WithTwisterscausinga storm at the box office, I figured it was as good a time as any to revisitTwister, a childhood favorite film of mine (and, of course, the prequel toTwisters). Growing up, I spent a lot of time in my grandma’s living room watchingThe Day After Tomorrow,2012, andSan Andreas(she likedThe Rock, what can I say) on cable TV, but now, we live in the golden age of streaming. So, as soon as I finished my revisit ofTwister, I had a never-ending list of disaster film recommendations, from tsunamis to volcanoes to pandemics, for my viewing pleasure, and you bet I watched as many as I could. I spend a lot of timewatching disaster preparedness PSAsanyway, so why not?
As I watched, though, I began wondering what it is aboutdisaster moviesthat is so compelling. Why do we keep making them and watching them? The answer comes in three parts:the thrill and terror of the real, the versatility of the disaster movie genre, and the desire to see the world burn.
Disaster Movies Have Been a Staple of Cinema for Decades
Disaster movies are generally defined as any film where the focus is on an incoming or current disaster. The disaster can be anything, really: natural disasters, disease outbreaks, attacks (government, terrorist, giant monsters, and otherwise), accidents. These films deal with tragedy and how people respond to — and typically, how they fight back against — the events they’re witnessing,and they’ve been around since the beginning of film itself.1933’sDelugeisconsidered the first ever disaster film, as it features many of the themes and imagery that the genre is built upon and was the first full-length film with a disaster-focused plot. It was the first time we sawNew York get demolished on-screen,which is very important in the disaster movie genre. Trust me.
Disaster movies havepersisted and evolved throughout the years. The 1950s saw atomic disaster films taking center stage with the aftermath of atomic weapons used during World War II, inspiringGodzilla,and the beginning of the Cold War shaping American disaster movies. The 1960s saw a similar focus, with the addition of films about volcanic eruptions, particularlyThe Devil at 4 O’ClockandKrakatoa, East of Java(later released under the titleVolcano).The disaster film genre had a peak in the 1970s, with films likeAirport,The Poseidon Adventure, andThe Towering Infernoearning critical success and plenty of awards, especially for cinematography and visual effects. During this decade, direct-to-TV disaster films became popular, but by the 1980s, disaster films quickly died out. However, the 1990s brought the disaster film back with hits such asTwister,Independence Day,Armageddon, and of course, the most famous and successful disaster movie of all time:James Cameron’sTitanic.
Perhaps it’s no surprise that disaster films reemerged in the ’90s, as discussions of global warming were beginning and disasters such as the tornado outbreaks of 1990, 1993’s Storm of the Century, and 1996’s Dome Fire were fresh in people’s minds, and becoming more common. And the trend has continued into the 2000s, 2010s, and now, the 2020s.
Disaster Movies Make Us Face Real Fears
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA)2023 report of severe weatherin the United States has some of the worst numbers seen in recent years; the year saw 28 disasters causing at least 492 deaths and $1 billion in damage. Globally, there wereat least 74,000 deaths caused by natural disasters in 2023, and the number of deaths related to heat and other weather continues to steadily climb each year. In addition to disasters of the natural world, we have never been without news of deadly bacteria and virus outbreaks, from flu to Ebola to Zika to, of course, COVID-19. That’s the world we live in. So, why do we want to see it in our fiction, too?
10 Best Disaster Movies Set in a City, According to Rotten Tomatoes
From shark-infested LA to tsunami-drenched New York, cities make the best setting for disaster movies.
It’s because it’s safe.Disaster films are a way to interact with a looming threatwithout directly being threatened.Horror films are enjoyable for the same reason; it’s a thrill to be scared of the masked killer on the screen because you know they aren’t actually in your living room. It’s a way to explore a scary situation and the emotions that come along with it in a manner that our brains can handle. Sometimes, they even give us a good laugh when a character does something ridiculous or inaccurate, and allow us to think about what we would do in a similar situation.
Ultimately, we like the reality of disaster films. We know that climate change and other factors are causing major shifts in our environment, resulting in severe weather and natural disasters. We know that dangerous diseases are discovered daily. So, when we see the world shatter in a disaster film, it gives us a chance to imagine that’s our world we’re watching. That’s what creates that edge-of-your-seat feeling when you see the wall of water heading inland inThe Wave, or when the tornado touches down inTwister.Sometimes, a disaster movie is not an escape; it’s a coping mechanism for the disasters we hear about every day.
Disaster Movies Aren’t Limited to Just One Idea
On a lighter note, though, disaster movies aren’t all dread. They fall into many different categories and encompass many different genres, themes, and types of disaster. As previously mentioned, disaster films have come in waves, with the focus shifting from decade to decade. While action is at the forefront of most disaster films, romance, drama, and horror can blend in as well. Sometimes, we can even get a little comedy in our disaster films, such as 2008’sDisaster Movie. It’s not agoodmovie — in fact, it could easily be called spoof directorsJason FriedbergandAaron Seltzer’s worst film —but it’s proof that there’s often something to laugh at in this genre, enough so that an entire parody movie can be made.A much better-received movie (although still divisive) that follows the same thesis isAdam McKay’s star-studdedDon’t Look Up. It’s a satire andcondemnation of the world’s leaders, and how greed will still come out on top even in the face of unimaginable disaster. It may not seem like the perfect material for comedy, but the humor doesn’t come from the threat facing the entire world, it stems from how the folly of humans can make worldwide situations go from bad to catastrophic.
At their core, disaster films are about the human condition, and that encompasses so many different genres. Despair is what tragedy deals in best, but so is courage, love, anger, and fear. We may even laugh in the face of tragedy at times; it’s often the thing that keeps you from crying, where you find the smallest amount of hope to keep you going. That’s something we like about these kinds of movies. They give us something to root for, they test the limits of human emotion and reaction, and that doesn’t fit in a box. So even when they’re predictable, you’re never watching the same disaster movie twice.
Sometimes, We Just Want to See the World Burn (and Rise From the Ashes)
But you know what? To hell with all the above nonsense! Sometimes, the world sucks, and people suck, and lifesucks, so you just want to see it all come crumbling down, and disaster movies say: “Spin the wheel! Pick your poison! Do the greedy politicians die in a fire or a giant ice storm today?” We’re tired of the news, and the mess, and what better way to relax than to watch it all get blown away by Godzilla or avolcanic eruption? Burn it! Burn it all!
But even in this case, we aren’t really rooting for the destruction. We’re not cheering on the tornado that levels a town of hardworking people just living their lives;we’re cheering on the people that are trying to help save those people, and cheering for all the big jerks of the film to get sucked up into said tornadobecause they’re selfish and mean andnotinvited to the better world we hope is coming next. What we’re really rooting for in a disaster film is that hope of tomorrow. With a clean slate ready to be rebuilt, we can imagine a world without the problems of the current one. A government that does more to save those affected by disaster. A planet where severe weather isn’t common, but a freak occurrence. A world where the hubris of man isn’t causing mass casualties.
This is why we love to watch the world burn. After the flames die down, all that’s left is a new beginning. We have trauma to heal from, and a home to rebuild, but now, we can do it in a way that is better for everyone. And that’s really all we want, isn’t it?
