Earthquakes, viruses, and human errors — they were captured in the best disaster movies. Some of them did so well that they have joined the ranks of the greatest movies (looking at you, Titanic). These movies keep us on the edge of our seats. Even when they portray real events, we wait for those final minutes when the built-up stress is gone and a new, real-life-related one sets in. When it comes to the best disaster movie label, two elements are always found — their reality and the story involved with them.
Unlike personal disasters, real-life disasters are devastating and society-ruining. For this reason, the best natural disaster movies can always invoke that dread inside us all. Movies about pandemics are the perfect example of it, especially in the past few years. They can instill a certain feeling of dread because viruses and germs are easily transferred. They can go from one person to another and impact us. However, plenty of brilliant disaster movies should also have a story. When there isn’t a story and characters at stake, the audience will forget it. Titanic (1997) has a romantic story that is just too good to look away from. Even on Valentine's Day, this disaster movie can capture the hearts of millions of watchers.
From hurricanes to crashing into icebergs, the best disaster movies of all time vary in the events they portray and how they do that. To help you prepare for some of them, we have compiled a list of human and natural disaster movies that are terrifying. Want to make your friends a little bit scared? Share this list with them. Found the movie that caught your attention? Upvote it. If you have something to share about the movies, do so in the comments below.
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#41 Crack In The World
1965 | 1h 36m | Directed by Andrew Marton | IMDB: 5.9/10
Starring Dana Andrews, Janette Scott, and Kieron Moore
Earth is hiding quite a lot beneath the surface, so it was only a matter of time before someone decided to crack it open. When a group of scientists decides to crack into the magma layer below by using nuclear weapons, a disaster happens above. This disaster takes the form of a threat that will split Earth into two.
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#42 Hurricane
1979 | 2h 00m | Directed by Jan Troell | IMDB: 4.7/10 |
Starring Jason Robards, Mia Farrow, and Max von Sydow
A love affair is horrible already, but what if it was intensified by a devastating hurricane hitting an island? An American painter, against the orders of her father, falls in love with a person on a lonely island. The tension on the island rises even more when a hurricane hits it and intensifies the conflicts between the characters.
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#43 The Day The Earth Caught Fire
1961 | 1h 39m | Directed by Val Guest | IMDB: 7.2/10 |
Starring Edward Judd, Janet Munro, and Leo McKern
Nuclear weapons are one of the biggest dormant disasters in the world, so what would happen if two of them were detonated simultaneously? Well, according to this movie, the axis of Earth would be changed in a bad way. When the Soviet Union and the United States use these weapons at the same time, strange events occur all over the world.
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#44 Sharknado
2013 | 1h 26m | Directed by Anthony C. Ferrante | IMDB: 3.3/10 |
Starring Ian Ziering, Tara Reid, and John Heard
Sharks are not known to have the ability to fly, but when they are caught by a tornado, then you have a disaster on your hands — a sharknado. A group of semi-normal survivors has to fight through Los Angeles and fight sharks on land. While the movie might have failed in the eyes of the critics, it sure got some people to giggle while watching it.
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#45 The Hurricane Heist
2018 | 1h 43m | Directed by Rob Cohen | IMDB: 5.1/10 |
Starring Toby Kebbell, Maggie Grace, and Ryan Kwanten
Hurricanes — they create chaos in their paths, thus giving a chance for any ambitious criminal to go on a robbing streak. As a category 5 (highest level) hurricane approaches the United States, a group of thieves decides to steal from the big boys — the US Treasury. The hurricane plays an important role as a distraction but also as a destructive force.
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