Best tv shows like Chernobyl
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
A dramatization of the true story of one of the worst man-made catastrophes in history, the catastrophic nuclear accident at Chernobyl. A tale of the brave men and women who sacrificed to save Europe from unimaginable disaster.
IMDB Rating: 9.3
IMDB Votes: 835000
Genere: Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 330 min
Plot tags: dark, thought provoking, atmospheric, rough, realistic, harsh, depressing, heartbreaking, bleak, disturbing
Best tv shows and movies like Chernobyl (2019):
Similar in 81%
The China Syndrome (1979)
Plot Summary:
A modern nightmare nearly becomes reality in this tension-filled story about an "incident" at a nuclear power plant. Jane Fonda stars as Kimberly Wells, an ambitious TV reporter covering a story on energy sources, who is present at the nuclear plant when a startling accident occurs that nearly causes the meltdown of the reactor. A newsreel cameraman accompanying Wells (Michael Douglas) captures the incident on film but the television station won't air the footage. Though the plant's corporate heads are quick to deny the possibility of any real danger, Jack Godell (Jack Lemmon), the plant's veteran engineer, discovers faulty equipment at the plant. Attempting to tell others about his findings, an attempt is made on his life. In desperation, he forcibly takes control of the power plant and invites the media to hear his ceremony. But the corporation is determined to stop him in a taut and shocking climax!.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 32000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, suspense, tense, political, psychological, serious, captivating, realistic, neo noir, political thriller
Similar in 81%
Flight 93 (2006)
Plot Summary:
Flight 93 is a 2006 made-for-TV film, directed by Peter Markle, which chronicles the events aboard United Airlines Flight 93 during the September 11 attacks. It premiered January 30, 2006 on the A&E Network and was re-broadcast several times throughout 2006. The film focused heavily on eight passengers, namely Todd Beamer, Mark Bingham, Tom Burnett, Jeremy Glick, Lauren Grandcolas, Donald Greene, Nicole Miller, and Honor Elizabeth Wainio. It features small appearances from many other passengers, namely Donald Peterson and his wife, Jean, and also from flight attendant Sandra Bradshaw.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Action, History, Thriller
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, bleak, emotional, patriotic, disaster movie
Similar in 89%
Trotsky (2017)
Plot Summary:
The life pages of a man who changed the world but paid back everything he had. Leon Trotsky is being interviewed in Mexico city of the year 1940 by Canadian journalist Frank Jackson. During eight days they have eight interview sessions revealing the true face of Comrade Trotsky.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: Russia
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: rough, tense, suspenseful, disturbing, tragic ending, thought provoking, intellectual, surprise ending
Similar in 90%
The Cloud (2006)
Plot Summary:
DIE WOLKE (The Cloud) is about a breakdown of a nuclear power station in Germany and the story of two teenager-lovers Hannah and Elmar who take refuge. 38.000 people die and Hannah unfortunately becomes contaminated.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Germany
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: touching, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, crying, gloomy, interesting
Similar in 86%
The Salisbury Poisonings (2020)
Plot Summary:
In March 2018 Salisbury became the site of an unprecedented national emergency. This three-part dramatisation focuses on the extraordinary heroism shown by the local community.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, History, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 58 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, tense, thought provoking, suspense
Similar in 83%
Dark Angel (2016)
Plot Summary:
Drama about the real-life Victorian serial killer Mary Ann Cotton.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Crime, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 63 min
Plot tags: costume drama, psychological, captivating, suspense, disturbing, period piece, historical drama, period drama
Similar in 89%
The Bonfire of Destiny (2019)
Plot Summary:
After a devastating fire in 1897 Paris, three women find their lives upended by betrayal, deception, and romantic turmoil. Inspired by real events.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: France
Duration: 48 min
Plot tags: touching, suspenseful, disturbing, contemplative, rough, unusual plot structure, suspense, saga, costume drama
Similar in 78%
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 82%
Land of Oblivion (2011)
Plot Summary:
Tchernobyl, 1986, a few hours before the disaster. Piotr and Anya's wedding is interrupted by a fire at the power station.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 905
Genere: Drama
Country: France, Ukraine, Poland, Germany
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: bleak, serious, realistic, touching, gloomy
Similar in 90%
Dead Mountain: The Dyatlov Pass Incident (2020)
Plot Summary:
Russia, 1959. A KGB major investigates the mysterious deaths of a group of nine student hikers in the Ural Mountains. Troubled by his past as a WWII veteran, he has a sixth sense and death seems to follow him around as he digs deeper into the mysterious incident. The more he learns, the more it becomes clear: the reason the students died will never see the light of day.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, History, Mystery, Thriller, War
Country: Russia
Duration: 54 min
Plot tags: bad ending, harsh, serious, gloomy, suspenseful, atmospheric, talky, tense, unusual plot structure, suspense
Similar in 90%
Chernobyl: Abyss (2021)
Plot Summary:
The film tells about the firefighter, heroically eliminating the consequences of the tragedy at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: Russia
Duration: 136 min
Plot tags: rough, depressing, thought provoking, serious, dark, disturbing, sad, bleak, disaster movie
Similar in 89%
Rillington Place (2016)
Plot Summary:
In 1950, Timothy Evans was hanged for the murder of his baby daughter Geraldine. The police also believed that he had killed his wife Beryl. But to his final moments Evans protested his innocence. Three years later, a gruesome discovery at 10 Rillington Place revealed that his neighbour - star prosecution witness John Reginald Christie knew much more about the sinister goings on in the house. Set in the dark confines of Christie's home, this powerful drama imagines the relationships between Christie, his wife Ethel and the innocent young Evans couple. What twisted influence did Christie hold over the young newly-weds Timothy and Beryl? And how was he able to trick both judge and jury into sending an innocent man to the executioner?.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Crime, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 58 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, bleak, dark, melancholic, realistic, detective, costume drama, historical drama
Similar in 76%
Shattered City: The Halifax Explosion (2003)
Plot Summary:
A true story about the tragic explosion at Halifax Harbour, Canada, in the early hours of December 6, 1917.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 377
Genere: Drama, History
Country: Canada
Duration: 175 min
Plot tags: serious, emotional, realistic, bleak, captivating, disaster movie
Similar in 86%
The Hot Zone (2019)
Plot Summary:
Heroic U.S. Army scientist Dr. Nancy Jaax, working with a secret military specialized team, puts her life on the line to head off an Ebola outbreak before it spread to the human population.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama, History, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: rough, suspenseful, psychological, apocalyptic, terrifying, anthology, stylized, grim, gloomy
Similar in 76%
The Terror (2018)
Plot Summary:
The crew of a Royal Naval expedition searching for the Arctic's treacherous Northwest Passage discovers instead a monstrous predator.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 50000
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: anthology, twist ending, psychological horror, psychological, psychological thriller, bleak, suspense, slasher, suspenseful, spooky
Similar in 78%
Chernobyl: The Final Warning (1991)
Plot Summary:
True story about the tragic nuclear power plant accident in Chernobyl.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 338
Genere: Drama, History
Country: USA, UK, Soviet Union
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: medical drama
Similar in 76%
Inseparable (2013)
Plot Summary:
It's April of 1986. Pripyat, Ukraine. A core meltdown occurred at Reactor 4 of the Chernobyl Power Plant. Over thirty people died during the blast but the estimated death toll as a result of the radiation fallout will reach a four-digit number. This accident will be considered the world’s largest ecological disaster. Set at ground zero of a catastrophe, this film will reveal the details of the Chernobyl event. The shocking news of the explosion at the nuclear plant has spread, as the world watched the tragedy in fear and confusion. Hearts went out to those who displayed selfless courage and integrity in the initial efforts to stabilize the reactor power. But some were too busy being in love to notice what had just happened in nearby Chernobyl. The disaster has faded into the background... This is an account of love and loss, bravery and supernatural stoicism in the face of unbeatable odds.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 746
Genere: Action, Drama, Romance, Thriller
Country: Ukraine
Duration: 52 min
Plot tags: rough, suspenseful, bleak, disaster movie
Similar in 75%
The Days (2023)
Plot Summary:
Blamed by some, hailed as heroes by others, those involved with Fukushima Daiichi face a deadly, invisible threat — an unprecedented nuclear disaster.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA, Japan
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: dark
Similar in 83%
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 83%
The Bedford Incident (1965)
Plot Summary:
Richard Widmark plays a hardened cold-war warrior and captain of the American destroyer USS Bedford. Sidney Poitier is a reporter given permission to interview the captain during a routine patrol. Poitier gets more than he bargained for when the Bedford discovers a Soviet sub in the depths and the captain begins a relentless pursuit, pushing his crew, and the on-screen tension, to breaking point in this chilling cold-war tale of cat and mouse.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: exciting, suspenseful, atmospheric, political, tense, suspense, realistic, intense, surprise ending, serious
Similar in 79%
K-19: The Widowmaker (2002)
Plot Summary:
When Russia's first nuclear submarine malfunctions on its maiden voyage, the crew must race to save the ship and prevent a nuclear disaster.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 66000
Genere: Drama, History, Thriller, War
Country: UK, Germany, Canada, USA
Duration: 138 min
Plot tags: suspense, suspenseful, tense, realistic, rough, harsh, intense, exciting, factual, serious
Similar in 78%
Deepwater Horizon (2016)
Plot Summary:
A story set on the offshore drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, which exploded during April 2010 and created the worst oil spill in U.S. history.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 179000
Genere: Action, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA, Hong Kong, China
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: exciting, suspense, tense, emotional, realistic, factual, compassionate, touching, suspenseful, intense
Similar in 81%
United 93 (2006)
Plot Summary:
A real time account of the events on United Flight 93, one of the planes hijacked on 9/11 that crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania when passengers foiled the terrorist plot.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 110000
Genere: Action, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA, UK, France
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, realistic, emotional, controversial, tense, political, rough, serious, disturbing, bleak
Similar in 82%
Salvador (1986)
Plot Summary:
A second rated journalist from the US tries his luck in El Salvador during the military dictatorship in the 1980s.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 23000
Genere: Drama, History, Thriller, War
Country: UK, Mexico, USA
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags: suspense, political, tense, harsh, factual, rough, thought provoking, bleak, serious, captivating
Similar in 75%
The Missiles of October (1974)
Plot Summary:
Based in part on Robert F. Kennedy's book, "Thirteen Days," this film profiles the Kennedy Administration's actions during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 150 min
Plot tags: political, tense, thought provoking, serious, captivating, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 84%
Thirteen Days (2000)
Plot Summary:
Dramatisation of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the nuclear standoff with the USSR sparked by the discovery by the Americans of missle bases established on the Soviet allied island of Cuba. Shown from the perspective of the US President, John F Kennedy, his staff and advisors.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 62000
Genere: Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 145 min
Plot tags: tense, political, suspenseful, thought provoking, disturbing, sincere, realistic, educational, witty, serious
Similar in 84%
Des (2020)
Plot Summary:
The story of one of the most infamous cases in UK criminal history, that of serial killer Dennis Nilsen. Told through the prism of three men, the series explores the personal and professional consequences of coming into contact with a man like Nilsen.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 20000
Genere: Crime, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 143 min
Plot tags: tense, detective, suspense, suspenseful, disturbing, thought provoking, emotional, thrilling, contemplative, moody
Similar in 75%
Contagion (2011)
Plot Summary:
As an epidemic of a lethal airborne virus - that kills within days - rapidly grows, the worldwide medical community races to find a cure and control the panic that spreads faster than the virus itself.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 313000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: United Arab Emirates, USA
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: apocalyptic, suspense, bleak, suspenseful, realistic, thought provoking, disturbing, emotional, exciting, clever
Similar in 79%
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
Similar in 88%
The Impossible (2012)
Plot Summary:
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 the sea, followed by a wall of black water that devours everything in its path. Though Maria and her family face their darkest hour, unexpected displays of kindness and courage ameliorate their terror.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 238000
Genere: Drama, History, Thriller
Country: Spain, Thailand, USA
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: suspense, emotional, heartbreaking, motivational, touching, inspirational, realistic, sad, sentimental, tense