Top 15 Best Disaster Movies on Netflix

If you are planning on a weekend of binge-watching, you should check out some disaster movies on Netflix. These movies are always a fantastic choice for a lazy, stress-free weekend at home. Disaster movies, when made right, are incredibly exciting and full of suspense. If you are not a big fan of natural disaster movies, don’t worry the category is more than just that.

Because we love this category of movies so much, we’ve decided to bring you some of our favorites. All of the movies on our list can be found on Netflix streaming.

Top 15 Best Disaster Movies on Netflix

Before we give you our list, keep in mind that not all of these movies are brand new. There is a mix of recent ones, old ones and two are even television series that are so good we could not leave them off of our list. So, without any further ado, here are our top fifteen picks for disaster movies on Netflix.

Brace For Impact

First up on our list, is Brace For Impact. This film was made in Canada and released in 2016. Brace For Impact is about a disgraced crash investigator named Sofia Gilchrist who has decided to investigate the plane crash that took her brother’s life. Her supervisor forbids her from doing so but she ignores him and does it anyway. Gilchrist is convinced the accident was the result of foul play and refuses to give up until she finds out the truth, consequences be damned.

The movie has a TV-MA rating for mature audiences and may not be suitable for children. If you like movies about human-made disasters, this is worth a watch. Just remember, it was initially a television movie, so it’s high on drama and low on special effects.

Oceans Rising

Oceans Rising is a 2017 film about a massive flood. The movie is about a scientist who builds an ark in preparation of flooding that is going to destroy the Earth. The scientist tries desperately to warn others of the flood but is treated like a moron. Of course, the naysayers soon begin to regret that.

The movie is your typical B-list disaster movie. Although the reviews on Netflix are not the best, it is perfect if you want to watch a cheesy movie that doesn’t force you to think a whole lot. We laughed a lot when we watched it, and that is always great for a lazy weekend binge-fest.

Oceans Rising has a TV-14 rating. That means it is suitable for kids 14-years-old and up.

Supervolcano

Next up on our list of favorite disaster movies on Netflix is Supervolcano. This movie, made in 2005, is a British-Canadian docuseries that is actually really well-made. The movie is about what would happen if the volcano in Yellowstone National Park were to erupt suddenly. If you spent a great deal of time watching the recent volcano eruption in Hawaii, you’d really appreciate this movie. In fact, even if you have never watched any video of a volcano eruption, you would like this movie.

The movie has a TV-PG rating, which means adults should supervise their children if they want to watch it. Finally, Netflix viewers have given the movie great reviews and is definitely worth a watch.

 Eden

Eden, released in 2015, is another plane crash movie. The film is about a US soccer team becoming stranded on an island after a plane crash. In order to survive, the team breaks up into groups and begins battling one another. IMDb describes the movie as a “modern-day Lord of the Flies.”

The movie also has a pretty decent cast with Nate Parker and James Remar. Parker starred in the critically-acclaimed film “Birth of a Nation.” And, if you are a fan of the television show Grey’s Anatomy, you will recognize Remar who played Alex’s dad on the show.

Unfortunately, we would not recommend it for children; it has an R rating.

Pandemic

Pandemic, 2016, starring Mekhi Phifer, Paul Guilfoyle, and Rachel Nichols is next on our list of disaster movies on Netflix. Pandemic is shot in the first-person point of view, like first-person shooter games. It is about a doctor who leads a team to find survivors after a virus ravages the world and kills hundreds of millions of people. Although it is a bit strange at first because of the way it was filmed, once you get used to that it’s a very entertaining movie. Besides, there are zombies and who doesn’t love a good zombie film?

The movie has a TV-MA rating.

Pandora

Pandora is a bit different from the other movies on this list because it was originally released in South Korea, not America or Canda. However, it is one of our top five favorites on this list. The movie is about a man named Jae-hyeok, who lives with his mother in a small Korean town. He works at a nuclear power plant, and his life is great. Unfortunately, that all changes when a natural disaster strikes the country and causes the plant to start exploding. Jae-hyeok begins racing against the clock to save lives before the nuclear plant melts down.

When we watched this movie, we were completely absorbed in it. It is definitely one of the best disaster movies we’ve ever seen, and you should definitely check it out. The movie has a TV-MA rating, so be sure to watch it without young children around.

The Wave

The Wave is a 2015 Norwegian film about a geologist and his family’s fight to stay alive after a huge landslide causes a 250-foot tidal wave. The movie is actually based on a similar incident in 1934 that destroyed the village of Tafjord in Norway and killed forty people. According to the website Life in Norway, the thing that makes the movie so fantastic and terrifying is that it depicts a real threat to the country. Like Pandora, which we discussed above, The Wave is an incredibly well-done foreign film.

It has an R rating, so we do not recommend it for children.

Abandoned

Abandoned, 2015, is another one of the disaster movies on Netflix that is based on a true story. In 1989, the trimaran Rose-Noelle and its four-member crew set sail from New Zealand. A freak wave soon hit the boat and turned it upside down. The crew drifts for 119 days and faces incredible odds. It’s a terrific disaster and survival film.

The film has a TV-14 rating.

Alive

Next on our list of top disaster movies on Netflix is Alive. It is a 1993 biographical film based on the 1974 book by Piers Paul Read called “Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors.” The movie is about the Uruguayan rugby team’s fight for survival after their plane crashed in the Andes mountains in 1972. The movie is definitely one that you want to see if you like dramatized versions of real-life disasters.

Unfortunately, it has an R rating, so you may not want your kids to watch it.

Aftershock

Aftershock, 2012, is not just a disaster film, it’s also a horror movie. The plot centers on three friends who are traveling in Chili. The trio is partying at a club when an earthquake strikes and kills a lot of the other clubgoers. They then fight desperately for their survival in the midst of a lot of gore.

Aftershock has an R rating.

USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage

USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage is another movie based on a true story. The movie, 2016, stars Nicholas Cage and tells the story about a disaster during the end of WWII that led to the sinking of the ship. In the movie, the surviving crew members are left to fight for their lives after the ship goes down. If you are a fan of disaster movies and war movies, we encourage you to watch this.

The movie has an R rating.

Seeking a Friend for the End of the World

Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, 2012, stars Steve Carell and Keira Knightley. The movie is a disaster movie but also a comedy. Carell’s character sets out to find his high school sweetheart as an asteroid races toward Earth. However, he somehow manages to get stuck with Knightley’s character who makes his life difficult. It’s a very funny movie and definitely worth a watch if you are into comedy.

The movie is an R rating.

Armageddon

Of course, how can we have a list of disaster movies on Netflix without mentioning this movie: Armageddon. This 1998 film is probably one of the best disaster movies of all time. And how could it not be with its all-star cast including Bruce Willis, Liv Tyler, Ben Affleck, Billy Bob Thorton, Owen Wilson, Steve Buscemi and many more?

The film is about NASA astronauts who desperately try to save the world before a massive asteroid hurtles toward Earth and destroys it. If you have never seen this movie, stop what you are doing right now and go turn it on. You won’t regret it.

Armageddon has a PG-13 rating.

Full Force Nature

As we mentioned in the introduction, we added two television shows to our list of disaster movies on Netflix. The reason for this is that they feel like movies when you are watching them. When you view a disaster movie, what is the one thing you know you are going to see? That’s right, special effects that show incredible storms, deadly outbreaks or some other form of disaster. Well, these two television series have those types of scenes, except it is real life footage.

The first television series we are going to tell you about is a Weather Channel series called Full Force Nature. Obviously, any time the Weather Channel airs a show about natural disasters, you expect that it is going to be pretty amazing and they did not disappoint with this one.

Full Force Nature has twelve episodes, and they are twenty minutes long each. The show takes you on a journey through horrifying storms with real footage of floods, tornadoes, and hurricanes.

The docuseries has a TV-PG rating and perfectly fine if your kids want to check it out. In fact, if you think they are old enough, you should definitely have them watch the show with you as a learning exercise.

The World’s Worst Disasters

The second television series that we had to put on our list is The World’s Worst Disasters. The series has thirteen episodes, and each one documents a different type of disaster. For instance, episode one is all about the worst volcanic eruptions. Episode five explores the most devastating earthquakes across the globe and the damage they caused. And episode ten is about the worst tornadoes and the storm chasers who try to gather information about the storms.

According to BBC, the series shows what happens when mother nature’s fury meets humans. It uses a mixture of raw video footage and 3D animations. We highly recommend this series if you are a fan of storm chasing and environmental films. Although we warn you, it may drive you to start creating disaster preparedness kits for everyone you love.

The series has a TV-PG rating.

Go Make Some Popcorn

So, what are you waiting for? Go get some snacks and a few drinks, sit down, flip on the television and start at the top of our list. It’s time for you to relax and binge watch a few disaster movies on Netflix. Whether you look corny movies or docuseries there is a little something for everyone to enjoy. Just remember to check the ratings before you sit down with your child.

 

Featured image: CC by 2.0, by NOAA, via Flickr