1902 Trip to the Moon.
Netflix Play Instantly. This silent short tells the story of an astronomer and his colleagues who journey to the moon, where they're captured by aliens known as Selenites.
1944 Marked Trails.
Netflix DVD. Bob Stevens (Bob Steele) is a young man living in the old west who wants to get out and see the world before he has to settle down and live responsibly. His uncle Harry (Steve Clark), a deputy marshal of the town of Tracy, wants Bob to take up that line of work, which Bob initially refuses. But then Harry recognizes wanted gang members Jack Slade (Mauritz Hugo) and Mary Conway, alias Blanche (Veda Ann Borg), and is murdered by them as he tries to order them out of town. Seeking justice, Bob then joins the U.S. Marshals after all, along with his friend, Parkford (Hoot Gibson). Arriving in Tracy, Bob poses as a trouble-making criminal in order to be recruited to join Slade's gang, which Hoot separately comes to town in the guise of a "dude," a more cultured speech-maker in the name of law and order. In the end, the criminals are discovered and defeated in a shootout
1948 Treasure of the Sierra Madre.
Amazon Instant Video. Fred Dobbs and Bob Curtin, two Americans searching for work in Mexico, convince an old prospector to help them mine for gold in the Sierra Madre Mountains.
1951 When Worlds Collide.
Amazon Instant Video. As a new star and planet hurtle toward a doomed Earth, a small group of survivalists frantically work to complete the rocket which will take them to their new home.
1957 Black Scorpion.
Netflix DVD. Volcanic activity frees giant scorpions from the earth who wreak havoc in the rural countryside and eventually threaten Mexico City.
1957 Monolith Monsters.
Netflix DVD. DVD comes with “Incredible Shrinking Man”. Rocks from a meteor which grow when in contact with water threaten a sleepy Southwestern desert community.
1959 Journey to the Center of the Earth.
Netflix DVD. An Edinburgh professor and assorted colleagues follow an explorer's trail down an extinct Icelandic volcano to the earth's center. Adapted from the novel by Jules Verns, See the 2008 remake with Brandon Fraisier.and a made-for TV version, also in 2008 with Ricky Schroder, Victoria Pratt and Peter Fonda.
1964 Robinson Crusoe on Mars.
Stranded on Mars with only a monkey as a companion, an astronaut must figure out how to find oxygen, water, and food on the lifeless planet.
1965 Crack in the World.
Netflix DVD. The three leading characters in this movie were all geologists. In the process of drilling for geothermal energy, they detonate a nuclear bomb at the crust-mantle boundary, causing a global fissure that threatens to destroy the world. The detonation of another nuclear bomb is, of course, required to halt the propagating crack, and one of the geologists heroically sacrifices himself to do it. T
1967 The Money Jungle.
Amazon Instant Video. A consortium of five oil companies bid on parcels off the coast of Santa Barbara, Calif., holding an estimated 3 billion barrels of oil. Four geologists representing four different oil companies are murdered in innovative ways: One is electrocuted while charging his golf cart, one is poisoned, one is gassed and one dies when his model train explodes. The deaths cast suspicion on the fifth company, although that company’s geologist is also subsequently killed. The detective investigating the case finds that the drill cores have been switched in a ruse to imply that the offshore parcels are barren, and that the only people who knew the truth were the murdered geologists. It turns out the murders were instigated by the CEO and the ex-wife of a competitor as part of an elaborate plan to unravel the consortium.
1969 Krakatoa East of Java.
Amazon Video. The Dutch East Indies, in the late 19th century. Capt. Hanson of the "Batavia Queen" is preparing to embark on a salvage expedition. His mistress, Laura, knows the location of a ship belonging to her late husband, a shipwreck concealing a cargo of rare pearls. A diver and a diving bell are aboard ship. But a government agent coerces Hanson into accepting a shipment of convicts for the ship's hold. The wreck lies dangerously close to the erupting volcano on the island of Krakatoa, where Laura's young son attends the convent school
1970 Equinox.
Netflix DVD. Four friends are attacked by a demon while on a picnic, due to possession of a tome of mystic information. Told in flashbacks by the sole survivor. Considered the Best-Worst movie of all time. The geologist character goes crazy after a heroic battle with Satan and his demons. This movie was treated as a student project on a $6,500 budget, Equinox tells the story of a group of California teens who stumble upon a book that reveals the secrets of a strange and malevolent parallel universe. Eight-time Oscar-winning visual effects artist Dennis Muren (Star Wars) uses stop-motion animation and lots of odd camera tricks in this spooky monster mash. The movie is a remake of an earlier film titled The Equinox... A Journey into the Supernatural (1967), and released on home video as The Beast.
1974 Earthquake.
Amazon Instant Video. Various stories of various people as an earthquake of un-imaginable magnitude hits Los Angeles. Features include geologist predictions that go unheeded, a magnitude 9.9 earthquake, destruction of Los Angeles, and collapse of Mulholland dam and subsequent flood.
1975 The Land that Time Forgot.
DVD from Amazon. After a German U-Boat sinks their ship, several survivors manage to take control of the boat. Bowen Tyler is the son of an American shipbuilder and Captain Bradley an experienced seaman. After several tussles with the German crew, they find themselves on a strange island. There they find a place where several stages of Earth's evolution co-exist at the same time. As a result several types of humans are found as well as prehistoric dinosaurs. There are also active volcanoes which all add up to a challenge to survive. There is a “The Land That Time Forgot” remake in 2009, staring C. Thomas Howell.
1976 Track of the Moon Beast.
Mineralogist Paul Carlson (Chase Cordell) is struck by a lunar meteorite while observing a meteor shower. Lodged in his brain, the meteorite causes him to transform into a strong and vicious lizard (the titular "moon beast") whenever the moon comes out. In his lizard form, Paul loses all traces of his human self and goes about killing people at random. While human, Paul is subject to spells of dizziness and nausea, causing his girlfriend Kathy Nolan (Donna Leigh Drake) and friend and former teacher Johnny Longbow (Gregorio Sala) to become concerned. Eventually it is shown that Paul is the monster, and deduced that the meteorite fragment in his brain is the cause of his transformations. Plans are made to remove it from his skull, but the NASA brain surgeons realize, after another X-ray and Johnny remembering some Native American legends documenting similar phenomena, that the meteorite has disintegrated and will eventually cause Paul to self-combust. When Paul learns of this, he escapes into the desert, presumably to kill himself so he will not cause any more harm. Kathy, Johnny, and the local law enforcement follow him, and Johnny shoots him with an arrow made of the original meteorite, which causes him to explode.
1977 People that Time Forgot.
In 1919, a British expedition in the Antarctica region is searching for a lost American explorer and finds a hidden prehistoric world instead.. Director: Kevin Connor; (based upon "The People That Time Forgot" by), Patrick Tilley (screenplay). Stars: Patrick Wayne, Doug McClure, Sarah Douglas. The film is a direct sequel to The Land That Time Forgot, which initiated the series in 1975. The story follows a rescue expedition, led by Patrick Wayne in search of his friend, played by Doug McClure, who had vanished many years before. The expedition lands on Caprona, the same fantastic prehistoric land where dinosaurs and barbarian tribes of men coexist.
1978 At Earth’s Core.
Netflix DVD. A Victorian era scientist and his assistant take a test run in their Iron Mole drilling machine and end up in a strange underground labyrinth ruled by a species of giant telepathic bird and full of prehistoric monsters and cavemen.
1979 Meteor.
Amazon Instant Video. After a collision with a comet, a nearly 8km wide piece of the asteroid "Orpheus" is heading toward Earth. If it hits, it will cause an incredible catastrophe which will probably extinguish mankind. To stop the meteor, NASA wants to use the illegal nuclear weapon satellite "Hercules," but soon discovers that it doesn't have enough firepower. Their only chance to save the world is to join forces with the USSR, which has also launched such an illegal satellite. But will both governments agree? Stars Sean Connery.
1981 St Helens.
Dramatization of the 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens. The movie begins with the volcano's awakening on March 20 and ends with its eruption on May 18, 1980.
1985 A View to a Kill.
Netflix DVD. One of the few other female geologists is featured in the second Bond movie to have a geologist, 1985’s “A View to a Kill.” As in “Dr. No,” geology is involved in the villain’s plot to achieve world domination, this time of the economic variety. The diabolical scheme entails triggering massive earthquakes simultaneously on the San Andreas and Hayward faults to destroy Silicon Valley — and the computer-microchip manufacturers that populate it. The movie features two geologists, one who dies horribly while helping the villain, and one, the California State Geologist and “Bond girl” portrayed by actress Tanya Roberts, who survives.
1989 Armageddon.
Netflix DVD. After discovering that an asteroid the size of Texas is going to impact Earth in less than a month, N.A.S.A. recruits a misfit team of deep core drillers to save the planet.
1990 Joe Versus the Volcano.
When a hypochondriac learns that he is dying, he accepts an offer to throw himself in a volcano at a tropical island, and along the way there, learns to truly live. Starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.
1997 Dante’s Peak.
Netflix DVD. A volcanologist arrives at a countryside town named Dante's Peak after a long dormant volcano, which has recently been named the second most desirable place to live in America, and discovers that Dante's Peak, may wake up at any time. My favorite for technical geologic accuracy.
1997 Volcano.
Netflix DVD. A volcano erupts in downtown L.A., .at the La Brea Tar Pits20, threatening to destroy the city
1998 Deep Impact.
Netflix DVD . Unless a comet can be destroyed before colliding with Earth, only those allowed into shelters will survive. Which people will survive?
2001 Lost Skeleton of Cadarva.
Retro Black-and-White of 1950’s B sci fi movies. A geologist searches for elusive atmospherium and encounters monsters and aliens with support of this charming 50’s-perfect wife. Comical and fun.
2003 The Core.
Netflix DVD . The only way to save Earth from catastrophe is to drill down to the core and set it spinning again. Wonderful special effects.
2004 10.5.
Netflix . An earthquake reaching a 10.5 magnitude on the Richter scale, strikes the west coast of the U.S. and Canada. A large portion of land falls into the ocean, and the situation is worsened by aftershocks and tsunami. Stars: Kim Delane, Beau Bridges, Fred Ward and Ivan Sergei.
2004 The Day After Tomorrow.
Netflix DVD. Jack Hall, paleoclimatologist, must make a daring trek across America to reach his son, trapped in the cross-hairs of a sudden international storm which plunges the planet into a new Ice Age.
2005 Absolute Zero.
Climatologist David Koch has evidence that a shift in the Earth's polarity triggered the last Ice Age in a single day. Now, it's happening again and the only chance of survival is to somehow beat the freeze before the temperature reaches absolute zero, minus 273 degrees Centigrade!
2005Supervolcano (2005) Netflix Watch Instantly. A volcano in Yellowstone Park suddenly erupts. Discovery Channel Docu-Drama
2006 10.5 Apocalypse”.
Amazon. This film also stars Kim Delaney with Dean Cain, and David Cubitt. A massive earthquake creates a chain of events that threaten two of the largest nuclear reactors It is a sequel to “10.5 “(2004)
2006 Disaster Zone: Volcano in New York.
TV movie, Netflix DVD. Illegal experimentation accidentally rips open a previously unknown hidden magma reserve directly under Manhattan
2006 Magma: Volcanic Disaster.
Netflix DVD. Volcanology professor John Shepherd comes to realize that recent unexplainable volcanic activity the world over is the start of a coming global catastrophe which could lead to mankind's extinction. Assisted by several of his students and a wheelchair-bound colleague, the professor sets out to gather the evidence needed to convince government officials that a worst case scenario is unfolding. Can he convince the Powers That Be that the end is near, devise a plan to potentially prevent Armageddon, and save his own troubled marriage before time runs out?
2007 There will be Blood.
Netflix DVD. A story of family, religion, hatred, oil and madness, focusing on a turn-of-the-century prospector in the early days of the oil business. Wonderful depictions of 1880's mining and early 20th century oil exploration and development practices
2008a Journey to the Center of the Earth.
Netflix DVD. On a quest to find out what happened to his missing brother, a scientist, his nephew and their mountain guide discover a fantastic and dangerous lost world in the center of the earth. Re-make of the 1959 movie. Stars Brenden Frazier.
2008b. Journey to the Center of the Earth
There was another “Journey to the Center of the Earth” TV movie released in 2008. It is not to be confused with the big-screen blockbuster. In it a drill team is on a mission to rescue a group of researchers trapped beneath the Earth's crust discovers a mysterious subterranean universe in this B-movie take on the sci-fi classic. Stars Ricky Schroder, Victoria Pratt and Peter Fonda.
2009 “2012”.
Netflix DVD. A frustrated writer struggles to keep his family alive when a series of global catastrophes threatens to annihilate mankind
2009 Lost Skeleton of Cadarva Returns.
A depressed geologist seeking Jerranium 90 in the Amazon is rescued by his wife with the assistance of aliens and monsters. In this sequel, the Lost Skeleton is finally destroyed and psychic powers ended forever.
2009 Megafault.
TV movie, Netflix DVD. When miner Charley 'Boomer' Baxter sets off a series of massive mining detonations in West Virginia, a gigantic earthquake is soon rocking the North Atlantic, exposing a deep seismic fault that runs the length of the North American continent. Joining forces with government seismology expert Dr. Amy Lane, Boomer must now race against time to stop the chasm that is threatening to tear America - and the entire world - in half.
2009 Meteor Storm.
A comet threatens earth and disguises a killer asteroid. Elusive Element 120 attracts the comet debris and asteroid to San Francisco. Coordination with the Russians save the world from certain destruction.
2009 Nine Miles Down.
Netflix DVD. Members of a research crew mysteriously vanish while attempting to drill an ultra-deep borehole in the middle of the Sahara. The security guard investigating the case encounters an unblemished, scantily clad woman, happily jogging in the hot desert sun and claiming she is a surviving scientist. The guard begins to experience sudden and frequent blood-drenched nightmares while the mysterious woman exhibits increasingly strange behavior. The guard concludes that the project drilled so deep that it breached hell, releasing an evil “something” that is responsible for the deaths of the missing researchers. I’m not a fan of this horror genre. But this movie has terrific philosophical dialogues about the tensions between science and the supernatural.
2011 Super Eruption.
A section of the super volcano under Yellowstone erupts after thousands of years, putting millions at risk, and it's up to Rangers Charlie Young and George Howe to save the day. Stars Richard Burgi and Juliet Aubrey
2012 Prometheus.
Netflix DVD. A geologist lacking some basic social skills is infected by an alien and dies. The moral: Do not pat aliens on the head, even if they look innocent. Prequel to Aliens and subsequent Aliens movies. Followed by Alien Covenant, 2017
2014 10.0 Earthquake.
Amazon Instant Video . Los Angeles is about to be hit by a devastating earthquake, and time is running out to save the city from imminent danger. As a series of minor earthquakes start tearing apart Los Angeles, scientist Emily of the USGS theorizes that it's all building to a super quake that will drop the entire city into a lava-filled chasm. Engineer Jack whose daughter has gone camping in the danger area and whose company is responsible for the quakes due to their deep fracking feels obligated to help, and races with Emily through the increasingly damaged city with the hopes of diverting the epicenter to Long Beach and potentially saving millions of lives in the city of Los Angeles. Directed by David Gidali and starring Henry Ian Cusick and Jeffrey Jones..
2014 Airplane vs Volcano.
Netflix Watch Instantly. When a commercial airliner is trapped within a ring of erupting volcanoes, the passengers and crew must find a way to survive - without landing. But when the relentless onslaught of lava and ash causes fear and distrust amongst those onboard, it isn't just the volcanoes that are life-threatening. Everyone must learn to work together if they are to survive their epic flight of fire.
2014 Apocalypse: Pompeii
Amazon Instant Video. Mount Vesuvius erupts when a family visits Pompeii. The daughter uses her skill and her father his ability, in order to escape the disaster. Stars: Adrian Paul, Jhey Castles, Georgina Beedl. This movie should not be confused with the movie titled “Pompeii” which was also released in 2014.
2014 Pompeii.
A slave-turned-gladiator finds himself in a race against time to save his true love, who has been betrothed to a corrupt Roman Senator. As Mount Vesuvius erupts, he must fight to save his beloved as Pompeii crumbles around him. Stars: Kit Harington, Emily Browning, Kiefer Sutherland. . . Not to be confused with the Apocalypse: Pompeii movie that was also released in 2014.
2014 Asteroid vs Earth.
Amazon Instant Video. When a shower of massive meteors threatens an extinction level event on Earth, the world's greatest minds devise a dangerous plan that will take the planet off its axis in order to avoid the impact.
2014 Icetastrophy.
Amazon Instant Video. A meteorite brings ice and freezing temperatures, which threatens to harm the residents of a small town at Christmas. Re-named “Christmas Icetrophe”. Stars Victor Webster, Jennifer Spence and Richard Harmon.
2015 San Andreas (2015).
In the aftermath of a massive earthquake in California, a rescue-chopper pilot makes a dangerous journey across the state in order to rescue his daughter. Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Carla Guino, and Alexander Daddario.
2015 San Andreas Quake.
This is a made for TV movie, not to be confused with the blockbuster “San Andreas”. It was also released in 2015 tiled “San Andreas Quake”. When a discredited L.A. Seismologist warns of an impending 12.7 earthquake, no one takes her seriously. Now on her own, she races desperately to get her family to safety before the earthquake breaks Los Angeles apart from the mainland. Stars: Jhey Castles, Jason Woods, and Grace Van Dien .
2015 Volcano Zombies (retitled The Burning Dead).
A sheriff must rescue an estranged family from a mountain during a volcano eruption and fight off a horde of lava-filled zombies brought to life by a curse.
2016 Shock Wave: Countdown to Disaster.
A military super weapon has been set off and is burrowing through earth causing rampant earthquakes that are gradually tearing the world apart.
Netflix Play Instantly. This silent short tells the story of an astronomer and his colleagues who journey to the moon, where they're captured by aliens known as Selenites.
1944 Marked Trails.
Netflix DVD. Bob Stevens (Bob Steele) is a young man living in the old west who wants to get out and see the world before he has to settle down and live responsibly. His uncle Harry (Steve Clark), a deputy marshal of the town of Tracy, wants Bob to take up that line of work, which Bob initially refuses. But then Harry recognizes wanted gang members Jack Slade (Mauritz Hugo) and Mary Conway, alias Blanche (Veda Ann Borg), and is murdered by them as he tries to order them out of town. Seeking justice, Bob then joins the U.S. Marshals after all, along with his friend, Parkford (Hoot Gibson). Arriving in Tracy, Bob poses as a trouble-making criminal in order to be recruited to join Slade's gang, which Hoot separately comes to town in the guise of a "dude," a more cultured speech-maker in the name of law and order. In the end, the criminals are discovered and defeated in a shootout
1948 Treasure of the Sierra Madre.
Amazon Instant Video. Fred Dobbs and Bob Curtin, two Americans searching for work in Mexico, convince an old prospector to help them mine for gold in the Sierra Madre Mountains.
1951 When Worlds Collide.
Amazon Instant Video. As a new star and planet hurtle toward a doomed Earth, a small group of survivalists frantically work to complete the rocket which will take them to their new home.
1957 Black Scorpion.
Netflix DVD. Volcanic activity frees giant scorpions from the earth who wreak havoc in the rural countryside and eventually threaten Mexico City.
1957 Monolith Monsters.
Netflix DVD. DVD comes with “Incredible Shrinking Man”. Rocks from a meteor which grow when in contact with water threaten a sleepy Southwestern desert community.
1959 Journey to the Center of the Earth.
Netflix DVD. An Edinburgh professor and assorted colleagues follow an explorer's trail down an extinct Icelandic volcano to the earth's center. Adapted from the novel by Jules Verns, See the 2008 remake with Brandon Fraisier.and a made-for TV version, also in 2008 with Ricky Schroder, Victoria Pratt and Peter Fonda.
1964 Robinson Crusoe on Mars.
Stranded on Mars with only a monkey as a companion, an astronaut must figure out how to find oxygen, water, and food on the lifeless planet.
1965 Crack in the World.
Netflix DVD. The three leading characters in this movie were all geologists. In the process of drilling for geothermal energy, they detonate a nuclear bomb at the crust-mantle boundary, causing a global fissure that threatens to destroy the world. The detonation of another nuclear bomb is, of course, required to halt the propagating crack, and one of the geologists heroically sacrifices himself to do it. T
1967 The Money Jungle.
Amazon Instant Video. A consortium of five oil companies bid on parcels off the coast of Santa Barbara, Calif., holding an estimated 3 billion barrels of oil. Four geologists representing four different oil companies are murdered in innovative ways: One is electrocuted while charging his golf cart, one is poisoned, one is gassed and one dies when his model train explodes. The deaths cast suspicion on the fifth company, although that company’s geologist is also subsequently killed. The detective investigating the case finds that the drill cores have been switched in a ruse to imply that the offshore parcels are barren, and that the only people who knew the truth were the murdered geologists. It turns out the murders were instigated by the CEO and the ex-wife of a competitor as part of an elaborate plan to unravel the consortium.
1969 Krakatoa East of Java.
Amazon Video. The Dutch East Indies, in the late 19th century. Capt. Hanson of the "Batavia Queen" is preparing to embark on a salvage expedition. His mistress, Laura, knows the location of a ship belonging to her late husband, a shipwreck concealing a cargo of rare pearls. A diver and a diving bell are aboard ship. But a government agent coerces Hanson into accepting a shipment of convicts for the ship's hold. The wreck lies dangerously close to the erupting volcano on the island of Krakatoa, where Laura's young son attends the convent school
1970 Equinox.
Netflix DVD. Four friends are attacked by a demon while on a picnic, due to possession of a tome of mystic information. Told in flashbacks by the sole survivor. Considered the Best-Worst movie of all time. The geologist character goes crazy after a heroic battle with Satan and his demons. This movie was treated as a student project on a $6,500 budget, Equinox tells the story of a group of California teens who stumble upon a book that reveals the secrets of a strange and malevolent parallel universe. Eight-time Oscar-winning visual effects artist Dennis Muren (Star Wars) uses stop-motion animation and lots of odd camera tricks in this spooky monster mash. The movie is a remake of an earlier film titled The Equinox... A Journey into the Supernatural (1967), and released on home video as The Beast.
1974 Earthquake.
Amazon Instant Video. Various stories of various people as an earthquake of un-imaginable magnitude hits Los Angeles. Features include geologist predictions that go unheeded, a magnitude 9.9 earthquake, destruction of Los Angeles, and collapse of Mulholland dam and subsequent flood.
1975 The Land that Time Forgot.
DVD from Amazon. After a German U-Boat sinks their ship, several survivors manage to take control of the boat. Bowen Tyler is the son of an American shipbuilder and Captain Bradley an experienced seaman. After several tussles with the German crew, they find themselves on a strange island. There they find a place where several stages of Earth's evolution co-exist at the same time. As a result several types of humans are found as well as prehistoric dinosaurs. There are also active volcanoes which all add up to a challenge to survive. There is a “The Land That Time Forgot” remake in 2009, staring C. Thomas Howell.
1976 Track of the Moon Beast.
Mineralogist Paul Carlson (Chase Cordell) is struck by a lunar meteorite while observing a meteor shower. Lodged in his brain, the meteorite causes him to transform into a strong and vicious lizard (the titular "moon beast") whenever the moon comes out. In his lizard form, Paul loses all traces of his human self and goes about killing people at random. While human, Paul is subject to spells of dizziness and nausea, causing his girlfriend Kathy Nolan (Donna Leigh Drake) and friend and former teacher Johnny Longbow (Gregorio Sala) to become concerned. Eventually it is shown that Paul is the monster, and deduced that the meteorite fragment in his brain is the cause of his transformations. Plans are made to remove it from his skull, but the NASA brain surgeons realize, after another X-ray and Johnny remembering some Native American legends documenting similar phenomena, that the meteorite has disintegrated and will eventually cause Paul to self-combust. When Paul learns of this, he escapes into the desert, presumably to kill himself so he will not cause any more harm. Kathy, Johnny, and the local law enforcement follow him, and Johnny shoots him with an arrow made of the original meteorite, which causes him to explode.
1977 People that Time Forgot.
In 1919, a British expedition in the Antarctica region is searching for a lost American explorer and finds a hidden prehistoric world instead.. Director: Kevin Connor; (based upon "The People That Time Forgot" by), Patrick Tilley (screenplay). Stars: Patrick Wayne, Doug McClure, Sarah Douglas. The film is a direct sequel to The Land That Time Forgot, which initiated the series in 1975. The story follows a rescue expedition, led by Patrick Wayne in search of his friend, played by Doug McClure, who had vanished many years before. The expedition lands on Caprona, the same fantastic prehistoric land where dinosaurs and barbarian tribes of men coexist.
1978 At Earth’s Core.
Netflix DVD. A Victorian era scientist and his assistant take a test run in their Iron Mole drilling machine and end up in a strange underground labyrinth ruled by a species of giant telepathic bird and full of prehistoric monsters and cavemen.
1979 Meteor.
Amazon Instant Video. After a collision with a comet, a nearly 8km wide piece of the asteroid "Orpheus" is heading toward Earth. If it hits, it will cause an incredible catastrophe which will probably extinguish mankind. To stop the meteor, NASA wants to use the illegal nuclear weapon satellite "Hercules," but soon discovers that it doesn't have enough firepower. Their only chance to save the world is to join forces with the USSR, which has also launched such an illegal satellite. But will both governments agree? Stars Sean Connery.
1981 St Helens.
Dramatization of the 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens. The movie begins with the volcano's awakening on March 20 and ends with its eruption on May 18, 1980.
1985 A View to a Kill.
Netflix DVD. One of the few other female geologists is featured in the second Bond movie to have a geologist, 1985’s “A View to a Kill.” As in “Dr. No,” geology is involved in the villain’s plot to achieve world domination, this time of the economic variety. The diabolical scheme entails triggering massive earthquakes simultaneously on the San Andreas and Hayward faults to destroy Silicon Valley — and the computer-microchip manufacturers that populate it. The movie features two geologists, one who dies horribly while helping the villain, and one, the California State Geologist and “Bond girl” portrayed by actress Tanya Roberts, who survives.
1989 Armageddon.
Netflix DVD. After discovering that an asteroid the size of Texas is going to impact Earth in less than a month, N.A.S.A. recruits a misfit team of deep core drillers to save the planet.
1990 Joe Versus the Volcano.
When a hypochondriac learns that he is dying, he accepts an offer to throw himself in a volcano at a tropical island, and along the way there, learns to truly live. Starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.
1997 Dante’s Peak.
Netflix DVD. A volcanologist arrives at a countryside town named Dante's Peak after a long dormant volcano, which has recently been named the second most desirable place to live in America, and discovers that Dante's Peak, may wake up at any time. My favorite for technical geologic accuracy.
1997 Volcano.
Netflix DVD. A volcano erupts in downtown L.A., .at the La Brea Tar Pits20, threatening to destroy the city
1998 Deep Impact.
Netflix DVD . Unless a comet can be destroyed before colliding with Earth, only those allowed into shelters will survive. Which people will survive?
2001 Lost Skeleton of Cadarva.
Retro Black-and-White of 1950’s B sci fi movies. A geologist searches for elusive atmospherium and encounters monsters and aliens with support of this charming 50’s-perfect wife. Comical and fun.
2003 The Core.
Netflix DVD . The only way to save Earth from catastrophe is to drill down to the core and set it spinning again. Wonderful special effects.
2004 10.5.
Netflix . An earthquake reaching a 10.5 magnitude on the Richter scale, strikes the west coast of the U.S. and Canada. A large portion of land falls into the ocean, and the situation is worsened by aftershocks and tsunami. Stars: Kim Delane, Beau Bridges, Fred Ward and Ivan Sergei.
2004 The Day After Tomorrow.
Netflix DVD. Jack Hall, paleoclimatologist, must make a daring trek across America to reach his son, trapped in the cross-hairs of a sudden international storm which plunges the planet into a new Ice Age.
2005 Absolute Zero.
Climatologist David Koch has evidence that a shift in the Earth's polarity triggered the last Ice Age in a single day. Now, it's happening again and the only chance of survival is to somehow beat the freeze before the temperature reaches absolute zero, minus 273 degrees Centigrade!
2005Supervolcano (2005) Netflix Watch Instantly. A volcano in Yellowstone Park suddenly erupts. Discovery Channel Docu-Drama
2006 10.5 Apocalypse”.
Amazon. This film also stars Kim Delaney with Dean Cain, and David Cubitt. A massive earthquake creates a chain of events that threaten two of the largest nuclear reactors It is a sequel to “10.5 “(2004)
2006 Disaster Zone: Volcano in New York.
TV movie, Netflix DVD. Illegal experimentation accidentally rips open a previously unknown hidden magma reserve directly under Manhattan
2006 Magma: Volcanic Disaster.
Netflix DVD. Volcanology professor John Shepherd comes to realize that recent unexplainable volcanic activity the world over is the start of a coming global catastrophe which could lead to mankind's extinction. Assisted by several of his students and a wheelchair-bound colleague, the professor sets out to gather the evidence needed to convince government officials that a worst case scenario is unfolding. Can he convince the Powers That Be that the end is near, devise a plan to potentially prevent Armageddon, and save his own troubled marriage before time runs out?
2007 There will be Blood.
Netflix DVD. A story of family, religion, hatred, oil and madness, focusing on a turn-of-the-century prospector in the early days of the oil business. Wonderful depictions of 1880's mining and early 20th century oil exploration and development practices
2008a Journey to the Center of the Earth.
Netflix DVD. On a quest to find out what happened to his missing brother, a scientist, his nephew and their mountain guide discover a fantastic and dangerous lost world in the center of the earth. Re-make of the 1959 movie. Stars Brenden Frazier.
2008b. Journey to the Center of the Earth
There was another “Journey to the Center of the Earth” TV movie released in 2008. It is not to be confused with the big-screen blockbuster. In it a drill team is on a mission to rescue a group of researchers trapped beneath the Earth's crust discovers a mysterious subterranean universe in this B-movie take on the sci-fi classic. Stars Ricky Schroder, Victoria Pratt and Peter Fonda.
2009 “2012”.
Netflix DVD. A frustrated writer struggles to keep his family alive when a series of global catastrophes threatens to annihilate mankind
2009 Lost Skeleton of Cadarva Returns.
A depressed geologist seeking Jerranium 90 in the Amazon is rescued by his wife with the assistance of aliens and monsters. In this sequel, the Lost Skeleton is finally destroyed and psychic powers ended forever.
2009 Megafault.
TV movie, Netflix DVD. When miner Charley 'Boomer' Baxter sets off a series of massive mining detonations in West Virginia, a gigantic earthquake is soon rocking the North Atlantic, exposing a deep seismic fault that runs the length of the North American continent. Joining forces with government seismology expert Dr. Amy Lane, Boomer must now race against time to stop the chasm that is threatening to tear America - and the entire world - in half.
2009 Meteor Storm.
A comet threatens earth and disguises a killer asteroid. Elusive Element 120 attracts the comet debris and asteroid to San Francisco. Coordination with the Russians save the world from certain destruction.
2009 Nine Miles Down.
Netflix DVD. Members of a research crew mysteriously vanish while attempting to drill an ultra-deep borehole in the middle of the Sahara. The security guard investigating the case encounters an unblemished, scantily clad woman, happily jogging in the hot desert sun and claiming she is a surviving scientist. The guard begins to experience sudden and frequent blood-drenched nightmares while the mysterious woman exhibits increasingly strange behavior. The guard concludes that the project drilled so deep that it breached hell, releasing an evil “something” that is responsible for the deaths of the missing researchers. I’m not a fan of this horror genre. But this movie has terrific philosophical dialogues about the tensions between science and the supernatural.
2011 Super Eruption.
A section of the super volcano under Yellowstone erupts after thousands of years, putting millions at risk, and it's up to Rangers Charlie Young and George Howe to save the day. Stars Richard Burgi and Juliet Aubrey
2012 Prometheus.
Netflix DVD. A geologist lacking some basic social skills is infected by an alien and dies. The moral: Do not pat aliens on the head, even if they look innocent. Prequel to Aliens and subsequent Aliens movies. Followed by Alien Covenant, 2017
2014 10.0 Earthquake.
Amazon Instant Video . Los Angeles is about to be hit by a devastating earthquake, and time is running out to save the city from imminent danger. As a series of minor earthquakes start tearing apart Los Angeles, scientist Emily of the USGS theorizes that it's all building to a super quake that will drop the entire city into a lava-filled chasm. Engineer Jack whose daughter has gone camping in the danger area and whose company is responsible for the quakes due to their deep fracking feels obligated to help, and races with Emily through the increasingly damaged city with the hopes of diverting the epicenter to Long Beach and potentially saving millions of lives in the city of Los Angeles. Directed by David Gidali and starring Henry Ian Cusick and Jeffrey Jones..
2014 Airplane vs Volcano.
Netflix Watch Instantly. When a commercial airliner is trapped within a ring of erupting volcanoes, the passengers and crew must find a way to survive - without landing. But when the relentless onslaught of lava and ash causes fear and distrust amongst those onboard, it isn't just the volcanoes that are life-threatening. Everyone must learn to work together if they are to survive their epic flight of fire.
2014 Apocalypse: Pompeii
Amazon Instant Video. Mount Vesuvius erupts when a family visits Pompeii. The daughter uses her skill and her father his ability, in order to escape the disaster. Stars: Adrian Paul, Jhey Castles, Georgina Beedl. This movie should not be confused with the movie titled “Pompeii” which was also released in 2014.
2014 Pompeii.
A slave-turned-gladiator finds himself in a race against time to save his true love, who has been betrothed to a corrupt Roman Senator. As Mount Vesuvius erupts, he must fight to save his beloved as Pompeii crumbles around him. Stars: Kit Harington, Emily Browning, Kiefer Sutherland. . . Not to be confused with the Apocalypse: Pompeii movie that was also released in 2014.
2014 Asteroid vs Earth.
Amazon Instant Video. When a shower of massive meteors threatens an extinction level event on Earth, the world's greatest minds devise a dangerous plan that will take the planet off its axis in order to avoid the impact.
2014 Icetastrophy.
Amazon Instant Video. A meteorite brings ice and freezing temperatures, which threatens to harm the residents of a small town at Christmas. Re-named “Christmas Icetrophe”. Stars Victor Webster, Jennifer Spence and Richard Harmon.
2015 San Andreas (2015).
In the aftermath of a massive earthquake in California, a rescue-chopper pilot makes a dangerous journey across the state in order to rescue his daughter. Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Carla Guino, and Alexander Daddario.
2015 San Andreas Quake.
This is a made for TV movie, not to be confused with the blockbuster “San Andreas”. It was also released in 2015 tiled “San Andreas Quake”. When a discredited L.A. Seismologist warns of an impending 12.7 earthquake, no one takes her seriously. Now on her own, she races desperately to get her family to safety before the earthquake breaks Los Angeles apart from the mainland. Stars: Jhey Castles, Jason Woods, and Grace Van Dien .
2015 Volcano Zombies (retitled The Burning Dead).
A sheriff must rescue an estranged family from a mountain during a volcano eruption and fight off a horde of lava-filled zombies brought to life by a curse.
2016 Shock Wave: Countdown to Disaster.
A military super weapon has been set off and is burrowing through earth causing rampant earthquakes that are gradually tearing the world apart.