23 Movies About Floods and Tsunamis: List of Films With High Ratings

Here are 23 films about the most destructive tsunamis and floods ever made in cinematography. Here we have collected only the best films about these natural disasters. They are based both on real events and on the wild imagination of the screenwriters.

Table of contents

Lo Imposible

Rating IMDB – 7.6
Genre: Drama
Spain, Thailand, USA production / 2012
Budget: $45,000,000
Worldwide gross: $198,087,212
Directed by Juan Antonio Bayona
Cast: Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor, Tom Holland, Samuel Joslin, Oakley Pendergast, Martha Etura, Schenke Moehring, Geraldine Chaplin, Ploy Hindachote, Jomjaoi Sae-Lim

One day a British family from Spain decides to go on vacation to Thailand. Taking their three children, Harry and Maria fly to the coast. At first, the family vacation goes just fine. But very soon, paradise turns to hell.

Because of the strong earthquake in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Thailand suddenly rises huge wave. Crashing down on the coast, it kills a lot of people and ruthlessly divides the family of heroes. In order to survive and find each other in the ensuing confusion, the couple will have to show all the strength of their spirit.

The film is based on real events that took place in 2004 on the coast of Thailand. The tsunami killed several hundred people.

The story of the main characters is also taken from life, and many of the people starring in the extras personally experienced the disaster.

Tsunami: The Aftermath

Rating IMDB – 6.9
Genre: Drama
UK, USA production / 2006
Directed by Bharat Nalluri
Cast: Tim Roth, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Sophie Okonedo, Hugh Bonneville, Toni Collette, Samrit Machielsen, Kate Ashfield, Or Atika, Will Eun Lee, George McKay

The lives of several very different people unfold against the backdrop of the devastating effects of the tsunami, which was caused by an earthquake in the ocean. While some people search for loved ones lost in the storm, others mourn for loved ones whose deaths have been confirmed.

Except that many deaths could have been avoided if the natural disaster had been predicted. “Why were there no predictions about the impending disaster?” – is the biggest question for journalist Nick Frazier.

The actors Hugh Bonneville and Gina McKee, starring in this film, have worked together before. This happened in a film called Notting Hill (1999).

The Wave

Rating IMDB – 6.7
Genre: Thriller, Drama
Norway, Sweden production / 2015
Budget: NOK 50,000,000
Worldwide gross: $12,975,143
Directed by Roar Uthaug
Cast: Kristoffer Joner, Ane Dahl Torp, Jonas Hoff Oftebro, Edith Hogenrood-Sand, Fridtjof Soheim, Laila Goody, Arthur Berning, Herman Bernhoft, Ellie Harboa, Silje Breivik

Christian Aikord is a seismologist on duty. He and his family live in a small village called Geiranger and work at the nearest station. Life in the wilderness does not appeal to the hero, and one day he agrees to work for an oil company in order to move his family to the city.

Just before his departure, however, Christian notices that something is wrong with the instruments at his station. After doing his calculations, he realizes that a devastating tsunami is about to hit Geiranger. But his colleagues think the man’s predictions are premature and ignore all the readings until a wave rises in the sea that could wipe their village off the face of the earth in just ten minutes.

This is the first disaster movie to be filmed on Norwegian territory.

Hard Rain

Rating IMDB – 5.9
Genre: Action, thriller, drama, crime
USA, UK, Denmark, France, Japan, New Zealand, Germany, Australia production / 1997
Budget: $70,000,000
Worldwide gross: $19,870,567
Directed by Mikael Salomon
Cast: Morgan Freeman, Christian Slater, Randy Quaid, Minnie Driver, Edward Asner, Michael A. Gurdjian, Dan Florek, Ricky Harris, Mark Ralston, Peter Murnick

The events of the film are set in a small American town. Suddenly, a nearby river bursts its banks, and a flood floods the village. The water is coming in by the minute, but the natural disaster is not the only problem of the townspeople.

An armored car, which was supposed to transport several million dollars through their town, becomes the victim of a gang of robbers. The criminals quickly kill one of the collectors, but a guy named Tom, despite his youth and inexperience, manages to escape, taking millions with him. Hiding from the pursuers in a flooded city, the hero occasionally exposes civilians to serious danger.

This film was originally directed by John Woo, and the work, almost until its premiere, was called The Flood.

Crawl

Rating IMDB – 6.1
Genre: Horror, action, thriller
USA, Serbia, Canada production / 2019
Worldwide gross: $91,542,097
Directed by Alexander Azha
Cast: Kaya Scodelario, Barry Pepper, Morvet Clark, Ross Anderson, Jose Palma, George Somner, Anson Boone, Amy Metcalfe, Tina Pribicevich, Srna Vasiljevic

The day was hopelessly ruined for Haley in the morning by losing the competition. The swimmer was only a fraction of a second late, and the victory went to her opponent. However, soon everyone learns that a dangerous hurricane is heading for the city, threatening serious flooding. Residents urgently evacuated, and the heroine, meanwhile, rushed to his father, who can not get through.

Very soon the girl finds her parent wounded in the basement of their house. Only to leave the rapidly filling with water room turns out to be a very difficult task. In the water lurks a group of aggressive alligators, which does not mind biting the trapped heroes.

In the film, the heroine is forced to fight alligators, although in real life, these reptiles are much calmer than crocodiles and almost never attack people.

Fukushima 50

Rating IMDB – 6.0
Genre: Drama, Biography, Story
Japan, Hong Kong production / 2020
Worldwide gross: $7,494,243
Directed by Setsuro Wakamatsu
Cast: Koichi Sato, Ken Watanabe, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Narumi Yasuda, Naoto Ogata, Shohei Hino, Mitsuru Hirata, Masato Hagiwara, Riho Yoshioka, Takumi Saito

A powerful underwater earthquake off the coast of Japan triggers a massive tsunami. The huge wave rushes straight to the island and brings global destruction. But that is not the end of the woes of the ordinary people of Japan.

Because of the flooding, all the cooling and power supply systems of the nuclear power plant called Fukushima-1 fail, and radiation leaks begin. Thus, following a natural disaster, the country is threatened by a man-made disaster. To stop the imminent danger, a group of ordinary workers under the command of Izaki Toshio, goes to the plant. There, risking their lives, the heroes will do everything to fix the resulting problems.

The film is based on real events that took place on the territory of Japan in 2011.

Geostorm

Rating IMDB – 5.3
Genre: Sci-fi, action, thriller
USA, Hong Kong production / 2017
Budget: $120,000,000
Worldwide gross: $221,600,160
Directed by Dean Devlin
Cast: Gerard Butler, Jim Sturgess, Abbie Cornish, Alexandra Maria Lara, Daniel Wu, Eugenio Derbes, Amr Waked, Edepero Oduye, Andy Garcia, Ed Harris

One day, a series of natural disasters strikes humanity. Natural disasters destroy one city after another, and with them the people. The rulers of the states realize that they can not cope with the elements alone, so they decide to unite.

Thus, scientists from around the world begin to look for a solution to the problem, and it is found. With the help of satellites in orbit people manage to take complete control of the planet’s climate. But very soon, the project manager named Max realizes that the satellite system has been hacked, and now the installation named “Dutchman” threatens the world with a geostorm that will wipe life off the face of the earth.

According to the script, the film’s characters Jake and Max were born in Great Britain. The actors who played their roles (Gerard Butler and Jim Sturgess) are from this island in real life.

Waterworld

Rating IMDB – 6.2
Genre: Sci-fi, action, adventure
USA production production / 1995
Budget: $175,000,000
Worldwide gross: $264,218,220
Directed by Kevin Reynolds
Cast: Kevin Costner, Dennis Hopper, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Tina Majorino, Michael Jeter, Jack Black, Kim Coates, Chime Jiraffe, Rick Aviles, R.J. Call

The events of the film take place in the near future. Because of global warming, the polar ice caps have melted and the water has covered the entire land underneath. People, of course, have adapted to survive on the surface of the vast ocean. But with each year the dream to find at least a small piece of land to live on becomes stronger among the surviving representatives of society.

Enola, a little girl named Enola, gives the heroes hope for the fulfillment of this desire, because she has a map on her back, leading to the land. Only to make such a huge journey is not an easy task, because in the ocean rampant very real pirates.

The pirated version of this film went viral in America long before its official premiere, leading to the film’s deafening failure in the United States.

Flood

Rating IMDB – 4.8
Genre: Action, thriller, drama
UK, South Africa, Canada production / 2007
Worldwide gross: $1,295,000
Directed by Tony Mitchell
Cast: Robert Carlyle, Jessalyn Gilsig, Tom Courtney, Joanne Whalley, David Souché, Nigel Plainer, Ralph Brown, Gottfried Yon, Tom Hardy, Pip Torrance

A huge tsunami is coming to England, but because of incorrect forecasts, the government is unprepared for the impact of the elements. A 15-meter wave, destroying everything in its path, takes hundreds of lives, brings unprecedented devastation and causes the Thames to burst its banks.

Thus begins a massive flood that threatens to drown the whole of England. Engineer Rob Morrison and his friends decide by all means to save London from complete destruction. However, very soon the man realizes that the only thing people can do in this situation is to try to survive.

The film was the last film work in which the actress Moira Lister starred. The woman passed away two days after the premiere of the film.

Hereafter

Rating IMDB – 6.4
Genre: Fantasy, drama, melodrama
USA production / 2010
Budget: $50,000,000
Worldwide gross: $105,246,941
Directed by Clint Eastwood
Cast: Matt Damon, Cecile De France, Frankie McLaren, George McLaren, Jay Mohr, Bryce Dallas Howard, Thierry Neuvik, Richard Kinde, Steve Shirripa, Charlie Creed-Miles

The film tells the stories of several very different people. At first glance, the characters have nothing to do with each other. However, in fact, they do have something in common. The fact is that each of these people is familiar with death.

A journalist named Marie survived the devastating 2004 tsunami that struck the coast of Thailand. A boy named Marcus lost his own brother, whom he loved very much, and afterwards witnessed an explosion on the subway.

Like many people, the characters are looking for an answer to the question, “What happens during and after death?” That’s why when a real psychic comes their way, they happily turn to him in search of the truth. Only the man is not burning with the desire to use his gift.

After the devastating tsunami of 2011 that hit the coast of Japan, screenings of this film were canceled there.

Noah

Rating IMDB – 5.7
Genre: Drama, Adventure, Fantasy
USA production / 2014
Budget: $125,000,000
Worldwide gross: $359,200,044
Directed by Darren Aronofsky
Cast: Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Ray Winston, Anthony Hopkins, Emma Watson, Logan Lerman, Douglas Booth, Nick Nolte, Mark Margolis, Kevin Duran

The events of the film take place long before the birth of Christ. At first glance, Noah appears to be an ordinary family father. However, the man knows how to talk to God. One day the Creator warns the hero of the impending flood, which will wipe out humanity from the face of the earth and orders to build a huge ark.

So, Noah, along with his family, takes up the construction. To the ridicule of those around him, the man diligently builds the ship. In it, in addition to his family, the hero is going to put a couple of animals of each species. But very soon people realise that Noah’s words about the flood are not a fantasy and a struggle begins for the ark.

No real animals were involved in the making of this film.

Za rasuto messêji: Umizaru

Rating IMDB – 6.0
Genre: Drama
Japan production / 2010
Worldwide gross: $37,970,000
Directed by Eiichiro Hasumi
Cast: Soji Arai, Hideaki Ito, Masaya Kato, Kazue Fukishi, Shohei Miura, Karina, Ryuta Sato, Masanobu Katsumura, Gaku Hamada, Saburo Tokito

The drilling station called Regalia is located in the open ocean. Therefore, when a threatening tsunami approaches it, the government decides to urgently evacuate the workers. However, during this operation due to a fire that broke out, a group of rescuers find themselves dangerously trapped.

Heroes are stuck between blazing fire and the approaching hurricane, but no one rushes to help the men, because people have very little time even to save their own lives. So, in order to survive, Daisuke Senzaki, Tetsuya Yoshioka and Hiroshichiru Sakuragi have to fight for their lives on their own.

The movie was made in Japan and the actors were Japanese. However, the stars playing the leading roles are well known in Hollywood. Actors Sohi Park and Masaya Kato are remembered in America and around the world for such films as Tokyo, Yakuza Brother and Drive.

The Storm

Rating IMDB – 6.1
Genre: Action, Drama, History
Netherlands, Belgium production / 2009
Budget: €6,300,000
Directed by Ben Sombogaart
Cast: Sylvia Hoeks, Barry Atsma, Dirk Rufthoft, Monique Hendricks, Elsa May Avril, Katja Herbers, Lottie Hellingmann, Bas Keizer, Sanne den Hartog, Evert De Jager

The events of the film are set in the winter of 1953 in Holland. A violent storm hits the sea, causing terrible flooding on the coast. The house of a young single mother, Julia, is flooded.

The woman manages to survive thanks to an air force officer, but her child disappears. Now the heroine and her savior are waiting for a grueling search for the lost child. But it will not be easy to reunite mother and child in the atmosphere of chaos.

At the same time as this film, three other films with an identical title were released in the world. However, only one of them is dedicated to natural disasters – the American one. It is made in the sci-fi genre and will suit all fans of apocalyptic movies.

Als de dijken breken (mini-series)

Rating IMDB – 6.6
Genre: Drama
Netherlands, Belgium production / 2016
Directed by Hans Herbots
Cast: Guijs Scholten van Aschat, Janni Goslinga, Simone Milsdaughter, Serin Uthlu, Luc Peeters, Susan Visser, Ros Dickmann, Marie-May van Zeijlen, Daisy Van Prat, Thomas Rieckewart

Half of Holland is below sea level. The country is saved from flooding only by dikes built by people. One day, however, a violent storm knocks down all obstacles in its path, and the sea water rushes to its rightful place.

The flood destroys many coastal cities and takes the lives of hundreds of citizens who did not have time to evacuate in time. However, a natural disaster not only destroys people, but also forces them to rally to a common problem. So, families on the verge of divorce reunite to survive the problem presented by the elements, and people dreaming of suicide take it upon themselves to save the weaker members of society.

Tidal Wave

Rating IMDB – 5.6
Genre: Action, Drama
South Korea production / 2009
Budget: $16,000,000
Worldwide gross: $74,781,480
Directed by Yoon Jae-kyung
Cast: Seol Kyung-gu, Ha Ji-won, Park Chun-hoon, Om Jong-hwa, Lee Min-gyi, Kang Ye-won, Kim In-gwon, Song Jae-ho, Yo-ho-min, Song Byung-suk

The events of the movie are set in Busan, at the Haeundae resort. Life goes on as usual: tourists relax and locals work, trying to provide quality recreation for visitors, while at the same time solving their personal problems. One day, a devastating tsunami hits the South Korean coast.

Seismologist Kim Hwy repeatedly warned the government of the impending cataclysm, but officials chose to ignore his reports. This allowed the raging disaster to take millions of people by surprise. Now everyone has only ten minutes to save their lives, but not everyone will make it in time.

This is the first disaster movie to be made by South Korean filmmakers.

Bait

Rating IMDB – 5.2
Genre: horror, action, thriller, drama, adventure
Australia, Singapore production / 2011
Budget: $30,000,000
Worldwide gross: $25,830,380
Directed by Kimble Randall
Cast: Zavier Samuel, Sharni Vinson, Adrian Pang, Qi Yu, Alex Russell, Phoebe Tonkin, Martin Sachs, Alice Parkinson, Julian McMahon, Daniel Willey

The events of the film are set in a small coastal town in Australia. Life goes on, but suddenly a tsunami hits the town. A huge wave covers the entire coastline. Many people die, and those who miraculously managed to survive, soon realize that their fight for life is not over.

The fact is that along with the water came to land and bloodthirsty sharks, who do not mind eating people. Predators of the ocean depths quickly spread to new territories and begin their hunt.

Film director Kimble Randall wanted to make his work as realistic as possible. For the sake of this man was going to completely abandon computer graphics, but the low budget did not allow to create all the special effects live. However, there was enough money for sharks. Of course, they are not real, but they are not drawn, they are animatronic.

2012

Rating IMDB – 5.8
Genre: fantasy, adventure, action
USA production / 2009
Budget: $200,000,000
Worldwide gross: $769,679,473
Directed by Roland Emmerich
Cast: John Cusack, Amanda Peet, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Tandive Newton, Oliver Platt, Tom McCarthy, Woody Harrelson, Danny Glover, Liam James, Morgan Lilly

According to the Mayan calendar, the apocalypse was to come in 2012. Many people did not believe in the prophecy of the tribe, but in 2010, scientists suddenly discovered that the core of the Earth was heating up due to solar activity. After conducting research, they conclude: the apocalypse is near.

Thus, the U.S. government begins to secretly prepare for the end of the world. When the year marked by the Indians arrives, the planet goes crazy. Tsunamis and earthquakes begin to fall on the world, and the continents go under water. To save themselves, people rush to China to the huge ships that will have to help mankind survive the second world-wide flood. But there is not enough room for everyone.

Initially, one of the sights to be destroyed by the elements in the film was to be the Muslim shrine of the Kaaba. But the filmmakers abandoned this idea, so as not to run into criticism among Muslim viewers.

252: Signal of Life

Rating IMDB – 5.5
Genre: Action, thriller, drama, adventure
Japan production / 2008
Directed by Nobuo Mizuta
Cast: Hideaki Ito, Seiyo Uchino, Takayuki Yamada, Yu Kashi, Yuichi Kimura, Satoshi Matsuda, Minji, Masahiko Nishimura, Yoichi Nukumizu, Sachiko Sakurai

Killer Wave (mini-series)

Rating IMDB – 4.4
Genre: Action, thriller, drama, adventure
USA, Canada production / 2007
Directed by Bruce MacDonald
Cast: Angus McFadyen, Karin Vanasse, Louis Philippe Dandenot, John Robinson, Tom Skerritt, Stephen McHattie, Ellen David, Bruce Dinsmore, Christopher Heyerdahl, Andreas Aperghis

One day a devastating tsunami hits the coast of America. However, it quickly becomes clear: the natural disaster was caused by man. It turns out that several serious explosions were made at the bottom of the ocean, which led to the wave. To prevent a repetition of man-made rampage of nature, the government throws all forces to strengthen the coast guard and the search for the culprit.

Except that the FBI’s attention mistakenly falls on an expert on environmental disasters – John McAdams. So, the hero and his colleague Sophie have to start their own investigation. After all, if they do not find the real terrorist, the unenviable fate of the criminal will go to John.

This is not the only disaster movie in which Stephen McHattie starred. Some time later the actor took part in the filming of the movie “2012”. It was released on the big screens in 2009.

Nihon Chinbotsu

Rating IMDB – 5.6
Genre: Sci-fi, thriller, drama
Japan production / 2006
Worldwide gross: $47,636,016
Directed by Shinji Higuchi
Cast: Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, Ko Shibasaki, Etsushi Toyokawa, Mao Daichi, Mitsuhiro Oikawa, Mayuko Fukuda, Hideko Yoshida, Akira Emoto, Jun Kunimura, Koji Ishizaka

One day, scientists in Japan discover that their archipelago will soon be completely submerged. The fact is that the tectonic plate on which Japan is located is rapidly moving toward the west. However, when the government learns that they have as much as 40 years to solve this problem, the authorities calm down.

But soon the scientist Tadokoro discovers that his calculations are wrong, and the catastrophic changes will take place within a year. The man appeals to officials with his report, but the government does not believe in his warning until a series of natural disasters strikes the country.

The film was the last film work for actor Tetsuro Tamba. The man passed away a few months after the premiere of the film.

Storm Tide

Rating IMDB – 5.3
Genre: Action, Drama, Melodrama
Germany production / 2006
Budget: $8,000,000
Directed by Jorgo Papavasiliou
Cast: Benno Fürmann, Goetz Gheorghe, Nadja Uhl, Jutta Spaidel, Elmar Wepper, Gil Ofarim, Jan Josef Liefers, Michael Degen, Gabi Dom, Heiner Lauterbach

The events of the film are set in the year 62 of the last century. The coastal areas of northern Germany are reliably protected by breakwaters against all kinds of tsunamis and hurricanes. However, one day a particularly strong natural disaster manages to break through the line of defense.

A huge wave floods the coastal areas of Hamburg, takes hundreds of lives and swells the Elbe. Thus begins the terrible flood, which swiftly hides the entire city under a six-meter water column.

The film is based on real events that took place in Germany in 1962, and at the time of filming was the most expensive German film project. The film has a budget of 8 million euros.

Tsunami

Rating IMDB – 3.5
Genre: Action, Drama, Adventure
Germany production / 2005
Directed by Winfred Elsner
Cast: Christian Keeling, Anja Knauer, Dan van Hoosen, Ingo Naujoks, Susanne Hoss, Charlie Rinn, Dieter Montag, Evelyn Meika, Christoph Hagen Dietman, Lars Gärtner

One day, representatives of the European Union learn that something unusual is going on in the North Sea. After an investigation, the heroes realize that the head of the oil production platform called “Rantum IV” uses explosive technologies in drilling. Their use threatens to create artificial tsunamis, which in their power are no less dangerous than the real natural disasters.

The government does everything it can to stop the man. Only Kramlik, learning about the possibility of creating a tsunami of unprecedented power, begins to blackmail the authorities, demanding 10 million dollars.

This film was the first feature film for director Winfred Elsner.

Gale Force

Rating IMDB – 3.9
Genre: Action, Drama
USA production / 2002
Directed by Jim Winorski
Cast: Tritt Williams, Susan Walters, Cliff De Young, Tim Thomerson, Marcia Strassman, Dave Haeger, Gretchen Palmer, William Zabka, Eric James Virgets, Renee Ridgely

“Treasure Hunt” is a popular reality show. This time, the crew goes to shoot their masterpiece on a small island in the Pacific Ocean. Only from the very beginning it becomes clear that everything goes wrong. The prize intended for the winner of the program turns out to be so great that it strongly tempts some personalities.

So, a group of mercenaries lands on the island and stages a real massacre. However, it soon becomes clear that the strangers are not all the heroes’ problems, because a tsunami of unprecedented strength is looming over the scrap of land. However, instead of saving themselves, both the actors and the mercenaries go in search of the hidden treasure, because there is ten million dollars hidden on the island.

The slogan of this film is “The Last Hero on Death Island”.