From February 9, screenings of James Cameron’s cult blockbuster “Titanic” will begin in Ukrainian cinemas. The tape tells about the terrible disaster – the death of the legendary liner, which happened in April 1912. And the recent earthquakes in Turkey and other countries reminded once again how unpredictable and deadly our planet is.
Terrible disasters, both real and fictional, have long become an important theme in cinema and have turned into a separate genre. In this selection, we recall a number of exciting disaster films, which make it scary not only for the fate of the characters, but also for the entire planet. In the comments, add the names of those projects that, in your opinion, also deserve attention.
“The Towering Inferno” / The Towering Inferno
Genre: fire in a skyscraper
Premiere date: 1974
IMDb rating: 7
Let’s start with genre classics. At one time, this movie about a fire engulfing a skyscraper was a big success with audiences, as evidenced by the figure of $116 million in box office against a budget of just $14 million. The tape has 8 Oscar nominations (3 wins) and 5 Golden Globe nominations (2 wins). The plot is based on the novels “Glass Hell” by Thomas Scortia and Frank Robinson and “The Tower” by Richard Martin Stern.
Of course, this is not the first example of a successful disaster film in the history of cinema, because its producer Irwin Allen released the already recognized genre classic “The Adventures of Poseidon” two years before. But “Hell Rising” has greatly influenced both the genre itself (including action-packed skyscraper films) and modern production of big-budget blockbusters. Two other films from that era should be mentioned: George Seaton’s Airport (1970) and Mark Robeson’s Earthquake (1974).
“Smerch” / Twister
Genre: tornado hunters
Premiere date: 1996
IMDb rating: 6.4
The second full-length film by director Jan de Bont after the cult “Speed”, which introduces tornado hunters, was liked by the audience. Almost half a billion dollars in fees is a clear confirmation of this. “Smerch” was twice nominated for an “Oscar” in the technical nominations and, not surprisingly, has a “Golden Raspberry”. It is an exciting adventure story with a good cast and decent special effects for the time.
In 2014, another film with a similar narrative was released – “Towards the Storm”. It was made in a pseudo-documentary style, but received disappointing reviews. Last year in October, it became known that the filmmakers are working on creating a sequel to de Bont’s film. The premiere is scheduled for July 2024. Also, we cannot fail to mention another representative of the genre of that time – “Dante’s Peak”.
“Titanic” / Titanic
Genre: sinking of the liner
Premiere date: 1997
IMDb rating: 7.9
In honor of its 25th anniversary, James Cameron’s legendary tape “Titanic” is being re-released. Starting from February 9, viewers will be able to watch this masterpiece on the big screen in 3D 4K HDR format. We will remind that in 2012, that is, on the hundredth anniversary of the death of the British liner, the blockbuster was converted into the then fashionable 3D format and re-released in cinemas around the world.
Probably, we will mention the numerous achievements of this film and its influence on the cinematography and the entire pop culture more than once. Or about stunning achievements in the world box office. In addition to the impressive scenes of the sinking of a huge liner and the emotional love story, beautifully embodied by Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, “Titanic” vividly demonstrates the toxicity of class inequality. And the complete helplessness of a person against the background of the majestic ocean.
“Armageddon” / Armageddon
Genre: an asteroid is approaching Earth
Premiere date: 1998
IMDb rating: 6,7
The third full-length film of clip maker Michael Bay made a lot of noise at the time. It was simply destroyed by professional critics, but the audience received it much more warmly. This allowed the blockbuster with Bruce Willis and a bunch of other stars in the frame not only to earn very decent money at the box office, but also later to acquire a cult status. In addition, the film made the audience literally forget about another similar project – the film “Collision with the Abyss”, which was released a little earlier in the same year.
“Armageddon” received devastating criticism for its anti-scientific nature and contempt for elementary laws of physics. But, as we can see, such factors do not always play a decisive role. Many liked Bay’s film because of its excellent cast, some because of its pathetic and manipulative but still effective sentimentality, and others because of its large-scale spectacular scenes. In addition, the content here appropriately appealed to humanity’s fears of the new millennium.
“The Day After Tomorrow” / The Day After Tomorrow
Genre: new ice age
Premiere date: 2004
IMDb rating: 6.4
When it comes to disaster movies, the name of the German director Roland Emmerich comes to mind instantly. Few people in the world like to destroy mother earth with such childlike enthusiasm. The Day After Tomorrow is a prime example of the latest disaster movie, with a big budget and top-notch special effects that outweigh the drama.
Again, the audience received this blockbuster better than the critics. And he collected about the same amount of money as “Armageddon”. Here, Tokyo is hit with hail the size of an orange (and even a pomelo!), New York plunges into the ocean, a tornado literally “swallows” the Hollywood Sign, and young Jake Gyllenhaal diligently plays a virgin. And thanks to the film, we know that in times of unbearable cold, it is better to burn books on tax legislation, rather than the work of Nietzsche, to warm up.
“2012”
Genre: global natural disaster
Premiere date: 2009
IMDb rating: 5.8
Five years later, the same Emmerich directs “2012” — a new, even larger blockbuster disaster about another end of the world. The German set himself a very ambitious task, because after the epic snows in the 5-year-old work, the viewer had to be surprised by the maximum possible destruction. If “Armageddon” played with the imagination of the public in the context of the arrival of the new millennium, then “2012” refers to the Mayan calendar and the hypothetical end of the world in 2012.
According to eschatological prophecies and theories, the end of the world in one form or another should take place in December 2012. In addition to incredible special effects, the film boasts obvious biblical allusions, a lack of expressive drama and a crazy Woody Harrelson. And, of course, with an obligatory portion of criticism in complete anti-scientific nature. However, judging by the excellent box office, most viewers do not pay attention to this.
“Impossible” / Lo imposible
Genre: a deadly tsunami
Premiere date: 2012
IMDb rating: 7.5
“The Impossible” is one of the rare cases when a disaster movie was liked by everyone, it seems. It received excellent ratings and reviews, and lead actress Naomi Watts received Golden Globe and Oscar nominations for her performance. And here was the film debut of little Tom Holland – the future Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This tape is devoid of Hollywood high-budget artificiality, created purely for the sake of entertainment.
In addition to the well-presented disaster and dramatic events, this is also a strong dramatic story. She makes you empathize with living characters, rather than walking archetypes like the failed writer. The plot is based on the real story of Maria Belen Alvarez, who in 2004 was on vacation in Thailand with her family when an earthquake occurred in the Indian Ocean.
“Deepwater Horizon” / Deepwater Horizon
Genre: explosion of an oil platform
Premiere date: 2016
IMDb rating: 7.1
Another interesting plot based on real events. The tape tells about the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil platform, which occurred on April 20, 2010. It was one of the largest man-made disasters in the world. Director Peter Berg’s creation received two Oscar nominations for Best Visual Effects and Best Sound Editing.
In addition, Deepwater Horizon has rave reviews from critics and high scores from viewers. This is not anti-science fiction in the style of Michael Bay or Roland Emmerich, and not another popcorn product with Dwayne Johnson “The San Andreas Rift”, which came out a year earlier. This is a very tragic story that cannot leave anyone indifferent.
“Only the Brave” / Only the Brave
Genre: large-scale forest fires
Premiere date: 2017
IMDb rating: 7.6
Literally in a year, “The Case of the Brave” is published – the story is not so much about rescue during a disaster, as about an attempt to counteract it. In addition, the work of director Joseph Kosinski, known primarily for his fantastic blockbusters, paradoxically takes as a basis the plot of events from real life.
Therefore, we can come to the disappointing conclusion that the audience prefers some local stories that have a close connection with reality, rather than computer-drawn global cataclysms without special emotions. “A Case of the Brave” tells the story of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, a firefighting team that fought wildfires in Arizona in the summer of 2013. The film, which is fairly modest in terms of its budget, received a positive response from viewers and critics.
“Greenlandia” / Greenland
Genre: a cheerful movie in the era of the pandemic
Premiere date: 2020
IMDb rating: 6.4
And this is already a simple and down-to-earth movie with a calm Gerard Butler, who has taken his niche in genre cinema of category B. “Greenland” is one of the relatively new representatives of the genre, which tells about how the debris of a huge comet threatens the existence of all living things on Earth. Rick Roman Waugh’s tape can be called a typical genre sample, besides, it is also quite budget-friendly.
But, on the other hand, this cheerful movie is able to captivate and entertain. In addition, it finally rejects selection based on the principle of class superiority. Since the work of the Emmerich team has already gone out of fashion, such simple opuses will be a good pastime at the screen for fans of blockbusters like “The Day After Tomorrow”. By the way, Emmerich himself cannot calm down, because last year he published his “Falling of the Moon”. However, box office failure and negative reviews made it clear that apocalyptic hits from the nineties and zeroes are not in trend now.
