feelsalike.com

Movies that feel like The Abyss (1989)

If you loved The Abyss, the closest films we have are The Rocketeer (1991), The Day After Tomorrow (2004) and Fantastic Voyage (1966). All three share The Abyss' epic and cerebral feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 9 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on Netflix, HBO Max and Criterion Channel and others, checked against today's data.

A civilian oil rig crew is recruited to conduct a search and rescue effort when a nuclear submarine mysteriously sinks. One diver soon finds himself on a spectacular odyssey 25,000 feet below the ocean's surface where he confronts a mysterious force that has the power to change the world or destroy it.

πŸ… 75% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 7.5 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. James Cameronepictensecerebral
Stream it:Disney+ β†—
See it on the map

When is The Abyss streaming? β†’

If The Abyss hit the spot, these will too

The Rocketeer poster
The Rocketeer
1991 Β· dir. Joe Johnston
πŸ… 73%β˜… 6.6adventure Β· science fiction

Epic where it counts, cerebral underneath

The difference: Missing the tension of The Abyss

A stunt pilot comes across a prototype jetpack that gives him the ability to fly. However, evil forces of the world also want this jetpack at any cost.

Feels alike?
The Day After Tomorrow poster
The Day After Tomorrow
2004 Β· dir. Roland Emmerich
πŸ… 46%β˜… 6.5science fiction Β· thriller Β· adventure

Tense adventure, and it commits to that

The difference: Critics were much harder on this one

After paleoclimatologist Jack Hall is largely ignored by UN officials when presenting his environmental concerns about the beginning of a new Ice Age, his research proves true when a superstorm develops, setting off catastrophic natural disasters throughout the world. Trying to get to his son, Sam, who is trapped in New York City with his friend Laura and others, Jack and his crew must travel to get to Sam before it's too late.

Feels alike?
Fantastic Voyage poster
Fantastic Voyage
1966 Β· dir. Richard Fleischer
πŸ… 91%β˜… 6.8science fiction Β· adventure

Both keep coming back to the same thing: submarine

The difference: 23 years apart, and the 1960s show

In order to save an assassinated scientist, a submarine and its crew are shrunk to microscopic size and injected into his bloodstream.

Feels alike?
Brainstorm poster
Brainstorm
1983 Β· dir. Douglas Trumbull
πŸ… 57%β˜… 6.4science fiction Β· thriller

Thriller with a pulse of tension, in both cases

Two brilliant research scientists have invented a device capable of recording and playing back sensory experiences only to have devastating results when one of them records their own death.

Feels alike?
Predator poster
Predator
1987 Β· dir. John McTiernan
πŸ… 65%β˜… 7.8science fiction Β· action Β· adventure

Both lean on scale more than on science fiction

The difference: Sits closer to action than The Abyss does

A team of elite commandos on a secret mission in a Central American jungle come to find themselves hunted by an extraterrestrial warrior.

Feels alike?
Battleship poster
Battleship
2012 Β· dir. Peter Berg
πŸ… 33%β˜… 5.8thriller Β· action Β· adventure

One thread runs through both: u.s. navy

The difference: Made in the 2010s, in a different era of the craft

When mankind beams a radio signal into space, a reply comes from β€˜Planet G’, in the form of several alien crafts that splash down in the waters off Hawaii. Lieutenant Alex Hopper is a weapons officer assigned to the USS John Paul Jones, part of an international naval coalition which becomes the world's last hope for survival as they engage the hostile alien force of unimaginable strength. While taking on the invaders, Hopper must also try to live up to the potential that his brother, and his fiancΓ©e's fatherβ€”an Admiralβ€”expect of him.

Feels alike?
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea poster
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
1954 Β· dir. Richard Fleischer
πŸ… 91%β˜… 7.2adventure Β· science fiction Β· fantasy

Both are working the same pair: ocean, diving suit

A ship sent to investigate a wave of mysterious sinkings encounters the advanced submarine, the Nautilus, commanded by Captain Nemo.

Feels alike?
Superman poster
Superman
1978 Β· dir. Richard Donner
πŸ… 87%β˜… 7.4science fiction Β· action Β· adventure

Common ground: nuclear missile

Mild-mannered Clark Kent works as a reporter at the Daily Planet alongside his crush, Lois Lane. Clark must summon his superhero alter-ego when the nefarious Lex Luthor launches a plan to take over the world.

Feels alike?
Colossus: The Forbin Project poster
Colossus: The Forbin Project
1970 Β· dir. Joseph Sargent
πŸ… 90%β˜… 7.1science fiction Β· thriller

Cerebral thriller in both cases

The U.S. has handed over control of its nuclear defense system to the Colossus supercomputer designed by scientist Dr. Charles Forbin. It soon becomes clear, that the now-sentient Colossus is far more intelligent than its creator realizedβ€”with the fate of the world hanging in the balance.

Feels alike?
The Spy Who Loved Me poster
The Spy Who Loved Me
1977 Β· dir. Lewis Gilbert
πŸ… 82%β˜… 7adventure Β· action Β· thriller

The same preoccupation in both: sea

Russian and British submarines with nuclear missiles on board both vanish from sight without a trace. England and Russia both blame each other as James Bond tries to solve the riddle of the disappearing ships. But the KGB also has an agent on the case.

Feels alike?
Until the End of the World poster
Until the End of the World
1991 Β· dir. Wim Wenders
πŸ… 89%β˜… 6.8drama Β· science fiction Β· adventure

Adventure built on scale, twice over

In 1999, a woman's life is forever changed after she survives a car crash with two bank robbers, who enlist her help to take the money to a drop in Paris. On the way, she runs into another fugitive from the law β€” an American doctor on the run from the CIA. They want to confiscate his father's invention – a device which allows anyone to record their dreams and visions.

Feels alike?
Sorcerer poster
Sorcerer
1977 Β· dir. William Friedkin
πŸ… 84%β˜… 7.7thriller Β· adventure

Science fiction built on tension, twice over

Four men from different parts of the globe, all hiding from their pasts in the same remote South American town, agree to risk their lives transporting several cases of dynamite (which is so old that it is dripping unstable nitroglycerin) across dangerous jungle terrain.

Feels alike?

In the mood for more epic?

all epic movies β†’

The best-reviewed films that share The Abyss’ defining feeling.