Here are Cinephile Corner’s 10 recommendations for movies like The Great Flood:
Train to Busan
Yeon Sang-ho’s Train to Busan is a visual feast as survivors band together on a speeding bullet train. It delivers the right amount of thrills and action set pieces. Although the dramatic elements and character development may seem underbaked, the film rarely faulters and crashes off course.
Leave the World Behind
Sam Esmail, renowned for his work on Mr. Robot, returns to feature filmmaking with Leave the World Behind, a star-studded drama delivered straight to Netflix that operates as an apocalyptic mystery thriller. Boasting a cast of A-listers like Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, Mahershala Ali, and the promising up-and-comer Myha’la, the film carries the weight of its cast’s reputation but, unfortunately, doesn’t quite live up to expectations.
The Elixir
Netflix’s Indonesian zombie thriller The Elixir is built on a sturdy if familiar setup: an estranged family is forced back together as a zombie outbreak rips through their town after a trial run of Jamu, a traditional herbal medicine, warps into a wrinkle-erasing miracle with monstrous side effects. Director Kimo Stamboel leans into pulp and gets plenty of mileage from the hook. The early chaos is tight and sticky, the gore is squeamish in a way that recalls peak The Walking Dead, and the effects often look pleasingly practical. As a piece of international genre fare, The Elixir has enough snap to sit alongside Netflix’s better imports.
TRON: Ares
TRON: Ares arrives with a lot working against it. I skipped it in theaters after the rough word of mouth and because this is a franchise I have never felt much for. TRON has always struck me as sleek and narratively thin, and TRON: Legacy doubled down on the clunk. Joachim Rønning takes the reins here, with Jared Leto in the lead and Greta Lee in support, and on paper that did not inspire confidence. What surprised me is that I had more fun than expected, even if the film is still a mixed bag.
The End
I’m drawn to many of the technical achievements in The End—its set design, cinematography, and sheer audacity are undeniably impressive. However, Joshua Oppenheimer has previously delivered films that feel more cohesive and incisive, works that seamlessly blend their tone and style with their themes. Tilda Swinton and Michael Shannon lead a movie that feels overbaked and often heavy-handed.
The Host
Bong Joon-ho’s The Host is a genre-bending monster movie that blends sci-fi horror, political satire, and family drama into one of the most distinctive creature features of the 21st century. Deeply influenced by the Godzilla franchise, Bong crafts a cautionary tale about environmental recklessness and government incompetence, opening with an American scientist dumping bottles of formaldehyde into Seoul’s Han River. Years later, this reckless act results in the emergence of a massive, mutated amphibian that terrorizes the city.
28 Years Later
Few film franchises feel as reflective of their eras as the 28 Days Later franchise. The 2002 original remains one of the most influential horror films of the century, with Danny Boyle’s grainy, handheld style perfectly matching its atmosphere of isolation and dread. Its 2007 sequel, 28 Weeks Later, wasn’t directed by Boyle or written by Alex Garland, and while it had moments, it left fans with a sense that more could be done with the premise. Now, both Boyle and Garland return for 28 Years Later (2025), a film that feels both like a homecoming and a cautious step toward something bigger.
Avatar: The Way of Water
The Way of Water absolutely comes through and pulls off a better experience than the first Avatar film could ever dream of. It’s emotionally riveting and absolutely deserves to be seen on a big screen. The best films make you laugh, gasp, and cry. The Way of Water pulls off all three. Simply put, don’t bet against James Cameron.
Y2K
The best way to approach Y2K is to go in completely blind. Seriously, avoid trailers and marketing if you can. The film’s absurd twists and genuinely hilarious moments are what make it so enjoyable, and knowing too much beforehand could spoil the fun. Kyle Mooney makes his directorial debut here, and he nails it. Throughout the brisk 91-minute runtime, he keeps the pace sharp and entertaining. The movie is often exhilarating, always self-deprecating, and has just enough 1999 nostalgia to hit the right notes without feeling overdone or cheesy.
The Adam Project
It has a heaping amount of heart and a dash of whit, but The Adam Project failed to deliver the breathtaking science fiction blockbuster that Netflix was hoping it would. The action vehicle for Ryan Reynolds lands with a soft thud.
READ MORE: The Great Flood (2025)
