The Top 10 Best Survival Movies

Nothing makes you more thankful that you’re safe on your couch than a good survival movie. Let’s face it the world is a terrifying place. There are a lot of things out there that can make you dead, and other humans can seem like the least of your problems in the grand scheme of things. Of course, animals want a piece of you. The weather can be a dick. You need this stuff called food and water. Plus, don’t even get me started on the cold vastness of space (I’m not signing up to go to Mars anytime soon). Yeah, the universe is heartless to the point where it almost seems like it’s just passively trying to kill us all. Just in case you don’t believe me, here are The 10 Best Survival Movies to make you thankful for civilization once again. Pray to the gods of air conditioning that you’ll never have to face situations like this. Watching other people face them though is totally different though.

10. Alpha

Alpha isn’t just a story about a boy and his dog, it’s THE story about a boy and his dog. The tale of the first ever melding of man and man’s best friend is actually about the two managing to survive a harsh and unforgiving wilderness to make it home before they freeze to death. Of course, it’s set in prehistoric times, back when life was one big survival movie, but who cares? Despite freezing snow storms, saber-toothed cats, and a lot more these two form the ultimate survival duo and manage to live to tell about it. Not only is it a great survival movie, but it’s a beautiful film to watch as well. Not just because of the loving relationship between the boy and his dog, but because the landscape is awful pretty as well.

9. The Shallows

There’s no arguing that Jaws is the ultimate shark movie, but that doesn’t mean that The Shallows isn’t one of the better survival movies out there. Blake Lively seemed to take a cue from her husband’s movie Buried (which almost made this list), and stars in this solo film about a woman caught on a reef with a killer shark between her and the shore. It’s a pretty brutal situation to be in, considering there’s no cover, drinkable water, and you have more than the shark to worry about. Still, it’s got a lot of Blake Lively in it, and she does a damn good job surviving.

8. Backcountry

There’s nothing like a romantic hike through the woods with your significant other to build a stronger connection. Unless you get lost… and a bear wants to eat you. Like most survival movies, Backcountry takes something that should be an exciting adventure and throws a wrench into the works. The film is about a couple that decides to go on a camping trip, but the dude pulls a typical guy move and doesn’t ask for directions… or bring a map. Things go from bad to worse when Winnie the Grizzly Bear mistakes them for pots of honey.

7. Arctic

Most survival movies feature a character alone in a harsh environment with no one to talk to. Fortunately, Arctic cast the perfect man for audiences to watch in silence for an hour and a half and that’s Mads Mikkelsen. In the film, he plays a pilot who crash-landed in the Arctic and has been doing his best to survive and hold out hope for rescue. A sudden event though forces him to risk everything to save the life of someone who he’s never actually spoken with. Arctic is a beautiful film that showcases the indomitable spirit those who survive these situations posses.

6. Cast Away

I’m just going to get this out of the way, “WILSON!” Alright, now we can move on. America’s sweetheart Tom Hanks stars as a man trapped on a deserted island with only a volleyball to keep him company, and sane for the most part. Hanks actually went all out for the role for the role and lost 50 pounds during the course of shooting. Which just goes to show that in the event of a survival situation the pudgy more likely to survive for longer and chicks totally dig survivalist guys, right? This is definitely one of the more well-known of the survival movies, but there’s a good reason for that.