Natural disaster movies offer some of the best large-scale CGI moments in cinema, along with the great sci-fi sagas and superhero movies, which makes them even more intense. Viewers are not only terrified of what they see in the movie, but they are also terrified that it could happen to them. Although zombie attacks are unlikely to happen very soon, you may experience an earthquake or tsunami. After all, a pandemic hit us. Movies about natural disasters are sure to get your heart racing and adrenaline pumping, whether the subject matter is as intimate as a ship in a storm or as grand as a comet heading towards Earth. These are some of the best that cinema has to offer.
The 21 Best Natural Disaster Movies You Should Watch Right Now
Disaster movies are among the largest and most epic canvases for filmmakers to work on because they combine spectacle special effects with human drama. Now we’re ranking some of the best portrayals of natural disasters, including earthquakes (San Andreas), asteroids (Deep Impact), tsunamis (The Impossible), planes (Airport), volcanoes (Volcano), ships (Titanic), and pretty much more than Mother Nature Can Throw (2012). So get ready for classified disaster movies by donning a helmet and life jacket, and hiding in your bomb shelter.
21. Airport 1975 (1974)
A small plane collides with a 747 in mid-flight, leaving it no pilot. In order for the plane to land, the control tower must find a way to get a pilot on board.
IMDb: 5.7/10
execution time: 107 minutes
Director: jack smight
To emit: Charlton Heston, Karen Black, George Kennedy, Efrem Zimbalist Jr.
See in: Amazon Prime
20. Contagion (2011)
The CDC is trying to find a cure as medical professionals, government leaders, and ordinary citizens find themselves in the midst of a pandemic.
IMDb: 6.8/10
execution time: 106 minutes
Director: steven soderbergh
To emit: Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow
See in: Netflix
19. The Core (2003)
Drilling to the core and restarting the the rotation of the earth are the only ways to prevent a catastrophe in this mind-blowing movie about natural disasters.
IMDb: 5.5/10
execution time: 135 minutes
Director: Juan Amiel
To emit: Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank, Delroy Lindo, Bruce Greenwood
See in: Netflix
18. Dante’s Peak (1997)
A volcanologist learns that the long inactive time volcanoDante’s Peak, could erupt at any moment upon arrival in a rural community recently ranked the second most desirable place to live in America.
IMDb: 6/10
execution time: 108 minutes
Director: roger donaldson
To emit: Pierce Brosnan, Linda Hamilton, Jamie Renée Smith, Jeremy Foley
See in: Amazon Prime
17. The day after tomorrow (2004)
Paleoclimatologist Jack Hall must undertake a perilous journey from Washington DC to New York City to find his son, who finds himself caught in the path of an unexpected global storm that sends Earth into a new Ice Age.
IMDb: 6.4/10
execution time: 124 minutes
Director: Roland Emmerich
To emit: Dennis Quaid, Jake Gyllenhaal, Emmy Rossum, Dash Mihok
See in: Amazon Prime
16. Deep Impact (1998)
A comet is found to be heading directly for Earth. The human species is preparing for the worst as Armageddon approaches.
IMDb: 6.2/10
execution time: 120 minutes
Director: Mimi Leder
To emit: Robert Duvall, Tea Leoni, Elijah Wood, Morgan Freeman
See in: Netflix
15. Geostorm (2017)
It is a race against time for the designer of the satellite network to identify the real threat before a global geostorm Take down everyone and everything when the network of satellites built to govern the global climate begins to attack Earth.
IMDb: 5.3/10
execution time: 109 minutes
Director: Dean Devlin
To emit: Gerard Butler, Jim Sturgess, Abbie Cornish, Alexandra María Lara
See in: Netflix
14. Gravity (2013)
After an accident leaves two astronauts stranded in space, they team up to survive.
IMDb: 7.7/10
execution time: 95 minutes
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
To emit: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney, Ed Harris (voice)
See in: Amazon Prime
13. Independence Day (1996)
Aliens are approaching with the intention of invading and destroying Earth. The human will to survive is the best weapon against advanced technology.
IMDb: 7/10
execution time: 145 minutes
Director: Roland Emmerich
To emit: Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Mary McDonnell
See in: Amazon Prime
12. Armageddon (1998)
When NASA learns that an asteroid the size of Texas will hit Earth in less than a month, they assemble an unlikely group of deep core drillers to save the planet.
IMDb: 6.7/10
execution time: 151 minutes
Director: michael bay
To emit: Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler
See in: Amazon Prime
11. Moonfall (2022)
The moon is thrown out of its orbit by a unknown forcerunning towards the earth on its way.
IMDb: 5.1/10
execution time: 130 minutes
Director: Roland Emmerich
To emit: Halle Berry Patrick Wilson John Bradley
See in: Amazon Prime
10. Don’t Look Up (2021)
Two low-level astronomers must go on a giant media tour to warn humanity of an approaching comet that will destroy planet Earth.
IMDb: 7.2/10
execution time: 138 minutes
Director: Adam McKay
To emit: Leonardo DiCaprioJennifer LawrenceMeryl Streep
See in: Netflix
9. Pompeii (2014)
The genuine love of a slave turned gladiator, who has become betrothed to a rogue Roman senator, must be saved in a race against time. He must fight to save his beloved as Pompeii burns around him and Mount Vesuvius explodes.
IMDb: 5.5/10
execution time: 105 minutes
Director: Paul W.S. Anderson
To emit: Kit Harington Emily Browning Kiefer Sutherland
See in: Amazon Prime
8. Saint Andrew (2015)
A rescue helicopter pilot crosses California on a perilous journey with his ex-wife after a massive earthquake in an attempt to save their daughter.
IMDb: 5.5/10
execution time: 114 minutes
Director: brad peyton
To emit: Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario, Colton Haynes
See in: Netflix
7. This is the end (2013)
Six well-known Los Angeles residents are stranded at the home of James Franco after a series of tragic incidents have just decimated the city. Now, the group they have to deal with themselves on the inside, as well as the end of the world.
IMDb: 6.6/10
execution time: 107 minutes
Director: Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen
To emit: James Franco, Jonah Hill, Seth Rogen
See in: Netflix
6.Titanic (1997)
A seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind but poor artist aboard the ill-fated luxurious RMS Titanic.
IMDb: 7.9/10
execution time: 194 minutes
Director: James Cameron
To emit: Leonardo DicaprioKate Winslet, Billy Zane, Kathy Bates
See in: disney star
5.2012 (2009)
A dissatisfied writer struggles to keep his family alive when a series of global disasters threaten to wipe out humanity.
IMDb: 5.8/10
execution time: 158 minutes
Director: Roland Emmerich
To emit: John Cusack, Thandiwe Newton, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Amanda Peet
See in: Amazon Prime
4. Volcano (1997)
A seismologist and a city official try to stop the volcano’s inevitable flow through the metropolis as it erupts in downtown Los Angeles.
IMDb: 5.5/10
execution time: 104 minutes
Director: mick jackson
To emit: Tommy Lee Jones, Anne Heche, Gaby Hoffmann, Don Cheadle
See in: Amazon Prime
3. Field of Clover (2008)
A group of friends embark on a rescue mission through the streets of New York in the midst of a furious attack by monsters.
IMDb: 7/10
execution time: 85 minutes
Director: matthew reeves
To emit: Mike Vogel, Jessica Lucas, Lizzy Caplan, TJ Miller
See in: Amazon Prime
2. The Wave (2015)
Although it was to be expected, no one is really prepared when the mountain pass crashes into the picturesque and restricted Geiranger Fjord in Norway, generating a catastrophic tidal wave 85 meters high. One of those caught in the middle of this is a geologist.
IMDb: 6.6/10
execution time: 105 minutes
Director: roar uthaug
To emit: Kristoffer Joner, Ane Dahl Torp, Jonas Hoff Oftebro, Edith Haagenrud-Sande
See in: Amazon Prime
1. The Impossible (2012)
The story of a family of tourists who was thrown into the chaos and devastation of the tsunami that hit the Indian Ocean in 2004.
IMDb: 7.5/10
execution time: 114 minutes
Director: JA Bayonne
To emit: Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor, Tom Holland, Oaklee Pendergast
See in: Netflix
conclusion
You might be interested in the idea of kicking back and relaxing while sympathetically watching others handle significant calamity in light of all we’ve been through over the last year and a half. If that sounds appealing, there’s no better or safer way to treat yourself than by loading up your favorite streamer and watching classic natural disaster movies.
Also read: The 50 Best Thriller Movies of All Time to Watch Now