Best movies like Countdown
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
A scientist (James Caan) replaces a military officer (Robert Duvall) as an astronaut on a space-race moonshot.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, exciting, atmospheric, mysterious, psychotronic, cult film
Best tv shows and movies like Countdown (1967):
Similar in 81%
Gorath (1962)
Plot Summary:
In 1980, a giant planetoid named Gorath is discovered to be on a collision course with Earth. Even though it is smaller than Earth, its mass is huge enough to crush the Earth and destroy it. A mission sent to observe Gorath is destroyed after all the orbiting ships are drawn into the planetoid. A later mission is sent to observe and the crew barely leaves before suffering the same fate. However Astronaut Tatsuo Kanai is left in a catatonic state due to his near death experience. The Earth's scientists then come up with a desperate plan to build giant rockets at the South Pole to move Earth out of Gorath's path before it is too late.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 859
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Japan
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: daikaiju, serious, futuristic, suspenseful, psychotronic, disaster movie
Similar in 87%
Battle Beneath the Earth (1967)
Plot Summary:
Government officials discover a horrible plot: the Chinese are tunneling their way to the United States.
IMDB Rating: 4.5
IMDB Votes: 970
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: psychotronic, serious, suspenseful
Similar in 88%
Earth II (1971)
Plot Summary:
In the near future, a space station dubbed Earth II is built for the purpose of scientific research and world peace. However, that peace is shattered when the Chinese send up a nuclear bomb that is orbiting just a few miles away from the station. Can the crew disarm the bomb before it detonates, not only destroying the station but setting off World War III?.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 381
Genere: Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: uplifting, exciting, bleak, serious, futuristic, suspenseful, psychotronic
Similar in 79%
Princess of Mars (2009)
Plot Summary:
Based on the novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, a US soldier finds himself inexplicably transported to Mars in the midst of a war between two alien races.
IMDB Rating: 3.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller, War
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: exciting, suspenseful, serious, mockbuster, tense, captivating, psychotronic, hood
Similar in 87%
Termination Point (2007)
Plot Summary:
Top secret government experiments with time travel have been shut down and declared as too dangerous to continue. The lead scientist has disappeared with the technology and a government manhunt is underway. When his name appears on an airline manifest after the flight has departed, the government orders the plane to turn back. But the plane drops from the radar, disappearing into thin air! As special agents try to locate the plane, scientists must deal with the repercussions from the time ripples that threaten to destroy the Earth.
IMDB Rating: 4.3
IMDB Votes: 938
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Canada
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, serious, exciting, suspense, tense, captivating
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Similar in 78%
Miami Magma (2011)
Plot Summary:
When an offshore-drilling rig in the Gulf bursts into flames and sinks, Antoinette Vitrini (Rachel Hunter) - a beautiful and insightful volcanologist - investigates the area with startling results. Confirming her theory that a long-dormant underground volcano exists in the region, Antoinette discovers that the illegal deep-sea drilling has awakened the beast. Now, catastrophic amounts of magma are about to be pumped out... right under the city of Miami. But as Antoinette and her team try to stop the impending disaster, they must also battle the corrupt company that caused the problem in the first place.
IMDB Rating: 3.2
IMDB Votes: 992
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, exciting, serious, disaster movie
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Similar in 82%
The Advanced Guard (1998)
Plot Summary:
A group of aliens arrive on Earth as part of an advance invasion force. Their mission is to kidnap a small sample of humans and run them through a series of rigorous tests to determine if they would make suitable slaves. Harper, one of the alien experimenters, has beceme frustrated with her planet's endless cycle of conquest and extermination and begins to feel some sympathy for her human captives. While the prisoners see a glimmer of hope in the compassionate alien, will it be any use in stopping the enormous attack fleet just a few days from Earth?.
IMDB Rating: 4.3
IMDB Votes: 323
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: cyber, exciting, serious, suspenseful, independent film
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Similar in 78%
Hunter Prey (2010)
Plot Summary:
The Prometheus has dropped out of orbit. Communications and life support systems are down. Situation Critical: Status of Crew and Prisoner unknown. With orders to catch their Alien Prisoner alive the surviving crew of the spaceship Prometheus pursue a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse with their escaped prisoner on a deserted and barren planet. But, who is the hunter and who is its prey?.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, tense, captivating, suspense, exciting, rough, independent film
Similar in 87%
Dark Storm (2006)
Plot Summary:
On a secret military base a group of scientists have made a discovery unequaled since the invention of the A-bomb; code-named Eruptor, it's a device that supercharges Dark Matter and uses it to change the molecular structure of its target, thereby eradicating it. But when the Eruptor malfunctions and a leading scientist on the project is blasted with Dark Matter, he receives incredible abilities.
IMDB Rating: 3.2
IMDB Votes: 983
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Canada
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, suspenseful, disaster movie
Similar in 77%
Epoch (2001)
Plot Summary:
Disaster strikes as a specialised team of investigators struggle to find out the truth about a strange monolith which sends out an intercontinental signal.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, exciting, captivating, apocalyptic, fast, disaster movie
Similar in 87%
Moon Pilot (1962)
Plot Summary:
An Air Force captain inadvertently volunteers to make the first manned flight around the moon. He immediately falls under the watchful protection of various security agencies, but despite all their precautions, a young woman who may be an enemy spy succeeds in making contact with the captain. The captain eventually discovers that this woman is not an enemy but rather a friend from a very unusual source.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 518
Genere: Comedy, Family, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: exciting, offbeat, humorous, semi serious, cult film
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Similar in 90%
First Men in the Moon (1964)
Plot Summary:
Based on the HG Wells story. The world is delighted when a space craft containing a crew made up of the world's astronauts lands on the moon, they think for the first time. But the delight turns to shock when the astronauts discover an old British flag and a document declaring that the moon is taken for Queen Victoria proving that the astronauts were not the first men on the moon.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Adventure, Sci-Fi
Country: UK
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: stylized, uplifting, gothic horror, classic horror, serious, psychotronic, independent film, fairy tale, exciting, light
Similar in 83%
Stranded (2002)
Plot Summary:
The Russian space station Avma is disintegrating, and an international team of scientists is sent to the dying station to salvage valuable technology left on board. But fate has other plans, and when a rogue meteor collides with the station, leaving them with all communications lost, and life-giving oxygen bleeding into space, one man has only hours to save all the lives on board.
IMDB Rating: 3.1
IMDB Votes: 716
Genere: Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, serious, captivating, bleak
Similar in 90%
Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet (1965)
Plot Summary:
In 2020, after the colonization of the moon, the spaceships Vega, Sirius and Capella are launched from Lunar Station 7. They are to explore Venus under the command of Professor Hartman, but an asteroid collides and explodes Capella. The leader ship Vega stays orbiting and sends the astronauts Kern and Sherman with the robot John to the surface of Venus, but they have problems with communication with Dr. Marsha Evans in Vega. The Sirius lands in Venus and Commander Brendan Lockhart, Andre Ferneau and Hans Walter explore the planet and are attacked by prehistoric animals. They use a vehicle to seek Kern and Sherman while collecting samples from the planet. Meanwhile John helps the two cosmonauts to survive in the hostile land.
IMDB Rating: 3.8
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Adventure, Sci-Fi
Country: Soviet Union, USA
Duration: 78 min
Plot tags: psychotronic, retro, suspense, independent film, offbeat, bleak, serious, suspenseful, cult film
Similar in 86%
Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)
Plot Summary:
This is the story of Starflight One, the world's first "hypersonic plane," which flies faster and higher than any other commercial jet. On the night of its maiden flight from Los Angeles to Sydney, a freak accident incolving an unauthorized rocket launch sends Starflight One out of the atmosphere and into a decaying orbit around the Earth. With no heat shielding and limited oxygen, it is up to the bravery of the crew and the ingenuity of NASA and the plane's designers to save the passengers trapped on board.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 115 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, exciting, serious, disturbing, suspense
Similar in 83%
Meteor (1979)
Plot Summary:
After a collision with a comet, a nearly 8km wide piece of the asteroid "Orpheus" is heading towards Earth. If it will hit it will cause a incredible catastrophe which will probably extinguish mankind. To stop the meteor NASA wants to use the illegal nuclear weapon satellite "Hercules" but discovers soon that it doesn't have enough fire power. Their only chance to save the world is to join forces with the USSR who have also launched such an illegal satellite. But will both governments agree?.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Hong Kong
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, psychotronic, grindhouse, rough, serious, suspenseful, fast, exciting, light, romantic
Similar in 82%
Red Planet (2000)
Plot Summary:
Astronauts search for solutions to save a dying Earth by searching on Mars, only to have the mission go terribly awry.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 60000
Genere: Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Australia
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: futuristic, bleak, atmospheric, suspenseful, stylized, suspense, space horror, psychotronic, intellectual, breathtaking
Similar in 77%
2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984)
Plot Summary:
This is a sequel to 2001 A Space Odyssey. It is now 2010 and both the Americans and the Russians are racing to get to Jupiter to investigate the black monolith (similar to the one found in Lunar Crater Clavius) which was found by the U.S.S. Discovery in orbit around Jupiter's moons. The U.S.S. Discovery's orbit is rapidly decaying and it will crash into IO but the Americans cannot get there in time to save U.S.S. Discovery. The Russians can get to Jupiter in time but only the Americans have the knowledge to access and awaken the U.S.S. Discovery's H.A.L.9000 sentient computer. This forces a joint American-Soviet space expedition against a backdrop of growing global tensions. The combined expedition is seeking answers to several mysteries. What is the significance of the black monolith? Why did H.A.L.9000 act so bizarrely and terminate 4 of 5 of the U.S.S. Discovery's crew? What happened to David Bowman? Along the way, curious data is detected.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 56000
Genere: Adventure, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 116 min
Plot tags: futuristic, philosophical, intellectual, stylized, spiritual, psychological thriller, uplifting, captivating, mysterious, surreal
Similar in 90%
Earthstorm (2006)
Plot Summary:
A massive asteroid impact on the moon begins causing storms on earth due to the sudden changes in ocean tides. But when further examination is conducted it's discovered that the moon's structure is now entirely unstable -- threatening all life on earth. With time running out, a team of scientists turn to one man, demolitions expert John Redding, in effort to find a solution and secure the moon.
IMDB Rating: 3.6
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, tense, captivating, apocalyptic, exciting, disaster movie
Similar in 79%
Supernova (2000)
Plot Summary:
Set in the 22nd century, when a battered salvage ship sends out a distress signal, the seasoned crew of the rescue hospital ship Nova-17 responds. What they find is a black hole--that threatens to destroy both ships--and a mysterious survivor whose body quickly mutates into a monstrous and deadly form.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 19000
Genere: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: suspense, serious, suspenseful, space horror, exciting, captivating, entertaining, dark, cyber, disgusting
Similar in 83%
Asteroid (1997)
Plot Summary:
With the discovery of an incoming asteroid, the government of America formulate a plan to destroy it. When the plan fails, all the world can do is wait. The main impact zone is revealed to be Dallas, Texas. Generally, the plot follows the lives and reactions of several characters: an astronomer, her father, her son, two firefighters from Kansas, two young doctors in Dallas and the heads of the government agency in charge of the situation.
IMDB Rating: 4.7
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, exciting, rough, bleak, serious, suspenseful, disaster movie
Similar in 84%
The Astronaut's Wife (1999)
Plot Summary:
When astronaut Spencer Armacost returns to Earth after a mission that nearly cost him his life, he decides to take a desk job in order to see his beautiful wife, Jillian, more often. Gradually, Jillian notices that Spencer's personality seems to have changed, but her concerns fade when she discovers that she's pregnant. As Jillian grows closer to becoming a mother, her suspicions about Spencer return. Why does it seem as if he's a different person?.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 57000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, psychological, surprise ending, suspense, scary, psychological thriller, serious, disturbing, psychotronic, gloomy
Similar in 79%
Solar Crisis (1990)
Plot Summary:
A huge solar flare is predicted to fry the Earth. Astronauts aboard the spaceship Helios must go to the Sun to drop a bomb equipped with an Artificial Intelligence (Freddy) and a Japanese pilot (as a back up if the Artificial Intelligence fail) at the right time so the flare will point somewhere else.
IMDB Rating: 4.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Japan, USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: futuristic, exciting, apocalyptic, anamorphic, independent film, bleak, serious, suspenseful, stylized, fast
Similar in 88%
Apollo 18 (2011)
Plot Summary:
Officially, Apollo 17 was the last manned mission to the moon. But a year later in 1973, three American astronauts were sent on a secret mission to the moon funded by the US Department of Defense. What you are about to see is the actual footage which the astronauts captured on that mission. While NASA denies it's authenticity, others say it's the real reason we've never gone back to the moon.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 57000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags: suspense, mockumentary, scary, serious, tense, suspenseful, exciting, space horror, atmospheric, spooky
Similar in 89%
Marooned (1969)
Plot Summary:
After spending several months in an orbiting lab, three astronauts prepare to return to earth only to find their rockets wont fire. After initially thinking they might have to abandon them in orbit, NASA decides to launch a daring rescue. Their plans are complicated by a Hurricane headed towards the launch site and a shrinking air supply in the astronauts capsule.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 134 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, tense, exciting, suspense, futuristic, melancholic, serious, grindhouse, inspirational, talky
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Similar in 79%
From the Earth to the Moon (1998)
Plot Summary:
Tom Hanks, Imagine Entertainment and HBO present From the Earth to the Moon, the dramatic story of the unforgettable Apollo missions and their heroic astronauts, from President John F. Kennedy's historic speech, through the first manned expeditions into space, to the defining moment of the space program - putting a man on the moon. "One small step for man...one giant leap for mankind." Powerfully told as never before through the unforgettable performances of Cary Elwes, Sally Field, Chris Isaak and many more, these are the stories of the men, women and children who lived, breathed and manufactured from the power of human will one of the greatest achievements in the history of mankind.
IMDB Rating: 8.6
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Action, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: tense, atmospheric, realistic, suspenseful, educational, uplifting, informative, sincere, heroic, serious
Similar in 79%
Gravity (2013)
Plot Summary:
Dr. Ryan Stone, a brilliant medical engineer on her first Shuttle mission, with veteran astronaut Matt Kowalsky in command of his last flight before retiring. But on a seemingly routine spacewalk, disaster strikes. The Shuttle is destroyed, leaving Stone and Kowalsky completely alone-tethered to nothing but each other and spiraling out into the blackness of space. The deafening silence tells them they have lost any link to Earth and any chance for rescue. As fear turns to panic, every gulp of air eats away at what little oxygen is left. But the only way home may be to go further out into the terrifying expanse of space.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 853000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, suspenseful, scenic, suspense, minimal cast, intense, breathtaking, visually stunning, visual, serious
Similar in 86%
Sunshine (2007)
Plot Summary:
Fifty years into the future, the sun is dying, and Earth is threatened by arctic temperatures. A team of astronauts is sent to revive the Sun — but the mission fails. Seven years later, a new team is sent to finish the mission as mankind’s last hope.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 263000
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: futuristic, suspense, philosophical, psychological, atmospheric, thought provoking, tense, suspenseful, captivating, intense
Similar in 76%
Armageddon (1998)
Plot Summary:
When an asteroid threatens to collide with Earth, NASA honcho Dan Truman determines the only way to stop it is to drill into its surface and detonate a nuclear bomb. This leads him to renowned driller Harry Stamper, who agrees to helm the dangerous space mission provided he can bring along his own hotshot crew. Among them is the cocksure A.J. who Harry thinks isn't good enough for his daughter, until the mission proves otherwise.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 445000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 151 min
Plot tags: suspense, apocalyptic, exciting, sentimental, entertaining, tear jerker, sad, suspenseful, romantic, futuristic
Similar in 80%
Deep Impact (1998)
Plot Summary:
A seven-mile-wide space rock is hurtling toward Earth, threatening to obliterate the planet. Now, it's up to the president of the United States to save the world. He appoints a tough-as-nails veteran astronaut to lead a joint American-Russian crew into space to destroy the comet before impact. Meanwhile, an enterprising reporter uses her smarts to uncover the scoop of the century.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 188000
Genere: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: suspense, touching, serious, suspenseful, futuristic, intense, breathtaking, apocalyptic, exciting, action adventure