Natural disasters are an inherent and very real terror for many, who fear for their lives and their families should they be caught in an earthquake, wildfire, or similar event. As with many deep human anxieties, this fear has created great fodder for filmmakers to create emotionally moving stories of human survival.
As such, the ‘disaster movie’ genre is a popular one, with a great many of these being centered around natural disasters. This genre is as varied in quality as any other, containing true gems of films, and ones best left forgotten. Some films stand out, whether they are true classics or merely massively enjoyable.
7 Contagion Is Particularly Sobering With Recent Events
Even when it was released in 2011, Contagion was praised as a thoughtful, well-researched look at how a major pandemic may occur and be battled, with the filmmakers receiving support from the Centre for Disease Control in the creation of the film.
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the film is somewhat chilling. It predicts a bat-borne virus that overwhelms pandemic protections and inspires a rise in conspiracy theorism—and as such proves itself more accurate than many would have anticipated. Although its twist of vaccines being placebos is unfortunate, the film is great to watch—if potentially uncomfortable in current times.
6 Twister’s Romantic Preoccupations Don’t Detract From A Solid Tornado Movie
Twister is a film that takes the simple concept of a team of storm chasers attempting to research a massive tornado, and throws a complex romantic relationship into the middle of it. The film follows Jo and Bill Harding as they attempt to test their revolutionary ‘Dorothy’ research device in the middle of an active tornado.
Throughout, the two—on the brink of divorce—begin to realize their lasting feelings for one another, and deal with their relationship baggage. Although it is, at times, overly distracted by its love story, Twister still tells a compelling story about tornados and the devastation they can cause.
5 Deep Impact Is Sentimental But Enjoyable
In 1998, two seemingly incredibly similar films were released within months of each other. Both Deep Impact and Armageddon focus on the Earth receiving advance warning of a potentially lethal asteroid and attempting to save the Earth by drilling nuclear weapons into the meteor.
Despite similar premises, the films are very different in execution, with Armageddon following the team of drillers on an adrenaline-pumping mission, and Deep Impact focusing on the effects the threat has on Earth and the government response. For its sociological focus and its scientific accuracy, many consider Deep Impact the superior movie, and a good watch.
4 Crawl Merges The Killer Alligator Genre With Disaster Films
An offshoot of the ‘killer shark’ genre, the ‘killer alligator’ film deals with a person or several people stranded in the water with one or more alligators after them. In a rare twist, the film Crawl is combined with the disaster genre as protagonist Haley Keller is trapped in a house’s crawl space during a hurricane, where alligators have made their nest.
Although its premise sounds like it could be cheesy, the film received widespread praise as a horror film. The movie is a tense ride from start to finish, and one that might leave viewers nervous about their basements.
3 Volcano Puts Technical Proficiency To An Odd Premise
A volcano forming in crowded Los Angeles is an unconventional premise for a film, and with Volcano it is one that a great many people scoffed at. However, although the film is undeniably cheesy, it makes no bones about that fact and is more than happy to embrace it, up to an ending with a Randy Newman song.
What it lacks in serious storytelling, the film makes up for with its technical achievements—particularly for 1997. With surprisingly realistic lava flooding Los Angeles, the film’s approach is compelling during the scenes of firefights battling the flood of the volcano. Considered a satisfying watch by many, those looking for a white knuckle ride may want to look elsewhere.
2 The Day After Tomorrow Is An Effective Visual Treat
Roland Emmerich is a filmmaker who has made a name for himself devastating some of the world’s major cities over and over again in his movies, and The Day After Tomorrow is no exception. Featuring climate change as its world-ending threat, the film follows the world as the Northern Hemisphere is caught in the grips of a storm that may leave it in a new Ice Age.
Although parts of it are hard to take seriously, the film is full of scientific inaccuracies, and it is not Emmerich’s best-regarded film, many critics and audiences consider the film to convey its threat effectively. Regarded especially as a visually beautiful film in addition to its storytelling, it has its strengths and weaknesses but is overall a well-executed disaster movie.
1 Greenland Pulls No Punches
Some disaster movies tell of people trying to fight a natural disaster or put the pieces back together after it happens. Others tell of people simply trying to escape and survive. Greenland is one of those, and it isn’t afraid to show how bleak such a situation can be, or how cruel and ruthless people in every echelon of society may get.
Another ‘comet approaching the earth’ film, Greenland features no ambitious plans to destroy it, and instead plans to get people to Greenland and other evacuation centers to maybe survive. After a tense fight for survival for the Garrity family, the film ends on the bleak view of the world’s major cities in ruins—but with the possibility of rebuilding.
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