Top Ten (10) Favorite DISASTER Films

As a rule, I have not been that particularly fond of disaster films in the past . . . or in the present for that matter. But I do admit that there is a list of them that I happen to like very much. Three of them featured the 1912 sinking of the R.M.S. Titanic. Below is that list of favorite disaster films of mine:


TOP TEN (10) FAVORITE DISASTER FILMS




1. "A Night to Remember" (1958) - Roy Ward Baker directed this Golden Globe award winning adaptation of Walter Lord's book of the same name about the sinking of the Titanic. As far as I am concerned, this is probably the best cinematic version of that particular event. Kenneth More, David McCullum, Ronald Allen and Honor Blackman co-starred.






2. "2012" (2009) - After a second viewing of Roland Emmerich's movie about a possible apocalyptic disaster, which is based loosely on the 2012 phenomenon, I realized that it has become a favorite of mine. John Cusak, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Amanda Peet, Thandie Newton, Oliver Platt, Thomas McCarthy, Danny Glover and Woody Harrelson starred.






3. "The Day After Tomorrow" (2004) - Roland Emmerich also directed this film about catastrophic effects of both global warming and global cooling in a series of extreme weather events that usher in a new ice age. Another personal favorite of mine, it starred Dennis Quaid, Jake Gyllenhaal, Emmy Rossum, Sela Ward and Ian Holm.






4. "Battle: Los Angeles" (2011) - Aaron Eckhart and Michelle Rodriguez star in this exciting science-fiction thriller about the experiences of a platoon of U.S. Marines forced to battle invading aliens in Santa Monica and West Los Angeles. Jonathan Liebesman directed.






5. "In Old Chicago" (1937) - Based on the Niven Busch story, "We the O'Learys", the movie is a fictionalized account about political corruption and the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Directed by Henry King, the movie starred Tyrone Power, Alice Faye, Don Ameche and Oscar winner Alice Brady.






6. "Titanic" (1953) - This is my second favorite movie about the Titanic and it centered around an estranged couple sailing on the ship's maiden voyage in April 1912. Great drama! Directed by Jean Negulesco, the movie starred Barbara Stanwyck, Clifton Webb, Robert Wagner, Audrey Dalton, Thelma Ritter, Richard Basehart and Brian Aherne.






7. "Independence Day" (1996) - Produced by Dean Devlin and directed by Roland Emmerich, this movie is about a disaster of a science-fiction nature, as it depicts a hostile alien invasion of Earth, and its effects upon a disparate group of individuals and families. The movie starred Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman, Vivica A. Fox, Randy Quaid, Margaret Colin, Judd Hirsch and Robert Loggia.






8. "Outbreak" (1995) - Wolfgang Petersen directed this tale about the outbreak of a fictional Ebola-like virus called Motaba at a town in Northern California, and how far the military and civilian agencies might go to contain the spread. Dustin Hoffman, Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, Cuba Gooding Jr., Kevin Spacey and Donald Sutherland.






9. "Titanic" (1997) - James Cameron directed this latest version of the Titanic sinking that won eleven (11) Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Centered around an ill-fated love story, the movie starred Leonardo DiCaprio, Oscar nominee Kate Winslet, Billy Zane, Frances Fisher, Bill Paxton, Kathy Bates and Oscar nominee Gloria Stuart.






10. "The Poseidon Adventure" (1972) - Based on a novel by Paul Gallico, the movie centered around the capsizing of a luxurious ocean liner by a tsunami caused by an under sea earthquake; and the desperate struggles of a handful of survivors to journey up to the bottom of the hull of the liner before it sinks. Ronald Neame directed a cast that included Gene Hackman, Ernest Borgnine, Oscar nominee Shelley Winters, Carol Lynley and Frank Albertson.