Survival movies and TV shows
The list contains the best, new and most relevant survival movies ordered by relevance. The recommendation service has sorted out serious, suspense, intense, suspenseful, realistic and interesting films and TV shows about / with survival, danger, death, escapades, catastrophe, storytelling, mentor, life & death, dialogue and sacrifice plots mostly in Drama, Adventure and Thriller genres shot in USA, UK, Canada and other countries.
survival

TOP 10 movies tagged as survival: Cast Away (2000), The Martian (2015), The Revenant (2015), 127 Hours (2010), Alive (1993), The Impossible (2012), Life of Pi (2012), The Mist (2007), The Road (2009), I Am Legend (2007).
Best films
List of survival movies
575K

Genre: Adventure, Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 143 min.
Story:
Chuck, a top international manager for FedEx, and Kelly, a Ph.D. student, are in love and heading towards marriage. Then Chuck's plane to Malaysia ditches at sea during a terrible storm. He's the only survivor, and he washes up on a tiny ...
Style:
captivating, suspense, serious, realistic, gloomy ...
Audience:
family outing, date night
Plot:
survival, loneliness, isolation, desert island, island, stranded on an island, solitude, hopes, human spirit, courage, adventure, tropical island ...
Time:
90s, 20th century, 2000s
Place:
moscow russia, russia
Is relevant ?
827K

Genre: Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA, UK, Hungary, Jordan
Duration: 144 min.
Story:
During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw ...
Style:
futuristic, biting, suspenseful, serious, realistic ...
Plot:
survival, mars, space travel, stranded, isolation, nasa, astronaut, trapped in space, struggle for survival, science, intelligence, outer space ...
Time:
future, 21st century
Place:
london, china, houston texas, pasadena california, beijing china ...
Is relevant ?
777K

Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, History, Western
Country: USA, Hong Kong, Taiwan
Duration: 156 min.
Story:
In the 1820s, a frontiersman, Hugh Glass, sets out on a path of vengeance against those who left him for dead after a bear mauling.
Style:
atmospheric, rough, breathtaking, suspenseful, exciting ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
survival, wilderness, vengeance, lone hero, bear attack, obsessive quest, old west, violent, hunter, violence, native american, snow ...
Time:
19th century, 1820s
Place:
usa
Is relevant ?
371K

Genre: Biography, Drama
Country: USA, UK, France
Duration: 94 min.
Story:
The true story of mountain climber Aron Ralston's remarkable adventure to save himself after a fallen boulder crashes on his arm and traps him in an isolated canyon in Utah.
Style:
inspirational, suspense, uplifting, psychological, intense ...
Plot:
survival, trapped, isolation, human spirit, courage, cave, desert, alone, loneliness, adventure, peril, life philosophy ...
Time:
contemporary, 21st century, year 2003, 2000s
Place:
utah, usa
Is relevant ?
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55K

Genre: Biography, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 120 min.
Story:
The amazing, true story of a Uruguayan rugby team's plane that crashed in the middle of the Andes mountains, and their immense will to survive and pull through alive, forced to do anything and everything they could to stay alive on meager ...
Style:
realistic, disturbing, emotional, exciting, rough ...
Plot:
survival, starvation, air disaster, stranded, disaster, cannibalism, human spirit, human nature, isolation, against the odds, rescue, hopes ...
Time:
70s, 20th century
Place:
andes mountains, uruguay, latin america, chile, south america
Is relevant ?

Genre: Adventure, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: Spain, Thailand, USA
Duration: 114 min.
Story:
In December 2004, close-knit family Maria, Henry and their three sons begin their winter vacation in Thailand. But the day after Christmas, the idyllic holiday turns into an incomprehensible nightmare when a terrifying roar rises from the depths of ...
Style:
heartbreaking, motivational, captivating, suspense, tear jerker ...
Plot:
survival, natural disaster, tsunami, catastrophe, family in danger, disaster, courage, forces of nature, hopes, tragedy, destruction, vacation ...
Time:
21st century, contemporary, 2000s, year 2004
Place:
thailand, asia, southeast asia
Is relevant ?
616K

Genre: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Country: USA, Taiwan, UK, Canada
Duration: 127 min.
Story:
The story of an Indian boy named Pi, a zookeeper's son who finds himself in the company of a hyena, zebra, orangutan, and a Bengal tiger after a shipwreck sets them adrift in the Pacific Ocean.
Style:
philosophical, captivating, motivational, scenic, melancholic ...
Plot:
survival, journey, hopes, stranded, beautiful scenery, life, teenage boy, adventure, ocean, lost at sea, human nature, human animal relationship ...
Time:
70s
Place:
india, pacific ocean, toronto ontario canada, paris france, montreal ...
Is relevant ?
299K

Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 126 min.
Story:
After a violent storm, a dense cloud of mist envelops a small Maine town, trapping artist David Drayton and his five-year-old son in a local grocery store with other people. They soon discover that the mist conceals deadly horrors that threaten ...
Style:
bleak, bad ending, scary, suspenseful, atmospheric ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
survival, monster, apocalypse, trapped, fog, creature, deadly creature, chaos and mayhem, spider, fear, tentacle, religious fanatic ...
Time:
contemporary, 21st century, 2000s
Place:
maine, usa
Is relevant ?
236K

Genre: Adventure, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min.
Story:
A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind and water. It is cold enough to crack stones, and, when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the ...
Style:
bleak, harsh, rough, gloomy, depressing ...
Plot:
survival, post apocalypse, apocalypse, father son relationship, catastrophe, on the road, distopia, starvation, cannibalism, future dystopia, journey, vestiges of humanity ...
Time:
future
Place:
usa
Is relevant ?
738K

Genre: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 101 min.
Story:
Robert Neville is a scientist who was unable to stop the spread of the terrible virus that was incurable and man-made. Immune, Neville is now the last human survivor in what is left of New York City and perhaps the world. For three years, Neville ...
Style:
atmospheric, suspenseful, scary, exciting, intense ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
zombie, survival, post apocalypse, apocalypse, loneliness, plague, future dystopia, heroes, isolation, deadly creature, survivor, chaos ...
Time:
future, 21st century, year 2012, 2010s, near future
Place:
new york, usa, vermont, manhattan new york city
Is relevant ?
804K

Genre: Biography, Drama, Music, War
Country: France, Poland, Germany, UK
Duration: 150 min.
Story:
The true story of pianist Wladyslaw Szpilman's experiences in Warsaw during the Nazi occupation. When the Jews of the city find themselves forced into a ghetto, Szpilman finds work playing in a café; and when his family is deported in 1942, he ...
Style:
bleak, suspense, emotional, heartbreaking, harsh ...
Plot:
survival, holocaust, world war two, pianist, nazi, against humanity, genocide, nazi occupation, jewish, ghetto, anti semitism, starvation ...
Time:
1940s, 20th century, 1930s, year 1944, year 1939 ...
Place:
poland, germany, europe, warsaw poland, central europe
Is relevant ?

Genre: Action, Adventure, Biography, Drama, History
Country: USA, Australia, Spain
Duration: 122 min.
Story:
In the winter of 1820, the New England whaling ship Essex was assaulted by something no one could believe: a whale of mammoth size and will, and an almost human sense of vengeance. The real-life maritime disaster would inspire Herman Melville’s ...
Style:
scenic, suspense, exciting, captivating, realistic ...
Plot:
survival, ship, ocean, lost at sea, dangerous animal, sea, whale, shipwreck, adventure, starvation, against the odds, castaway ...
Time:
19th century, 1820s, 1850s, georgian era
Place:
new england, south america, ecuador, pacific ocean, massachusetts
Is relevant ?
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251K

Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 117 min.
Story:
An oil drilling team struggles to survive after a plane crash strands them in the wilds of Alaska. Hunting them is a pack of wolves that sees them as intruders.
Style:
bad ending, suspenseful, exciting, tense, rough ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
survival, wilderness, wolf, dangerous animal, air disaster, wolf attack, forces of nature, snow, stranded, wolf pack, isolation, struggle for survival ...
Time:
21st century, contemporary
Place:
alaska, usa
Is relevant ?
73K

Genre: Adventure, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min.
Story:
Three skiers are stranded on a chairlift and forced to make life-or-death choices that prove more perilous than staying put and freezing to death.
Style:
suspense, suspenseful, scary, psychological, disturbing ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
survival, isolation, sole survivor, ski resort, frostbite, stranded, survival horror, mountain, youth, death, skiing, animal attack ...
Time:
21st century, contemporary
Is relevant ?
242K

Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min.
TV show
Story:
Based on the books by Kass Morgan, this show takes place 100 years in the future, when the Earth has been abandoned due to radioactivity. The last surviving humans live on an ark orbiting the planet — but the ark won't last forever. So the ...
Style:
exciting, serious, suspenseful, futuristic, stylized ...
Audience:
teens
Plot:
survival, post apocalypse, fate of humanity, youth, survivor, young heroes, leadership, space station, rivalry, human existence, nuclear holocaust, betrayal ...
Time:
future
Place:
usa
Is relevant ?

Genre: Action, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 117 min.
Story:
The Coast Guard makes a daring rescue attempt off the coast of Cape Cod after a pair of oil tankers are destroyed during a blizzard in 1952.
Style:
exciting, serious, realistic, stylized, suspenseful ...
Audience:
boys' night, girls' night
Plot:
survival, natural disaster, storm at sea, adventure, ocean, forces of nature, courage, disaster, rescue mission, sinking ship, coast guard, daring rescue ...
Time:
50s, 20th century, year 1951, year 1952
Place:
new england, usa, massachusetts, england
Is relevant ?

Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 118 min.
Story:
A post-apocalyptic tale, in which a lone man fights his way across America in order to protect a sacred book that holds the secrets to saving humankind.
Style:
futuristic, biblical, serious, rough, heroic ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
survival, post apocalypse, apocalypse, lone hero, warrior, future dystopia, chaos, protector, dystopic future, lone wolves, tough heroes, heroes ...
Time:
future, 2040s
Place:
usa, san francisco
Is relevant ?
215K

Genre: Action, Adventure, Biography, Drama, Thriller
Country: UK, USA, Iceland
Duration: 121 min.
Story:
Inspired by the incredible events surrounding a treacherous attempt to reach the summit of the world's highest mountain, "Everest" documents the awe-inspiring journey of two different expeditions challenged beyond their limits by one ...
Style:
realistic, dramatic, scenic, suspenseful, tense ...
Plot:
survival, mountain, stranded, natural disaster, mountain climbing, forces of nature, mountaineer, climbing, adventure, beautiful scenery, blizzard, adventurer ...
Time:
90s, year 1996, 20th century
Place:
mount everest, himalaya, asia, texas, nepal
Is relevant ?
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Genre: Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 113 min.
Story:
Set in a post-apocalyptic world, young Thomas is deposited in a community of boys after his memory is erased, soon learning they're all trapped in a maze that will require him to join forces with fellow “runners” for a shot at escape.
Style:
twists and turns, exciting, suspenseful, serious, tense ...
Audience:
teens, boys' night, kids
Plot:
survival, adventure, maze, trapped, distopia, apocalypse, youth, society, young heroes, memory loss, future dystopia, post apocalypse ...
Time:
future
Is relevant ?

Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 106 min.
Story:
During a solo voyage in the Indian Ocean, a veteran mariner awakes to find his vessel taking on water after a collision with a stray shipping container. With his radio and navigation equipment disabled, he sails unknowingly into a violent storm and ...
Style:
harsh, touching, suspenseful, captivating, rough ...
Plot:
survival, storm, boat, isolation, forces of nature, desperation, adventure, lost at sea, loneliness, human spirit, hopes, disaster ...
Time:
contemporary, 21st century
Is relevant ?

Genre: Adventure, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: Canada
Duration: 92 min.
Story:
A couple on a deep-wilderness hike become hopelessly lost within an aggressive black bear's territory.
Style:
suspenseful, tense, serious, captivating, suspense ...
Audience:
girls' night
Plot:
survival, forest, dangerous animal, bear attack, camping, nature, bear, wilderness, lost, isolation, lost in the woods, couple relations ...
Time:
21st century, contemporary, 70s
Place:
canada, ontario canada
Is relevant ?
611K

Genre: Adventure, Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 148 min.
Story:
The true story of top student and athlete, Christopher McCandless, who after graduating from Emory University in 1992, abandoned his possessions, gave his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhiked to Alaska to live in the wilderness.
Style:
road movie, melancholic, philosophical, inspirational, motivational ...
Plot:
self discovery, journey, wilderness, survival, solitude, freedom, life philosophy, adventure, road trip, lifestyle change, on the road, human spirit ...
Time:
90s, 20th century, year 1990, year 1991, year 1992
Place:
alaska, usa, los angeles, northern california, south dakota ...
Is relevant ?
56K

Genre: Action, Adventure, Biography, Drama, Thriller
Country: Australia, UK
Duration: 115 min.
Story:
A mysterious guide escorts an enthusiastic adventurer and his friend into the Amazon jungle, but their journey turns into a terrifying ordeal as the darkest elements of human nature and the deadliest threats of the wild force them to fight for ...
Style:
realistic, serious, atmospheric, suspenseful, tense ...
Plot:
survival, jungle, adventurer, amazon rainforest, river, alone, raft, rescue, lost, israeli, hallucination, nature ...
Time:
20th century, year 1980, year 1981
Place:
south america, bolivia, andes mountains
Is relevant ?
308K

Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 139 min.
Story:
Set in the Mayan civilization, when a man's idyllic presence is brutally disrupted by a violent invading force, he is taken on a perilous journey to a world ruled by fear and oppression where a harrowing end awaits him. Through a twist of fate ...
Style:
exciting, tense, suspenseful, serious, epic ...
Plot:
tribe, survival, slavery, chase, ancient history, native, adventure, sacrifice, manhunt, death, solar eclipse, warrior ...
Time:
16th century
Place:
central america, mexico
Is relevant ?
159K

Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: Spain, UK, France, USA
Duration: 95 min.
Story:
Paul is a U.S. truck driver working in Iraq. After an attack by a group of Iraqis he wakes to find he is buried alive inside a coffin. With only a lighter and a cell phone it's a race against time to escape this claustrophobic death trap.
Style:
suspenseful, psychological, scary, tense, suspense ...
Plot:
survival, confined, captivity, buried alive, trapped, isolation, claustrophobia, abduction, desperation, terrorism, race against time, deathtrap ...
Time:
contemporary, 21st century, year 2006, 2000s
Place:
iraq, middle east
Is relevant ?
46K

Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 84 min.
Story:
Four friends fleeing a viral pandemic soon learn they are more dangerous than any virus.A deadly virus has spread across the globe. Contagion is everywhere, no one is safe and no one can be trusted. Four young attractive people race through the back ...
Style:
suspenseful, scary, serious, psychological, suspense ...
Audience:
boys' night, teens
Plot:
survival, virus, pandemic, infection, biohazard, post apocalypse, deadly virus, plague, road trip, friendship, disease, trust ...
Time:
contemporary, 21st century
Place:
usa
Is relevant ?
535K

Genre: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min.
TV show
Story:
Stripped of everything, the survivors of a horrific plane crash must work together to stay alive. But the island holds many secrets.
Style:
psychological, exciting, atmospheric, enigmatic, mind bending ...
Plot:
survival, island, desert island, stranded on an island, lost, mysterious place, plane crash, death, human nature, destiny, adventure, asthma ...
Time:
21st century, contemporary
Place:
pacific ocean
Is relevant ?

Genre: Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 103 min.
Story:
A bush pilot in nothern Canada who with the aid of modernity thinks he can handle it all & knows it all. After reluctantly agreeing to transport a local indian girl to a medical facility his light plane crashes & they have to survive whilst ...
Style:
serious, emotional, uplifting, realistic, breathtaking ...
Plot:
survival, wilderness, airplane, human spirit, nature, friendship, adventure, rescue, arctic, escapades, hopes, friends ...
Time:
50s, 20th century, post world war two, year 1953
Place:
canada
Is relevant ?
130K

Genre: Action, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 86 min.
Story:
An injured surfer stranded on a buoy needs to get back to shore, but the great white shark stalking her might have other ideas.
Style:
suspense, psychotronic, tense, exciting, absurd ...
Plot:
shark, survival, trapped, strong female character, animal attack, killer shark, ocean, sea, surfing, stranded, island, fear ...
Place:
mexico, tijuana mexico, australia, texas
Is relevant ?
282K

Genre: Action, Biography, Drama, War
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 121 min.
Story:
Four Navy SEALs on a covert mission to neutralize a high-level al-Qaeda operative must make an impossible moral decision in the mountains of Afghanistan that leads them into an enemy ambush. As they confront unthinkable odds, the SEALs must find ...
Style:
rough, captivating, tense, exciting, emotional ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
military, soldier, survival, terrorism, gunfight, courage, navy seal, war, death, military life, selflessness, battles ...
Time:
contemporary, 21st century, 2000s, year 2005
Place:
afghanistan, middle east, usa, iraq, israel
Is relevant ?
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