Post-Apocalypse Now: The Best and Worst of Modern-Day Survivalist Cinema

Do you get excited watching a survivor in a pandemic-purged neighborhood discover a locked steamer trunk in the basement of a house yet to be looted? That’s me. You see, when it comes to end of days entertainment, I always prefer films that showcase scavenging rather than being a tutorial for the myriad of ways to impale a zombie. Like the scene in I Am Legend where Will Smith is keeping a checklist of all the buildings he has searched, or wondering what will be in the scattered bunkers in The Rain series. That’s the stuff I like. The following list looks at the top and the bottom of the post-apocalypse genre based primarily on the following tropes:

Setting. The following films all take place on Earth, usually after it has either been ravaged by a virus, thrown into chaos by a natural disaster, or a vital resource has been depleted, all of which result in survival of the fittest. I opted not to include movies with aliens, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t check out The Colony, A Quiet Place (1 & 2), and 10 Cloverfield Lane. I also stripped out more fantasy-oriented fare, like the highly recommended Snowpiercer, as well as people who decide to live off the grid when the rest of the world is doing just fine, such as the highly entertaining Captain Fantastic and Leave No Trace.

Plots. There tend to be three popular mission-based storylines: Finding a cure for a travel companion, locating a sanctuary, or tracking down a loved one who was far from home when the pandemic or attack started. If they are not doing one of these three things, they are trapped in a building.

Antagonists. Like plots, there are generally three types of threats. The first are roving bands of dirtbags who want to take your shit and have their way with the women. Then there are the mindless infected with various unique traits, like a fear of light or they only react to sounds or smells. And lastly, you have morally ambiguous soldiers who distrust the protagonists. A movie might end with infected still on the prowl, but the dirtbags and soldiers rarely make it to the credits.

If a film wasn’t included, it was either too old (this list focuses on post-2000 fare), I hadn’t seen it (there are hundreds of bad looking low-rated films with ‘apocalypse’ in the name), or it crossed the very thin line into horror territory. Horror films, in the context of this article, place a bigger emphasis on jump scares and gruesome special effects-heightened violence, like the majority of b-grade zombie flicks.

I kept the descriptions brief and vague to enable readers to go in fresh, but I linked trailers if you need a little spoiling.

Legend: D = Dirtbags / I = Infected / S = Soldiers / R = Recommended for streaming / Bold = My favorites

· Air: Skirting the qualifying boundaries for this list is this post-apocalypse bunker tale where Norman Reedus and Djimon Hounsou oversee a large number of people in time-locked oxygen chambers (think Passengers or Pandorum, but less engaging and set on Earth). It gets a little intriguing as they start to explore areas they haven’t been to, but it never makes it to the point of being recommendable.

· #ALIVE (I, R): A guy is trapped in his apartment while fast moving infected are everywhere else which makes this Korean film like The Night Eats the World meets Train to Busan, but not as good nor bloody as either. It will keep your interest, but it has a couple of implausible moments, including the ending, which make it a better rental than purchase. It is based on the script from Alone detailed below.

· Alone (I, D): This film is an American version of #ALIVE and is the original script even though it was released four months later. The plot is generally the same with some slight variations, but I would probably recommend #ALIVE more. One nice touch is the protagonist’s honest self-assessment that he is scared of the infected outside his door, as opposed to lead characters who quickly surmount that fear to bash in zombie brains.

· Among the Living (I, D): A brother and his younger sister travel across the English countryside to find their dad while trying to avoid infected who are drawn to blood and your standard dirtbags. It stays grounded in reality throughout in terms of how ordinary people react to the world they now live in and is more drama than thriller. Although I wanted a little more closure at the end, it still wraps up nicely.

· Artic Void: Two film producers are doing a travel video aboard a tour boat in the Artic when suddenly almost everyone disappears. They then start searching for answers which they eventually find. While Bokeh had a similar catastrophe but without answers by the end, I still enjoyed it more since it had the thrill of watching them explore a major city. The areas they explore in this film were much more bleak.

· Awake (I, S, D): Unexplained phenomenon makes it so the power goes out of most things, like cars, yet some still work (?). Also people can’t sleep, which means that eventually the sleep deprivation will drive them crazy. It was interesting to see where it was going, but ultimately unmemorable.

· Between (I, S): Virus outbreak in a small community makes people over 21 die, so kids are on their own when the city is quarantined. I lost interest a couple episodes into the series.

· Bird Box (I, D, R): Like The Happening, something in the air is causing people to commit suicide, but in this instance, they have to see it first…and not everyone dies. What “it” is, lacks some closure, but the film keeps you engaged from start to finish.

· Bird Box Barcelona (I,D,R): Based off the same “don’t open your eyes outdoors” premise as the original Bird Box, but set in a different country, this sequel adds a nice twist to it. A bigger focus is placed on those who the sun doesn’t kill than those who die from looking at it.

· Black Summer (D, I, S,R): This series is what Fear the Walking Dead should have been. It takes place shortly after a zombie outbreak, but rather than spending long scenes trying to build emotional connections with the characters, it breaks everything into small fast action chunks separated by title slates. While it doesn’t reinvent the genre, the editing approach elevates it above its predecessors.

· Blindness (D, I, S, R): A blindness epidemic starts spreading with the afflicted being put into a quarantined building and forced to survive without assistance. This movie captures all of the squalor, such as what happens when nobody can locate a bathroom, but remains compelling to the end.

· Bokeh (R): One morning in Iceland, an American vacationing couple wakes up to find that everyone else has disappeared. Co-starring Maika Monroe, the lead from It Follows, it is probably the biggest outlier on this list. While the movie received a mediocre reception from critics, it is a film I found myself thinking about a lot after it ended as I wondered what it would be like to be in the situation presented. I want to recommend it, but I hesitate since my wife and brother aren’t on the same page as I, but it’s on Netflix, so you’ve got nothing to lose.

· The Book of Eli (D): As Denzel Washington makes his way across the country in this Western-inspired movie, he takes down roaming gangs with action hero fighting moves. On top of the over-the-top combat, there is a villain on the hunt for a specific book, all of which undercuts the realism and places this film closer to a class at the Mad Max school of fantasy fiction. So if you like your wasteland with a little extra Hollywood flair, it’s worth checking out.

· Cargo (I, D, R): Martin Freeman stars in this Outback-set story where a pandemic turns people into cannibals. To avoid the infected, he and his family take a boat down the river. It was cool to see Freeman in a movie that is different from many of his other roles.

· Carriers (I, D): Two brothers and one of their girlfriends are traveling across country to reach a beach house and avoid infected people. Chris Pine as the lead asshole makes the movie hard to enjoy since you just want his character to die.

· Children of Men (S, D, R): Set in the distant future when women can no longer have children, a woman gets pregnant. To ensure a safe birth, Clive Owen must get her to an alleged sanctuary. This film has several indelible moments that make it worth watching. And it has Clive Owen.

· Chrysalis (I): A couple treks through frozen cities on a quest for other people while avoiding those who were infected as the result of biological warfare. The dialogue and acting is stilted and unfortunately the budget is not high enough to save it. This is best illustrated by the fact that they are frequently pursued by a large pack of dogs, yet they only briefly show one.

· Containment (D, I, S): An epidemic breaks out in Atlanta, so the contaminated zone is cordoned off with a giant fence patrolled by soldiers. This only lasted one season, while Cordon, the original Belgian show it was based off of, made it to two. I never made it through the only season of the English version, but it wasn’t bad, it just lacked the kind of cliffhanger endings that make you want to see what happens next. Not every show can be LOST.

· The Cured (I, D, S, R): This time around an epidemic called the Maze Virus has already been quashed with most of the infected cured (although retaining the memories of what they did when they were violent and flesh hungry), while those who were immune to the cure are locked up. The question now becomes what do you do with both groups since society isn’t fond of either. It’s set in Ireland and stars Ellen Page who can do no wrong.

· The Day (D): A group of friends and one stranger travel across a rural country years after some sort of undefined apocalypse took place in order to find food and shelter. Meanwhile, occasionally crafty cannibal tribes who seem almost superhuman are looking for something to eat too which results in a long stand-off.

· The Divide (D, I, S): Imagine a bomb trapping a bunch of unlikable people in a basement and then topping it off with some sexual depravity, a little bit of torture, and a mysterious sub-plot with scientist soldiers that is only partially explored. I wish I had only partially explored this film.

· Endzeit (I): This German film — which is also called Ever After in America, involves a world taken over by zombies with only two cities remaining. The cities are connected by a train so the two female leads set off to escape one location for the other. With one character being strong and not wanting anything to do with the weaker one, there is a unique dynamic at play.

· Extinction (I, S): Not to be confused with the 2018 Netflix film of the same name, this 2015 offering deals with a father and his kid surviving next door to another guy in a snow-smothered town. While they are separated by a grudge, they continue to stay rooted with the hopes that the infected creatures which killed everyone else off nine years earlier are gone. But are they? The answer may surprise you.

· Fear the Walking Dead (D, I, S): This companion show to The Walking Dead is set in the same post-pandemic America, but provides a little more insight into what the world was like at the beginning of the infection. While the southern-set The Walking Dead started off strong and then tested fans patience in later seasons, this West Coast series had a rough first season and gradually tried to get back on track. To reengage the audience in season 4 it killed off some main characters and brought in a group of fresh meat. The new cast were all compelling actors with an episode focused solely on Garret Dillahunt’s John Dorie character that showed greatness is achievable. Sadly, they squandered much of their good will with inexplicable plots and attempted gravitas that was more tedious than touching. Seasons 5 through 7 failed to get things back on track with preposterous plots that skirt plausibility and characters whose actions go against how they were written. It’s surprising it’s still on the air, but it must be from all the people hate watching it.

· Finch (R): This road trip film has a last man on Earth vibe if the man’s only companions were a dog and a non-violent Chappie. The robot brings the laughs and Tom Hanks brings the heart, making it an enjoyable view without the typical post-apocalypse villains.

· 4:44 Last Day on Earth: This is a pre-apocalypse countdown to the end-of-the-world film, but for viewers it is less about survival and more about trying to stay awake. It’s set primarily in one apartment and deals with a couple talking…and talking, and occasionally making love and bickering. If you want action instead of emotionally-rich tedium check out These Final Hours.

· The Girl with all the Gifts (D, I, S, R): Set in England, a fungus-causing disease has spread which results in adults going crazy and a batch of afflicted, but seemingly normal kids being both quarantined and feared by the soldiers who guard them. This is one of the more creative approaches to the pandemic genre.

· Greenland (D, S): Meteors are heading toward the Earth and people have to flee, but I won’t spoil where they are heading. A lot of it involves a family getting separated and trying to find each other as the clock counts down, so if you get a rush from having high anxiety, then this is for you.

· The Happening (D, I): The air is sick of people ruining the environment, so it releases a toxin that turns humans violent and suicidal. There are some indelible moments, such as construction workers walking off rooftops to their deaths, and the film has a second act that is like a different movie, but M. Night Shyamalan fails to capture the magic of his other hits.

· Hell (D): The sun has heated up, turning the world nice and toasty, including making being outdoors too hot to handle during the day. Meanwhile, traversing a desert wasteland in a taped up car on a quest for water and greenery are a guy and two sisters. It starts out strong, but I ultimately lost interest in this German film. This could partially be due to the fact that I saw it with English dubbing that just didn’t sell me on the characters.

· Here Alone (I, R): To avoid flesh-eating and fast-moving virus-infected people with highly acute hearing, a woman survivalist gets by on her own in a car parked in the woods…until some strangers arrive. If you liked The Survivalist, imagine that film with a female lead. While its overall Rotten Tomatoes score was low, 3 out of the 4 top critics who reviewed it, liked it. I kind of liked it too.

· The Hidden (I, S, R): This is a solid family-in-a-bunker film from the Duffer Brothers prior to their Stranger Things fame. Like any good bunker drama, the thrill is wondering what lies above it. Some good pay offs make this recommended.

· How I Live Now (D, S): A nuclear bomb is dropped on London while a teenage American girl visiting her young cousins in the English countryside now has to deal with the fallout without any adult supervision. The film is decent and it stars Saoirse Ronan, so the acting is top notch.

· How It Ends (D, S): After a mysterious attack takes out all communications, a father and his pregnant daughter’s fiancé decide to travel from Chicago to Seattle across a panic-seized country to track her down. Forest Whitaker is solid as one of the leads and there is nothing inherently bad about the film, just nothing too original either.

· I Am Legend (I, R): A pandemic hits NY and the city is evacuated except for Will Smith. As a virologist, he stays behind to try and find a cure while dealing with nocturnal zombies who are burned by the sun and fear bright lights. It has some of my favorite abandoned city exploration scenes.

· In The Flesh (D, S, I, R): The dead have come back to life as mindless zombies who have killed a lot of people, but a cure is created that restores their brains to normal. This two short seasons series begins post-cure with the sufferers of PDS (Partially Dead Syndrome) being assimilated back into society where they wear make-up and contact lenses to cover up their pale skin and white eyes. This is low on action and high on drama as the small English town deals with PDS prejudice.

· Into the Forest (D, R): The power goes out around the country, so a dad and his daughters decide to wait it out deep in the woods. The film focuses less on attackers and more on how to survive on your own when you no longer have access to stores and electricity. This has some heavy moments and strikes a chord with its realism.

· Into the Night (S, R): In this Belgium series, a plane full of people with diverse ethnic backgrounds and prejudices have to stay ahead of the sun or die instantly as it proceeds to wipe out the Earth. It’s first season is on Netflix and is very binge-worthy.

· It Comes at Night (D, I): A family is living off the grid in the woods to avoid contact with a contagious and lethal outbreak, but they are eventually faced with uninvited guests. Some of the precautions they take to safeguard their house from intruders make this a nice addition to the genre.

· I Think We’re Alone Now (R): A solid drama staring Peter Dinklage that is like I Am Legend if Will Smith was living in the city with no undead…so basically a lonely guy doing a lot of scavenging and day-to-day routines, but it does serve up one unique element that I won’t spoil.

· Jericho (D, S): America is nuked with a small town in Kansas surviving. While the concept is strong and it has a good cast (including The Walking Dead’s Lennie James), there are some elements that just don’t ring true. Full disclosure, I only watched the first four episodes before losing interest, but fans campaigned after it was cancelled and it got a second season, so there are others who love it.

· Just a Breath Away (D, R): In this French language film, a toxic fog rolls in and engulfs Paris with only those high above it able to survive. With it gradually continuing to rise, action needs to be taken by one of the last remaining families.

· The Last Days (D): In this Spanish language film, people suddenly become agoraphobic and are unable to go outside without seizures. A man separated from his wife must still find a way to locate her, so he sets off on an underground expedition.

· The Last Man on Earth (R): This sitcom — which was set in various parts of America a year after a virus killed off most of the civilization — lived up to its title, at least for a while. It was cancelled after four seasons which was unfortunate since it only got better as it went along and had both heart and humor, albeit often very raunchy humor. I used to watch it after The Walking Dead and ponder the fact that this show was more moving and managed to instill so much more anticipation and curiosity regarding what would happen next.

· The Last of Us (D, I, S, R): If you loved the amazing videogame this show is based off of, you will love the show too. It visually and thematically follows the game very closely, including the dialogue. Even if you haven’t played the game, the show is still strong.

· The Last Survivors (D): The rain has stopped in Oregon, but rather than leave, people seem content to try and survive in the desert. On top of that, a water hoarder and his goons are gleefully hunting the remaining locals. If you’ve watched the trailer, then you’ve already watched more than you need to. Don’t be misled by the 80% on Rotten Tomatoes since only ten people reviewed it, none of which had read this article, and are therefore blissfully unaware that there are so many better films.

· Last Survivors: This is a 2022 film that is not to be confused with the 2014 one above. Because of the war, a dad and his son flee into the woods where they’ve mastered the art of constructing boobytraps, hunting, and keeping themselves isolated from strangers. It has an interesting second act that will keep you watching to the end.

· The Leftovers (R): This three-season series is based around the premise of 2% of the population suddenly disappearing all at once. The result is a lot of shaken belief systems and intriguing situations that will have you binging it quickly. The show was created by Damon Lindelof and Tom Perrotta with Lindelof’s LOST magic rubbing off on it. Also, the awesome soundtrack will have you frequently Shazaaming it.

· Light of My Life (D): Imagine a light beer version of The Road that’s nowhere near as good (nor as bleak). This film takes place about 10 years after a plague has killed off all the women except for a father’s daughter. It then follows the two of them as they travel through woods and snow, occasionally stopping by small towns that exist among seemingly lawless back country. Draining the movie of momentum are several lengthy monologues you’ll want to fast forward through. The only cool thing is when they find an abandoned house to use for a couple nights and they show all of the precautions they take to have a secondary exit. You don’t normally see this kind of smart strategic planning in PA films. Sadly, this one scene does not save this dull film.

· Mad Max: Fury Road (D, I): The original 1979 Mad Max franchise started out with a world rooted in realism since you still had law enforcement, tow trucks you can call, and small business owners. With the sequels (the iconic Road Warrior and weaker Beyond Thunderdome), the series became more fantasy-driven in terms of presenting a world one could believe in. This reboot picks up on the fantasy front. It’s a fun high-octane Hollywood film with amazing action sequences, but if you like your post-apocalypse films grounded in reality, this ain’t it.

· Maggie (I): I was wondering how I had never heard of this film since it featured Arnold Schwarzenegger, but it was probably because it put the critics to sleep. This slow burner remains slow throughout as it deals with pandemic victims who endure gradual stages of decline. Because the infected can be lucid for a couple weeks before succumbing to the virus, parents want to home school their sick kids until they have to kill them.

· The Maze Runner (D, I, S, R): While this trilogy is post-apocalypse fare geared toward the YA market and gets increasingly more contrived with each film, the first one did have some likable elements and is great to watch with a teen. The social dynamics follow the usual high school tropes of bullies and good-looking outcasts, but what made it interesting is trying to figure out where they were, who they are, how they got there, and how are they going to escape.

·The Midnight Sky: The biggest threat facing the main character who is holed up at a base in the Arctic with just a kid is his inability to contact a ship in outer space. What the astronauts don’t know is that the Earth’s population has been decimated due to radiation so he needs to tell them to head toward a different planet. With little drama or tension, it is a slog to get to the end that serves up a minor twist.

· The Night Eats the World (I, R): This film is like Bokeh, but instead of a couple waking up in Iceland with no one else around, it centers on a guy waking up in Paris occupied only by infected people. Like Bokeh, you never find out what caused the situation and a lot of time is spent exploring (but switch out Iceland with an apartment complex). Even if not a lot of new material is mined, I still enjoyed living vicariously through the survivor.

· The 100 (?): A lot of people seem to like this series which involves the Earth being evacuated due to an apocalypse and then many years later sending down a hundred kids to see if it is habitable again. Unfortunately, I only made it about thirty minutes in since this YA-geared show skewed too young for me with its weak dialogue and characters that quickly fill every trope (the bad boy, the bad girl, the hero lead, the bully, etc.). If you’re looking for gritty realism, look elsewhere. That being said, I’ve been assured by many fans of the show that it gets much better, so with a little more perseverance, I might have felt differently.

· Only (I, D, S): An ash-from-the-sky pandemic hits which kills only women, so women become a hot commodity for scientists looking for a cure. As a result, the film revolves around a couple trying to keep a low profile and is a nice meditation on what a quarantined relationship might look like after 400 days. While the acting is great and the story is honest, it was on the slow side, so it’s not recommended for people who prefer more action that talking in their aftermath movies.

· Perfect Sense (I): Tapping into so many fears is this film that deals with an epidemic that causes people to lose various senses. When the loss occurs it is preceded by an emotional reaction that takes its toll on those nearest the person. It is recommended if you are wondering what impact sensory loss might have society. It’s also a solid love story with decent acting.

· The Rain (D, I, S, R): In this Danish TV series with two seasons under its belt, a corporation found a way to turn rain into a chemical that first infects and then kills people. To avoid the toxic rain, a family hides out in a bunker, but then realizes there are other bunkers to explore. I know, I know, I had you at multiple bunkers. Less bunkers in season 2 though.

· Ravenous (I): In this French language film, plague-infected people who crave flesh, yet also enjoy stacking and worshiping furniture, are gradually taking over the rural countryside in Quebec forcing the residents to fight or take flight.

· Reality Z (D, I, S): This Brazilian film involves a zombie outbreak that a vapid group of reality show contestants are unaware of due to being sequestered on their set. Although it can be silly at times, who lives and dies was rather unpredictable which is rare for this genre.

· The Road (D, R): As a father and son set off on a trek from the woods to the coast, they traverse a dying world populated by roaming thugs. This is considered the gold standard of survival movies with solid acting from a small, but strong cast (beyond Viggo Mortensen, Robert Duvall, Charlize Theron, and Guy Pearce, I just noticed that Fear the Walking Dead’s Garret Dillahunt and the guy who played Omar in The Wire both have minor roles in it!). This film also features plenty of scavenging from bunkers to boats in the bleakest countryside to date. 100% Fresh Tomato from me.

· The Rover (D, S): In an Australian setting oddly reminiscent of the original Mad Max film, Guy Pearce is on a mission to reclaim his stolen car. While everything takes place in a dusty desolate world that seems relatively lawless, it oddly still adheres to a money-driven economy.

· Station Eleven (D,R): For fans of post-apocalypse zombie-free dramas that deal more with relationships and how lives intersect than the usual violent dirtbags and over-zealous soldier scenarios. It also has an underlying mystery surrounding a graphic novel that propels things forward.

· The Silence (D): Trying to cash in on the sensory-based survival trend popularized by Birdbox and A Quiet Place is this subpar entry to the genre. Don’t make a sound or bats will attack you pretty much summarizes it.

· Silo (S,R): This Apple+ series is set inside a giant silo which has thousands of inhabitants living on many floors with a lot of rules and customs. Because the air outside is said to be toxic, nobody wants to leave, but there are still a lot of questions about the strict guidelines they have to follow. It’s a very engaging show with one amazing season under its belt.

· The Survivalist (D, R): Filmed in Northern Ireland, but it could just as easily be the Ozarks, this is the ultimate depiction of what hardcore wilderness survival might look like. In it, a guy lives on his own in the woods after society collapses due to the depletion of oil. And then, of course, strangers arrive.

· These Final Hours (D): Like 4:44 Last Day on Earth, the people in this Australian film know the Earth is coming to an end as a giant wave of fire moves across the globe. With only a day left, it becomes a road trip to friends, family, and an end-of-the-world rave, while dealing with locals immersed in violence and sex-driven hedonism.

· This World Alone (D): Long after the post-apocalypse, a woman who has grown up isolated in the woods with just her mom has to finally venture out beyond their property and faces what she missed out on.

· To Survive (D): The plot is basically a lone wanderer heading south who runs into other good people along the way while encountering one dimensional dirtbags. This felt like a student film with weak dialogue and a couple bad edits, like a truck driving in the background of a “deserted” city and a shot of the lead walking with a shotgun a scene or two before he finds it.

· To The Lake (D, I, S, R): A virus is spreading across Russia, so a family and their friends head off to a distant lake house to hide out. As they prepare to leave the city, a roving gang is busy doing home invasions and carjacking which a lot of the initial drama revolves around. While there are infected folks, most of the action in this first season involves confrontations with the living not the undead.

· Train to Busan (S,I, R): Although this Korean film fits more closely with the horror genre that is outside the purview of this article, it is entertaining enough to earn a place here too. Like the name says, the film is about taking a train to Busan to escape a zombie pandemic that has also infected some of the passengers. Imagine World War Z on a train, but with no cure or guns.

·The Unthinkable (D, I, S): The first half of the film would have you think this is a family and relationship drama about dealing with childhood trauma, but the second act suddenly has people inexplicably dying and crashing cars from a mysterious attack on Sweden. Eventually things come to light that tie everything together.

· The Walking Dead (D, I, S,R* = *Select seasons): This show deals with surviving in America after a pandemic turns people into slow moving undead. The Walking Dead has a highly recommended first four seasons, but episodes became more polarizing after that. The actors and settings are often likable enough, but implausible situations, some overly gratuitous violence, and uncharacteristic character choices riled the fan base. And then season 9 arrived, which got the show back on track in a major way. So watch the first four seasons, the last episode of season 8, and then binge season 9 and 10. Neither of these seasons are perfect, but both manage to have a balance of good and bad elements. Season 11, however, is just bad though.

· Time of the Wolf (D): This is a French film that takes place in the rural part of the country after some unknown catastrophe has tainted the water and livestock. It moves very slowly and while there are bad people out for themselves, it is much tamer than most films in the genre in terms of dystopian violence and depravity.

· 28 Days Later (I, S, R): After Cillian Murphy wakes up from a coma in a seemingly desolated London, he sets off to find out where all of the people have gone (and yes, this predates The Walking Dead where Rick Grimes has a similar start). Murphy then encounters sprinting zombies infected with a “rage virus,” whose speedy attacks were a nice departure from the more common trope at the time of lumbering undead. Another notable touch is a clever second act that almost turns it into two films.

· 28 Weeks Later (I, S): This decent sequel with a different cast and director deals with the containment of the infected from the first film. The most memorable aspect was when lead actor (Robert Carlyle) is faced with a moral quandary between saving himself or risking his life to save his family.

· Viral (I, S): An outbreak that turns people crazy spreads in a small community, leaving several high schoolers on their own when the city is quarantined. I recall fast forwarding through some of it. It might resonate more with kids who are the same age as the cast.

· What Still Remains (I, D): 25 years after a viral pandemic turned some people violent, those not infected have formed recruit-hungry religious sects worshiping either God or the plague. Among the forest-based survivors are two surprisingly attractive well-groomed leads, with the main actress being way too trusting given how dangerous the times have become.

· World War Z (I, S, D, R): This is probably the biggest Hollywood film on this list in terms of budget, effects, and an ending that wraps things up a little too quickly and cleanly. In it, a global pandemic results in fast moving zombies who are triggered by sound as Brad Pitt looks all over the world for a cure. This film has non-stop action which will keep viewers engaged, as well as memorable special effects in terms of zombie hordes and a classic darkly comic scene involving a virologist that is almost right up there with Samuel Jackson’s demise in Deep Blue Sea.

· The Worthy (D): Set in the Middle East, the water supply is almost depleted in this Arab-language film, resulting in people living in guarded encampments to protect their limited resources. Wait, who is that at the door? Strangers, of course. This film has a unique premise, which is also a little contrived.

· Yakamoz S-245 (D, S): This Turkish language series is the same plot of the Belgium Into The Night, but instead of trying to outrun the sun in a plane, they’re doing it in a submarine. It was okay, but Into The Night did it first and did it better. I felt they could actually exist in the same universe and it turns out they actually do! Therefore, watch Into The Night first and then Yakamoz S-245 to connect the dots.

· Z for Zachariah (I): Although the ending and the addition of a character separates it from the book, it’s still a good snapshot of life among the last few people on Earth. Rather than focus on action, it’s more of a meditation about two guys and one female love interest surviving on a farm.

· Zombieland (I, R): This comedy definitely blurs the line between a horror and survival film, but it features a cross-country road trip filled with exploration that lends itself to this lineup. It’s also hilarious.

· Zombieland: Double Tap (I): More of the same humor that made the first movie enjoyable, yet not as memorable.

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If you enjoyed this round-up and are interested in international time traveling shows and complex crime dramas, check out this story: The Best Foreign Supernatural Thrillers and Crime Shows on Netflix