Best movies like Countdown to Looking Glass
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
A fictional confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union over the Strait of Hormuz, the gateway to the Persian Gulf. The narrative of the film details the events that lead up to the initial exchange of nuclear weapons from the perspective of an on-going news broadcast.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 694
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, tragic ending, mockumentary, disaster movie
Best tv shows and movies like Countdown to Looking Glass (1984):
Similar in 86%
The Noah (1975)
Plot Summary:
Noah, the sole remaining survivor on our planet after a nuclear holocaust, finds himself unable to to accept his unique predicament. To cope with his loneliness, he creates an imaginary companion, then a companion for his companion and finally an entire civilization - a world of illusion in which there is no reality but Noah, no rules but those of the extinct world of his memory - our world. Written by Daniel Bourla.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 400
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, existential, mystic, avant garde, allegory, independent film, cult film
Similar in 86%
The President's Plane Is Missing (1973)
Plot Summary:
When the President's plane mysteriously disappears with him on board, it is left to the seemingly weak Vice President to try and advert a nuclear exchange with the Chinese.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 287
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 80%
War Book (2014)
Plot Summary:
In a contemporary Commons briefing room, a government minister and several aids enact the ‘war book’ exercise: a protocol written in the 1950s which is periodically played out to test post-nuclear scenarios. Low-budget but high-concept, War Book is a terse drama of interpersonal politics with rat-a-tat-tat dialogue and sharp performances. (12 Angry Men, Sleuth and The Deal all feel like reference points.) Created by some of the UK’s most promising talents in down time between other projects, director/producer Tom Harper (Scouting Book for Boys, Woman in Black 2), screenwriter Jack Thorne (Skins, Scouting Book) and producer Lauren Dark bring together a top notch cast (including Sophie Okonedo, Ben Chaplin and Kerry Fox). Cold war anxiety is given contemporary relevance in this exploration of government arrogance and lack of accountability, and the terrifying fragility of world order when faced with the abyss of mutual destruction.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 703
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: serious, tense, thought provoking, bleak, suspenseful, realistic, apocalyptic, minimal cast
Similar in 79%
Shelter (2008)
Plot Summary:
With a catastrophic event rapidly approaching, 18 people vie for 10 spots in the small town's only bomb shelter.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 169
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, epic, independent film, bleak, futuristic
Similar in 75%
This Is Not a Test (1962)
Plot Summary:
A highway patrolman stops motorists on a highway after he hears news reports of a possible nuclear attack.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 862
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 73 min
Plot tags: political, surreal, apocalyptic, psychotronic, independent film
Similar in 80%
Ladybug Ladybug (1963)
Plot Summary:
Staff and students at a rural school react to a warning of an imminent nuclear attack, not knowing whether it is real or mistaken.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 930
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 82 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, thought provoking, bleak, serious, realistic, apocalyptic, psychotronic, allegory, disaster movie
Similar in 86%
The War Game (1966)
Plot Summary:
A docudrama depicting a hypothetical nuclear attack on Britain.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, War
Country: UK
Duration: 48 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, controversial, mockumentary, disturbing, futuristic, non fiction, cult classic, semi documentary, thought provoking, bleak
Similar in 76%
Shelter (2015)
Plot Summary:
After a cataclysmic event, five strangers sealed inside an emergency shelter with all the comforts of home must learn to cope with their situation and with each other.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 561
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: disaster movie
Similar in 78%
Miracle Mile (1988)
Plot Summary:
After 30 years of searching, Harry (Edwards) has finally met the girl of his dreams. Unfortunately, before they even have a chance to go on their first date, Harry intercepts some chilling news: WWIII has begun and nuclear missiles will destroy Los Angeles in less than an hour!.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Action, Drama, Romance, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: suspense, suspenseful, bleak, surreal, futuristic, bad ending, apocalyptic, cult classic, black comedy, depressing
Similar in 89%
Where Have All the People Gone (1974)
Plot Summary:
A strange series of solar flares proves fatal for inhabitants of the Earth, except for the fortunate few who are somehow immune from the effects. Animals go insane and human beings turn to white powder, leaving behind only empty clothing. A handful of survivors attempt to rebuild their lives on the de-populated Earth.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 74 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, spooky, atmospheric, rough, bleak, serious, suspenseful, crying, psychotronic, corny
Similar in 78%
On the Beach (2000)
Plot Summary:
The world has finally managed to blow itself up and only Australia has been spared from nuclear destruction and a gigantic wave of radiation is floating in on the breezes. One American sub located in the Pacific has survived and is met with disdain by the Australians. The calculations of Australia's most renowned scientist says the country is doomed. However, one of his rivals says that he is wrong. He believes that a 1000 people can be relocated to the northern hemisphere, where his assumptions indicate the radiation levels may be lower. The American Captain is asked to take a mission to the north to determine which scientist is right.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: Australia, USA
Duration: 195 min
Plot tags: tense, apocalyptic, serious, suspense, exciting, gloomy, psychotronic, disaster movie
Similar in 87%
Special Bulletin (1983)
Plot Summary:
A TV reporter and cameraman are taken hostage on a tugboat while covering a workers strike. The demands of the hostage-takers are to collect all the nuclear detonators in the Charleston, SC area so they may be detonated at sea. They threaten to detonate a nuclear device of their own of their demand isnt met.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: bad ending, psychological, rough, thought provoking, bleak, serious, captivating, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 80%
World War III (1982)
Plot Summary:
Soviet paratroopers drop into Alaska to sabotage the oil pipeline in retaliation against a United States grain embargo. A skirmish occurs at a pumping station, lightly defended by Col. Jake Caffey and a National Guard reckon unit. A stalemate ensues while the possibility of World War III hangs in the balance. The danger escalates as the Russian leaders and the American President play a cat-and-mouse game.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 774
Genere: Drama, Thriller, War
Country: USA
Duration: 200 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, epic, serious, realistic, suspenseful, political thriller, tragic ending
Similar in 79%
What Still Remains (2018)
Plot Summary:
After the loss of her family, a young woman struggles to survive in a world long-since destroyed by disease; but when a lonely traveler offers her a place in his community, she must decide if the promise of a better life is worth the risk of trusting him.
IMDB Rating: 4.7
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: captivating, suspenseful, apocalyptic, tense, intense, dystopian
Similar in 87%
The Blackout (2014)
Plot Summary:
An expecting couple, a survival expert and four teenagers deal with a global blackout and the disintegration of society around them. In their plight for survival, they must endure the worst of human behavior.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 810
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, psychological, tense, captivating, suspense, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 89%
Dead Man's Letters (1986)
Plot Summary:
In a world after the nuclear apocalypse a scholar helps a small group of children and adults survive, staying with them in the basement of the former museum of history. In his mind he writes letters to his son — though it is obvious that they will never be read.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: Soviet Union
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, psychedelic, depressing, spiritual, mind blowing, poetic, twisted, eighties
Similar in 84%
The Sacrifice (1986)
Plot Summary:
Alexander, a journalist, philosopher and retired actor, celebrates a birthday with friends and family when it is announced that nuclear war has begun.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 30000
Genere: Drama
Country: Sweden, France, UK
Duration: 149 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, philosophical, art house, spiritual, slow cinema, contemplative, visual, cerebral, christian film, existential
Similar in 90%
Deterrence (1999)
Plot Summary:
The President of the United States must deal with an international military crisis while confined to a Colorado diner during a freak snowstorm.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: France, USA
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: tense, suspenseful, independent film, serious, realistic, disturbing, talky, political thriller, exciting, light
Similar in 87%
Interview with the Assassin (2002)
Plot Summary:
Out of work TV cameraman Ron Kobelski is approached by his formerly reclusive neighbor Walter Ohlinger. Ohlinger claims that he was the mysterious "second gunman" that shot and killed President Kennedy. Ohlinger has kept quiet all these years, but has decided to tell his story now that he has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Kobelski is skeptical of his neighbor's story, after his investigations provide ambiguous answers. His attitude changes, however, after he receives threatening messages on his answering machine, and spots shadowy figures in his backyard. Is Ohlinger telling the truth? Or is there a bigger conspiracy at work?.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: political, tense, realistic, suspenseful, mockumentary, suspense, philosophical, cerebral, serious, thought provoking
Similar in 79%
Fail Safe (2000)
Plot Summary:
Cold War tensions climb to a fever pitch when a U.S. bomber is accidentally ordered to drop a nuclear warhead on Moscow.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, captivating, suspenseful, political, psychological, apocalyptic, realistic, political thriller, disaster movie
Similar in 82%
Malevil (1981)
Plot Summary:
In southern France, in a quite little town, the mayor, who also owns a castle with some cattle, is in the wine cellar with some other people: the pharmacist, the veterinary, and some of his employees. As they are drinking wine, they hear a terrible noise and the heat's getting higher and higher. They don't realize what's happening: when they come out of the cellar, they realize that everything has burned, and all the buildings are destroyed.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 940
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: France, West Germany
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, exciting, bleak, serious, suspenseful, weird, eighties
Similar in 86%
Ever Since the World Ended (2001)
Plot Summary:
Twelve years ago, a plague swept through, wiping out most of the population; in San Francisco, only 186 people remain. Two of them use jury-rigged batteries to power a camera and make a documentary. We see a variety of approaches to survival, from the artist and engineer who trade for their needs, to the surfers and woodsmen who fish and hunt, to the scavengers, and a communal farm. We also see how the community deals with those who threaten it, and how the youth are growing up with different values from those who knew our world.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 740
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 78 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, tense, bleak, serious, sincere, atmospheric, suspense, realistic, independent film, thought provoking
Similar in 78%
By Dawn's Early Light (1990)
Plot Summary:
When a nuclear missile is launched by presumably Soviet forces toward Turkey, the beginning of the ultimate war to end all wars WW 3 is started. Powers Boothe, his girlfriend and copilot Rebecca DeMornay and their flight crew take off in a B 52 on what they believe is just another drill only to find out that this is the real deal.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Action, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: bleak, serious, suspenseful, surprise ending, suspense, independent film, corny, disaster movie
Similar in 78%
Time of the Wolf (2003)
Plot Summary:
When Anna and her family arrive at their holiday home, they find it occupied by strangers. This confrontation is just the beginning of a painful learning process.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 11000
Genere: Drama
Country: France, Austria, Germany
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: disturbing, psychological, bleak, atmospheric, intense, apocalyptic, suspenseful, road movie, dark, stylized
Similar in 79%
20 Years After (2008)
Plot Summary:
In the middle of nowhere, 20 years after an apocalyptic terrorist event that obliterated the face of the world!.
IMDB Rating: 3.2
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, bleak, serious, suspenseful, independent film, futuristic, dystopian, disaster movie
Similar in 83%
Testament (1983)
Plot Summary:
Nuclear war in the United States is portrayed in a realistic and believable manner. The story is told through the eyes of a woman who is struggling to take care of her family. The entire movie takes place in a small suburban town outside San Francisco. After the nuclear attack, contact with the outside world is pretty much cut off.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: depressing, bleak, disturbing, emotional, tense, apocalyptic, thought provoking, serious, touching, realistic
Similar in 79%
The Day After (1983)
Plot Summary:
The film portrays a fictional nuclear war between NATO forces and the Warsaw Pact that rapidly escalates into a full scale exchange between the United States and the Soviet Union, focusing on the residents of Lawrence, Kansas, and Kansas City, Missouri, as well as several family farms situated next to nearby nuclear missile silos.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 127 min
Plot tags: disturbing, futuristic, apocalyptic, harsh, serious, thought provoking, psychotronic, suspense, bleak, rough
Similar in 84%
Fail-Safe (1964)
Plot Summary:
Because of a technical defect an American bomber team mistakenly orders the destruction of Moscow. The President of the United States has but little time to prevent an atomic catastrophe from occurring. Director Sidney Lumet gives an atmospheric vision of the future with a Cold War backdrop.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 24000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: tense, political thriller, political, realistic, bleak, black and white, emotional, suspense, serious, suspenseful
Similar in 77%
Collapse (1990)
Plot Summary:
1986, Chernobyl disaster. Couples, friends, and a risk-taking journalist are woven into the larger framework of the disaster. Panic follows.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 253
Genere: Drama
Country: USA, Soviet Union
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 76%
The Road (2009)
Plot Summary:
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 warmer south, although they don't know what, if anything, awaits them there.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 251000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: bleak, harsh, depressing, rough, suspense, apocalyptic, atmospheric, gloomy, psychological, sad