation.
37. Our Man Flint (1966)
Approved | 108 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
When scientists use eco-terrorism to impose their will on the world by affecting extremes in the weather, Intelligence Chief Cramden calls in top agent Derek Flint.
Director: Daniel Mann | Stars: James Coburn, Lee J. Cobb, Gila Golan, Edward Mulhare
Votes: 7,094 | Gross: $16.00M
Galaxy has a nifty island set-up, complete with elevator conveyors, waterfalls, and anti-American eagles (diabolical!)
38. Batman: The Movie (1966)
PG | 105 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
The Dynamic Duo faces four supervillains who plan to hold the world for ransom with the help of a secret invention that instantly dehydrates people.
Director: Leslie H. Martinson | Stars: Adam West, Burt Ward, Lee Meriwether, Cesar Romero
Votes: 35,814
You get a better look at the Batcave here, complete with opening shot of the pair activating the costume change lever on the way down (wonder how that was supposed to work?). Meanwhile, you have the Batpier, complete with Batpole down to the lower level, where the Batboat is moored; and, the Bathangar, where the Batcopter is kept ready. Meanwhile, the villains had a nice set-up above the pier-side restaurant and a wicked submarine.
39. Space Ghost (1966–1968)
TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
The adventures of a space superhero who can become invisible and his sidekicks.
Stars: Don Messick, Ginny Tyler, Gary Owens, Tim Matheson
Votes: 2,141
Ghost Planet kind of one-ups the Batcave, unless Bruce Wayne has a hidden asteroid somewhere.
40. Frankenstein, Jr. and the Impossibles (1966–1968)
30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
Three cartoons packed into one half hour. Frankenstein Jr. was a robot constructed by a boy-genius to fight crime, The Impossibles were undercover agents disguised as a rock group.
Stars: Ted Cassidy, Hal Smith, Paul Frees, John Stephenson
Votes: 297
Loved Buzz Conroy's lab; total whacked-out modern architecture!
41. Fantastic Voyage (1966)
PG | 100 min | Adventure, Sci-Fi
When a blood clot renders a scientist comatose, a submarine and its crew are shrunk and injected into his bloodstream in order to save him.
Director: Richard Fleischer | Stars: Stephen Boyd, Raquel Welch, Edmond O'Brien, Donald Pleasence
Votes: 20,841
The government lab set up for the miniturization process is pretty neat, though a little on the antisceptic side. Golf carts were needed to get around, which suggests an inefficient use of space; but, then again, when did efficient ever look cool?
42. The Time Tunnel (1966–1967)
TV-PG | 60 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Two scientists with a secret time travel project find themselves trapped in the time stream and appearing in notable periods of history.
Stars: James Darren, Robert Colbert, Whit Bissell, John Zaremba
Votes: 4,235
The tunnel was housed in an underground complex, which is to be expected.
43. You Only Live Twice (1967)
PG | 117 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond and the Japanese Secret Service must find and stop the true culprit of a series of space hijackings, before war is provoked between Russia and the United States.
Director: Lewis Gilbert | Stars: Sean Connery, Akiko Wakabayashi, Mie Hama, Tetsurô Tanba
Votes: 117,597 | Gross: $43.08M
Now, here's where Bond got ultra-cool. You can't beat the SPECTRE volcano fortress, complete with crater doors, rocket launch pad, monorail system, piranha tank, automated defenses, and an awesome study/officer for Bloefeld. The Osato executive office was pretty sweet, too, as was Tiger's HQ. This one was a dream for students of architecture and design.
44. Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons (1967–1968)
TV-PG | 25 min | Action, Crime, Drama
In 2068, the indestructible Captain Scarlet leads the agents of Spectrum in a war of nerves against the Mysterons from Mars.
Stars: Ed Bishop, Donald Gray, Francis Matthews, Sylvia Anderson
Votes: 1,902
Can't beat Cloudbase! Lots of great designs here, from Mike Trim and Derek Meddings.
45. Ultraseven (1967–1968)
TV-PG | 30 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
An alien superhero from M-78 protects Earth from extraterrestrial threats in this popular classic follow-up to the original "Ultraman" TV series.
Stars: Kôji Moritsugu, Yuriko Hishimi, Sandayû Dokumamushi, Shôji Nakayama
Votes: 505
The Ultra-Garrison is a pretty sweet underground base. Later Ultra series would follow suit. Nothing beats mountains that open up to launch advanced aircraft.
46. Johnny Sokko and His Flying Robot (1967–1968)
TV-PG | 30 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
A young boy aids in the fight against a terrorist organization as the sole controller of a prototype giant robot.
Stars: Mitsunobu Kaneko, Toshiyuki Tsuchiyama, Kôichi Chiba, Akio Itô
Votes: 584
UNICORN has a nice place, complete with launch gantries for Giant Robot. The Gargoyle Gang had some pretty good lairs, too.
47. Tobruk (1967)
Approved | 107 min | Drama, War
A Canadian POW major is rescued by a special British military unit made up of Germans to help lead an attack on a major German fuel depot in Tobruk, Libya.
Director: Arthur Hiller | Stars: Rock Hudson, George Peppard, Nigel Green, Guy Stockwell
Votes: 3,586
The Germans have another sweet bunker set-up, this time controlling the approaches to the harbor of Tobruk. The designs were basically adapted from the bunker arrangements of the Atlantic Wall.
48. Fantastic Four (1967–1968)
TV-Y7-FV | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
Four costumed superheroes battle the world's most terrifying villains.
Stars: Paul Frees, Gerald Mohr, Jack DeLeon, Jo Ann Pflug
Votes: 1,632
The Baxter Building was a nice take on the skyscraper HQ; stolen from Doc Savage.
49. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
G | 149 min | Adventure, Sci-Fi
After uncovering a mysterious artifact buried beneath the Lunar surface, a spacecraft is sent to Jupiter to find its origins: a spacecraft manned by two men and the supercomputer HAL 9000.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester, Daniel Richter
Votes: 720,055 | Gross: $56.95M
Several choices, between the orbital station, the moonbase, or the Tyco crater, not to mention the Odyssey.
50. On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)
PG | 142 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
British agent James Bond goes undercover to pursue the villainous Ernst Stavro Blofeld, who is planning to hold the world to ransom.
Director: Peter R. Hunt | Stars: George Lazenby, Diana Rigg, Telly Savalas, Gabriele Ferzetti
Votes: 99,496 | Gross: $22.80M
Bloefeld's Piz Gloria set up was fairly sweet, especially the underground lab complex. Every supervillain should have a bobsled run for an escape route!
51. The Assassination Bureau (1969)
PG | 110 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
A woman causes a group of assassins to face their greatest challenge.
Director: Basil Dearden | Stars: Oliver Reed, Diana Rigg, Telly Savalas, Curd Jürgens
Votes: 3,329
The Bureau has a nice hidden headquarters and a fine conference area. They also had their own zeppelin (shanghaied from the Germans). It's all suitably Victorian, with plenty of wood and brass and leather chairs.
52. Latitude Zero (1969)
G | 89 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
A journalist is saved by a giant submarine captained by a 200-year-old man who takes him to an underwater paradise city where no one ages. That's when monsters and mutants sent by the captain's rival, a 200-year-old scientist, attack.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Akira Takarada, Joseph Cotten, Cesar Romero, Richard Jaeckel
Votes: 1,038
The villain has a kooky island base.
53. H.R. Pufnstuf (1969–1970)
TV-Y | 30 min | Adventure, Family, Fantasy
The adventures of a boy trapped in a fantastic land with a dragon friend and a witch enemy.
Stars: Jack Wild, Billie Hayes, Lennie Weinrib, Joan Gerber
Votes: 1,952
Witchiepoo had a pretty wild castle, though you never get to see very much of it.
54. Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)
G | 95 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
The sole survivor of an interplanetary rescue mission searches for the only survivor of the previous expedition. He discovers a planet ruled by apes and an underground city run by telepathic humans.
Director: Ted Post | Stars: James Franciscus, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, Linda Harrison
Votes: 51,519 | Gross: $19.00M
By far the best set of the Apes films, the underground New York City, especially the bomb cathedral.
55. Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970)
M | 100 min | Sci-Fi, Thriller
Thinking this will prevent war, the US government gives an impenetrable supercomputer total control over launching nuclear missiles. But what the computer does with the power is unimaginable to its creators.
Director: Joseph Sargent | Stars: Eric Braeden, Susan Clark, Gordon Pinsent, William Schallert
Votes: 10,165
The Colossus facility, seen at the beginning, is rather awe-inspiring, with miles of electronics and computer components. The control center, filmed at a university, is a nice display of modern architecture.
56. Here Come the Double Deckers! (1970– )
30 min | Family, Comedy
The adventures of a gang of seven kids whose clubhouse is an abandoned double decker bus in a London junkyard. Usually involves a bit of singing, a bit of dancing and general fun times.
Stars: Peter Firth, Brinsley Forde, Gillian Bailey, Michael Audreson
Votes: 287
The kid gang had their HQ inside a derelict double-decker bus, inside a junkyard. The junkyard had a secret entrance in the fence; a board that swiveled open, like a drawbridge.
57. The Andromeda Strain (1971)
G | 131 min | Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Top scientists work feverishly in a secret, state-of-the-art laboratory to discover what killed the citizens of a small town and how the deadly contagion can be stopped.
Director: Robert Wise | Stars: James Olson, Arthur Hill, David Wayne, Kate Reid
Votes: 40,462 | Gross: $3.42M
The Project Wildfire complex is amazing, with multiple levels buried underground, complete with sanitation protocols, labs, defense systems, and amenities. It would inspire Project Pegasus at Marvel Comics.
58. Diamonds Are Forever (1971)
PG | 120 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
A diamond smuggling investigation leads James Bond to Las Vegas where he uncovers an evil plot involving a rich business tycoon.
Director: Guy Hamilton | Stars: Sean Connery, Jill St. John, Charles Gray, Lana Wood
Votes: 114,195 | Gross: $43.82M
Ken Adams had more fun here, with the Willard White Penthouse, the White technical labs, and the oil platform set-up that SPECTRE uses to control their satellite.
59. Gatchaman (1972–1980)
TV-PG | 26 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
A team of bird-themed superhero ninjas battle the menace of Galactor, a technologically advanced international terrorist organization determined to conquer the world.
Stars: Katsuji Mori, Isao Sasaki, Kazuko Sugiyama, Yoku Shioya
Votes: 860
The Science Ninja Team's Coral Base is awesome, though Galactor manages to erect a decent base or two. They were better at the mecha, though.
60. Sealab 2020 (1972)
TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
Cartoon adventure series that focused on a group of Oceanauts in their experimental complex on the ocean floor.
Stars: Ross Martin, John Stephenson, Josh Albee, William Callaway
Votes: 273
This was a pretty cool underwater habitation, complete with labs and living quarters. Later revived for Sealab 2021, for more comedic effect.
61. Genesis II (1973 TV Movie)
Not Rated | 74 min | Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
A scientist who has been preserved in suspended animation wakes up to find himself in a primitive society in the future.
Director: John Llewellyn Moxey | Stars: Alex Cord, Mariette Hartley, Ted Cassidy, Percy Rodrigues
Votes: 1,119
Love the PAX underground complex, complete with high speed subterranean rail system.
62. Live and Let Die (1973)
PG | 121 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond is sent to stop a diabolically brilliant heroin magnate armed with a complex organisation and a reliable psychic tarot card reader.
Director: Guy Hamilton | Stars: Roger Moore, Yaphet Kotto, Jane Seymour, Clifton James
Votes: 115,534 | Gross: $35.38M
The cave complex at the end was kind of boring, but the offices under the Fillet of Soul was a bit interesting. The alligator farm was far more memorable, though.
63. Super Friends (1973–1985)
TV-G | 60 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
The greatest of the DC Comics superheroes work together to uphold the good with the help of some young proteges.
Stars: Danny Dark, Casey Kasem, Olan Soule, Shannon Farnon
Votes: 4,578
The Hall of Justice is a pretty nice set-up, modeled after the Cleveland train station.
The Hall of Doom is a worthy counterpart to the Hall of Justice, though it does it one better, since it can fly!
64. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974)
G | 84 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
An Okinawan prophecy appears to foretell Earth's destruction at the hands of Godzilla, only for the true Godzilla to reveal his doppelganger as a mechanical alien weapon.
Director: Jun Fukuda | Stars: Masaaki Daimon, Kazuya Aoyama, Reiko Tajima, Akihiko Hirata
Votes: 7,923
The aliens have a pretty nice set-up, until Big G comes along.
65. The Man with the Golden Gun (1974)
PG | 125 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond is targeted by the world's most expensive assassin, while he attempts to recover sensitive solar cell technology that is being sold to the highest bidder.
Director: Guy Hamilton | Stars: Roger Moore, Christopher Lee, Britt Ekland, Maud Adams
Votes: 113,126 | Gross: $20.97M
After the rather lackluster generic cave set up in Live and Let Die, the EON guys went to town with Scaramanga's island getaway, complete with shooting gallery. MI_6 get some pretty cool digs, hidden inside a semi-capsized ocean vessel, complete with dizzying angles.
66. Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze (1975)
G | 100 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Doc and the Amazing Five battle Captain Seas and "the green death" for control of a fabulous resource.
Director: Michael Anderson | Stars: Ron Ely, Paul Gleason, William Lucking, Michael Miller
Votes: 2,147
Doc had a nice city home, with his Empire State Building New York HQ, and the Arctic Fortress of Solitude (later swiped for Superman).
67. Space: 1999 (1975–1977)
TV-14 | 50 min | Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
The crew of Moonbase Alpha must struggle to survive when a massive explosion throws the Moon from Earths orbit and into deep space.
Stars: Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Nick Tate, Zienia Merton
Votes: 9,447
Moonbase Alpha was far more spectacular than the series.
68. The Scooby-Doo/Dynomutt Hour (1976–1978)
TV-G | 24 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Scooby Doo and the gang solve mysteries; then Blue Falcon and Dynomutt fight crime in each two-part episode of this animated series.
Stars: Patricia Stevens, Frank Welker, Casey Kasem, Don Messick
Votes: 3,712
Blue Falcon's penthouse lair was quite nice, complete with swimming pool garage for the Falcon Car.
69. The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976)
PG | 103 min | Comedy, Crime
After escaping from an insane asylum, the bonkers Charles Dreyfus sends 26 assassins on the trail of the forever bumbling Inspector Clouseau.
Director: Blake Edwards | Stars: Peter Sellers, Herbert Lom, Lesley-Anne Down, Burt Kwouk
Votes: 32,017 | Gross: $33.83M
Inspector Dreyfuss sets up shop inside a Bavarian castle, complete with pipe-organ and doomsday weapon.
70. The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
PG | 125 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond investigates the hijacking of British and Russian submarines carrying nuclear warheads, with the help of a K.G.B. agent whose lover he killed.
Director: Lewis Gilbert | Stars: Roger Moore, Barbara Bach, Curd Jürgens, Richard Kiel
Votes: 116,315 | Gross: $46.80M
Now this is how you design villain lairs. First, you have the awesome ocean complex for Stromberg, which was submersible; then, you have the supertanker mobile site, with it's built-in sub pen. Everything a high tech super pirate needs for world domination.
71. Man from Atlantis (1977–1978)
60 min | Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
The adventures of an amphibious man, the last survivor of the legendary sunken city.
Stars: Patrick Duffy, Alan Fudge, Belinda Montgomery, Richard Laurance Williams
Votes: 2,772
Mr. Schubert had a nice underwater cave complex, complete with sub pen. Parts were later recycled as the base for the research sub that Mark worked from.
72. Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)
PG | 121 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Luke Skywalker joins forces with a Jedi Knight, a cocky pilot, a Wookiee and two droids to save the galaxy from the Empire's world-destroying battle station, while also attempting to rescue Princess Leia from the mysterious Darth Vader.
Director: George Lucas | Stars: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Alec Guinness
Votes: 1,450,628 | Gross: $322.74M
Two words: Death Star! The Rebel base was kinda cool, too.
73. Space Sentinels (1977)
23 min | Adventure, Animation, Sci-Fi
A trio of teenage superheroes, representing three different racial groups, use their powers to fight against evil forces.
Stars: George DiCenzo, Evan C. Kim, Dee Timberlake, Lou Scheimer
Votes: 202
The trio has a nice HQ: a spaceship, nestled inside a dormant volcano! Couldn't they have found a more stable location?
74. Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977)
G | 113 min | Action, Adventure, Family
Sinbad the Sailor sails to deliver a cursed prince to a dangerous island in the face of deadly opposition from the powerful witch Zenobia, her son and their several monsters.
Director: Sam Wanamaker | Stars: Patrick Wayne, Jane Seymour, Taryn Power, Margaret Whiting
Votes: 8,679 | Gross: $16.79M
The film makes great use of Petra, as the home of the Greek alchemist that Sinbad must consult.
75. Superman (1978)
PG | 143 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
An alien orphan is sent from his dying planet to Earth, where he grows up to become his adoptive home's first and greatest superhero.
Director: Richard Donner | Stars: Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder, Gene Hackman, Marlon Brando
Votes: 187,614 | Gross: $134.22M
Lex Luthor had some nice digs, in an old, abandoned Metropolis subway station. The pool is a nice touch, though the library is my favorite. Superman's Fortress of Solitude isn't bad, either, though I missed the giant gold door and the trophies inside.
76. Jason of Star Command (1978–1981)
30 min | Action, Adventure, Family
A young Space Command officer fights the evil space lord Dragos and his minions in his jurisdiction of the universe.
Stars: Craig Littler, Sid Haig, Charlie Dell, Susan Pratt
Votes: 407
Star Command had a pretty cool asteroid set up, just across from the Space Academy (setting for the earlier Filmation series).
77. Moonraker (1979)
PG | 126 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
James Bond investigates the mid-air theft of a space shuttle, and discovers a plot to commit global genocide.
Director: Lewis Gilbert | Stars: Roger Moore, Lois Chiles, Michael Lonsdale, Richard Kiel
Votes: 108,837 | Gross: $70.31M
Drax's orbital space station is kind of generic but the Mayan launch site is pretty darn cool. The French chateau was top of the line, too.
78. Flash Gordon (1979–1982)
TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
The adventures of the comic strip space hero and his friends as they battle the tyranny of Ming the Merciless on the planet Mongo.
Stars: Robert Ridgely, Alan Oppenheimer, Diane Pershing, Allan Melvin
Votes: 1,068
Hard to pick between Ming's palace, the Hawkmen's Sky City, Arboria, Corellia, or the cliff fortress of the Beastmen (recycled for the Frigian snow giants).
79. Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
PG | 124 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
After the Rebel Alliance are overpowered by the Empire, Luke Skywalker begins his Jedi training with Yoda, while his friends are pursued across the galaxy by Darth Vader and bounty hunter Boba Fett.
Director: Irvin Kershner | Stars: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams
Votes: 1,380,723 | Gross: $290.48M
The Hoth Base set-up is nice, though a bit chilly. The Empire lags a bit, though Vader has a pimped-out Super Star Destroyer. Cloud City is pretty sweet.
80. Thundarr the Barbarian (1980–1981)
TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
Thundarr the Barbarian and his companions Ookla the Mok and Princess Ariel wander a devastated future Earth and fight evil wherever they find it.
Stars: Henry Corden, Robert Ridgely, Nellie Bellflower, Dick Tufeld
Votes: 1,809
Many great wizard lairs, though I am partial to one Mushroom-shaped design, seen only in the credits.
81. For Your Eyes Only (1981)
PG | 127 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
Secret service agent James Bond is assigned to find a missing British vessel equipped with a weapons encryption device and prevent it from falling into enemy hands.
Director: John Glen | Stars: Roger Moore, Carole Bouquet, Topol, Lynn-Holly Johnson
Votes: 108,338 | Gross: $62.30M
A little sedate on the lairs, but Kristato's monastic set-up is interesting.
82. Octopussy (1983)
PG | 131 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
A fake Fabergé egg recovered from the body of a fellow agent leads James Bond to uncover a jewel smuggling operation led by the mysterious Octopussy, and a plot to blow up a NATO air base.
Director: John Glen | Stars: Roger Moore, Maud Adams, Louis Jourdan, Kristina Wayborn
Votes: 113,027 | Gross: $67.90M
Kamal Khan's mountain fortress makes for a decent set-up and Octopussy's island hang-out gets points for interesting, if only dor the dozens of hotties hanging out there.
83. He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (1983–1985)
TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
The most powerful man in the universe, He-Man, goes against the evil forces of Skeletor to save the planet Eternia and to protect the secrets of Castle Grayskull.
Stars: John Erwin, Alan Oppenheimer, Linda Gary, Lou Scheimer
Votes: 20,052
Hard to decide which was cooler, Castle Greyskull or Snake Mountain. Flip a coin.
84. The Last Starfighter (1984)
PG | 100 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
High schooler Alex Rogan conquers the Starfighter video game, only to find out it was just a test, and is transported to another planet. He has been recruited to join a team of the best starfighters to defend their world from the attack.
Director: Nick Castle | Stars: Lance Guest, Robert Preston, Kay E. Kuter, Dan Mason
Votes: 46,060 | Gross: $28.73M
Rather liked the Star League's base for the gunstars, built into the side of an asteroid.
85. G.I. Joe (1985–1986)
TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
An elite special missions force fights against the terrorist forces of Cobra.
Stars: Jackson Beck, Christopher Collins, Michael Bell, Neil Ross
Votes: 5,638
The JOE team had a decent underground HQ; but COBRA always had the better digs. Not crazy about the snake decor, though.
86. Thundercats (1985–1989)
TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
A team of humanoid cats fight evil in their adopted home world.
Stars: Bob McFadden, Larry Kenney, Earl Hammond, Lynne Lipton
Votes: 19,071
The Thudercat HQ (a giant cat building) was a great little home for the kitties.
87. Big Trouble in Little China (1986)
PG-13 | 99 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
A rough-and-tumble trucker and his side kick face off with an ancient sorcerer in a supernatural battle beneath Chinatown.
Director: John Carpenter | Stars: Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall, Dennis Dun, James Hong
Votes: 154,109 | Gross: $11.10M
Lo Pan has a fun little set-up, beneath San Francisco's Chinatown. Love the big stairs!
88. The Spirit (1987 TV Movie)
74 min | Action
A legally dead police detective decides to battle crime as a masked superhero.
Director: Michael Schultz | Stars: Sam J. Jones, Nana Visitor, Bumper Robinson, Garry Walberg
Votes: 297
The Wildwood Cemetary HQ lived up to the comic strip original.
89. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
PG-13 | 127 min | Action, Adventure
In 1938, after his father goes missing while pursuing the Holy Grail, Indiana Jones finds himself up against the Nazis again to stop them from obtaining its powers.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Harrison Ford, Sean Connery, Alison Doody, Denholm Elliott
Votes: 811,317 | Gross: $197.17M
Petra returns as the resting place of the Holy Grail.
90. The Shadow (1994)
PG-13 | 108 min | Action, Adventure, Crime
In 1930s New York City, The Shadow (Alec Baldwin) battles his nemesis, Shiwan Khan (John Lone), who is building an atomic bomb.
Director: Russell Mulcahy | Stars: Alec Baldwin, John Lone, Penelope Ann Miller, Peter Boyle
Votes: 27,147 | Gross: $32.06M
Russell Mulcahy didn't get much right, but the Sanctum Sanctorum was fairly well done.
91. Stargate (1994)
PG-13 | 116 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
An interstellar teleportation device, found in Egypt, leads to a planet with humans resembling ancient Egyptians who worship the god Ra.
Director: Roland Emmerich | Stars: Kurt Russell, James Spader, Jaye Davidson, Viveca Lindfors
Votes: 205,201 | Gross: $71.57M
The stargate is housed in what looks like a take-off of the Norad complex. The setting was reused for the tv show.
92. Dexter's Laboratory (1996–2003)
TV-G | 23 min | Animation, Short, Adventure
The misadventures of a boy genius and his annoying sister.
Stars: Kath Soucie, Jeff Bennett, Christine Cavanaugh, Tom Kenny
Votes: 53,811
Dexter combined the best elements of the secret lab complex. Mandark's was too "showy."
93. Nick Fury: Agent of Shield (1998 TV Movie)
TV-14 | 120 min | Action, Sci-Fi
Agent Nick Fury is asked to fight the menace of Hydra after exiling himself in the Yukon since the end of the Cold War.
Director: Rod Hardy | Stars: David Hasselhoff, Lisa Rinna, Sandra Hess, Neil Roberts
Votes: 3,186
Early attempt at the Helicarrier isn't too bad, though why you need watertight doors on a vessel that flies through the air is beyond me.
94. The Powerpuff Girls (1998–2004)
TV-Y7-FV | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
Three super-powered little girls constantly save the world (or at least the city of Townsville) from monsters, would-be conquerers and a few other gross things.
Stars: Cathy Cavadini, Elizabeth Daily, Tara Strong, Tom Kenny
Votes: 47,941
Professor Utonium had a nice mid-century modern house, but Mojo Jo-Jo's mountain HQ steals the show!
95. The Venture Bros. (2003–2018)
TV-14 | 22 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
The bizarre escapades of pseudo-heroic scientist Dr. Rusty Venture, his competent, high-strung bodyguard, and his two overenthusiastic sons.
Stars: Christopher McCulloch, James Urbaniak, Doc Hammer, Michael Sinterniklaas
Votes: 28,098
Love the Venture Compound, complete with space age building, mid-century modern living areas, and various hangars and labs. The Spider Island base is pretty cool, too, though the best is the Monarch's cocoon command ship.
96. Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)
PG | 106 min | Action, Adventure, Mystery
After New York City receives a series of attacks from giant flying robots, a reporter teams up with a pilot in search of their origin, as well as the reason for the disappearances of famous scientists around the world.
Director: Kerry Conran | Stars: Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Angelina Jolie, Giovanni Ribisi
Votes: 87,496 | Gross: $37.76M
The Flying Legion has a decent hidden airfield, but the villain has a much cooler hidden island complex. The Tibetan realm is pretty nice, too. meanwhile, the Brit's have airborne carriers and female attack squadrons. if only the story had been as cool as the design.
97. Iron Man (2008)
PG-13 | 126 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
After being held captive in an Afghan cave, billionaire engineer Tony Stark creates a unique weaponized suit of armor to fight evil.
Director: Jon Favreau | Stars: Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges
Votes: 1,125,580 | Gross: $318.41M
Tony Stark has one kick-@$$ ocean-side home!
98. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
PG-13 | 124 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Steve Rogers, a rejected military soldier, transforms into Captain America after taking a dose of a "Super-Soldier serum". But being Captain America comes at a price as he attempts to take down a warmonger and a terrorist organization.
Director: Joe Johnston | Stars: Chris Evans, Hugo Weaving, Samuel L. Jackson, Hayley Atwell
Votes: 897,286 | Gross: $176.65M
The Red Skull had some nice hidden digs, especially the giant windows.
99. The Avengers (2012)
PG-13 | 143 min | Action, Sci-Fi
Earth's mightiest heroes must come together and learn to fight as a team if they are going to stop the mischievous Loki and his alien army from enslaving humanity.
Director: Joss Whedon | Stars: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner
Votes: 1,460,014 | Gross: $623.28M
Helicarrier!
Tell Your Friends