Movies like Fail Safe (2000)
The best movies like Fail Safe (2000) are Fail Safe (1964), The Fourth War (1990) and The Idealist (2015). If Fail Safe hooked you with its drama and thriller, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedFail Safe (1964)7.8/10 from 515 votes
- NewestHammarskjöld: Fight for Peace (2023)Released 2023
Fail Safe (1964)
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.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Fourth War (1990)
Cold War adversaries Col. Jack Knowles and his Russian counterpart, Col. Valachev, are stationed on opposite sides of the German-Czech border. Both men are responsible for a group of troops in their remote settings, and both have been shaped by their combat experiences and a shared aversion to their superiors' ways of doing things. After a defector is killed, things escalate into a full-fledged battle with serious geopolitical ramifications.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Idealist (2015)
A whistle blower attempts to reveal the secret behind a nuclear disaster that occurred during the height of the Cold War.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller
The Iron Curtain (1948)
The Iron Curtain is based on the actual 1945 case of Soviet cipher clerk Igor Gouzenko, (Dana Andrews), who, after careful training, was assigned to the U.S.S.R. Embassy in Ottawa, Canada in the midst of World War II. Eventually, Gouzenko defected with 109 pages of material implicating several high level Canadian officials, outlined the steps taken to secure information about the the details of the nuclear bomb via numerous sleeper cells established throughout North America. The scandal that resulted when details of this case were publicized by American columnist Drew Pearson in early 1946 involved Canada, Britain and the United States.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller
Hammarskjöld: Fight for Peace (2023)
Set in Cold War in 1961, follows the story of diplomat and economist Dag Hammarskjöld, who boards a plane in a desperate attempt to negotiate a ceasefire from his enemies after he leads UN troops into their first wartime operation.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThirteen Days (2000)
The story of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962—the nuclear standoff with the USSR sparked by the discovery by the Americans of missile bases established on the Soviet-allied island of Cuba.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCountdown to Looking Glass (1984)
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.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
By Dawn's Early Light (1990)
A nuclear warhead launched by Soviet insurgents protesting the waning Cold War destroys the Ukrainian city of Donetsk. The destruction sets off a race between American and Soviet politicians to prevent a nuclear holocaust. While the U.S. president feverishly works to keep the military and political machine from going into overdrive, various subordinates panic. When the president is believed to be killed in a helicopter crash, zealous advisers take over.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Manchurian Candidate (1962)
Near the end of the Korean War, a platoon of U.S. soldiers is captured by communists and brainwashed. Following the war, the platoon is returned home, and Sergeant Raymond Shaw is lauded as a hero by the rest of his platoon. However, the platoon commander, Captain Bennett Marco, finds himself plagued by strange nightmares and soon races to uncover a terrible plot.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Bedford Incident (1965)
During a routine patrol, a reporter is given permission to interview a hardened cold-war warrior and captain of the American destroyer USS Bedford. The reporter gets more than he bargained for when the Bedford discovers a Soviet sub and the captain begins a relentless pursuit, pushing his crew to breaking point.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSeven Days in May (1964)
A U.S. Marine Corps colonel alerts the president of a planned military coup against him.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Day After (1983)
In the mid-1980s, the U.S. is poised on the brink of nuclear war. This shadow looms over the residents of a small town in Kansas as they continue their daily lives. Dr. Russell Oakes maintains his busy schedule at the hospital, Denise Dahlberg prepares for her upcoming wedding, and Stephen Klein is deep in his graduate studies. When the unthinkable happens and the bombs come down, the town's residents are thrust into the horrors of nuclear winter.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Sum of All Fears (2002)
When the president of Russia suddenly dies, a man whose politics are virtually unknown succeeds him. The change in political leaders sparks paranoia among American CIA officials, so CIA director Bill Cabot recruits a young analyst to supply insight and advice on the situation. Then the unthinkable happens: a nuclear bomb explodes in a U.S. city, and America is quick to blame the Russians.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHostile Waters (1997)
Based on true events, an American submarine collides into a Soviet sub of the coast of America and an ensuing standoff occurs that could lead to total annihilation.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe China Syndrome (1979)
While doing a series of reports on alternative energy sources, opportunistic reporter Kimberly Wells witnesses an accident at a nuclear power plant. Wells is determined to publicize the incident, but soon finds herself entangled in a sinister conspiracy to keep the full impact of the incident a secret.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Hunt for Red October (1990)
A new technologically-superior Soviet nuclear sub, the Red October, is heading for the U.S. coast under the command of Captain Marko Ramius. The American government thinks Ramius is planning to attack. Lone CIA analyst Jack Ryan has a different idea: he thinks Ramius is planning to defect, but he has only a few hours to find him and prove it - because the entire Russian naval and air commands are trying to find Ramius, too. The hunt is on!
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisK-19: The Widowmaker (2002)
When Russia's first nuclear submarine malfunctions on its maiden voyage, the crew must race to save the ship and prevent a nuclear disaster.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeterrence (2000)
The President of the United States must deal with an international military crisis while confined to a Colorado diner during a freak snowstorm.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Ice Station Zebra (1968)
A top-secret Soviet spy satellite -- using stolen Western technology -- malfunctions and then goes into a descent that lands it near an isolated Arctic research encampment called Ice Station Zebra, belonging to the British, which starts sending out distress signals before falling silent. The atomic submarine Tigerfish, commanded by Cmdr. James Ferraday, is dispatched to save them.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLand of the Blind (2006)
A soldier recounts his relationship with a famous political prisoner attempting to overthrow their country's authoritarian government.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisSpecial Bulletin (1983)
An evening of TV programming is interrupted by breaking news: in Charleston, South Carolina, two Coast Guard personnel and two members of a local news team have been taken hostage by a group of terrorists who are seeking to destroy the triggers of all local nuclear devices. Moreover, the terrorists threaten to detonate their own device if their demands are not met.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Testament (1983)
It's just another day in the small town of Hamlin until something disastrous happens. Suddenly, news breaks that a series of nuclear warheads has been dropped along the Eastern Seaboard and, more locally, in California. As people begin coping with the devastating aftermath of the attacks — many suffer radiation poisoning — the Wetherly family tries to survive.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Ugly American (1963)
An intelligent, articulate scholar, Harrison MacWhite, survives a hostile Senate confirmation hearing at the hands of conservatives to become ambassador to Sarkan, a southeast Asian country where civil war threatens a tense peace. Despite his knowledge, once he's there, MacWhite sees only a dichotomy between the U.S. and Communism. He can't accept that anti-American sentiment might be a longing for self-determination and nationalism. So, he breaks from his friend Deong, a local opposition leader, ignores a foreman's advice about slowing the building of a road, and tries to muscle ahead. What price must the country and his friends pay for him to get some sense?
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
JFK (1991)
Follows the investigation into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy led by New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Man Who Stole the Sun (1979)
A high school science teacher is the butt of all his students' jokes, until their bus is hijacked on a school trip. But something more sinister lurks beneath the surface: he's building an atomic bomb in his apartment.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPu-239 (2006)
A worker at a Russian nuclear facility gets exposed to a lethal dose of radiation. In order to provide for his family, he steals some plutonium and sets out to sell it on Moscow's black market with the help of an incompetent criminal.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe War Game (1966)
A hypothetical Chinese invasion of South Vietnam triggers a new world war between East and West. In Rochester, Kent, the anticipation of a nuclear attack leads to mass evacuations. When a stray missile explodes, the ensuing firestorm blinds all those who see it. It's not long before the fabric of society is ripped apart from radiation poisoning, a lack of infrastructure and rioting for food and other necessities.
Why it matches: Fans watch both
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWinter Kills (1979)
The younger brother of an assassinated US President is led down a rabbit hole of conspiracies and dead ends after learning of a man claiming to be the real shooter.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Devil's Arithmetic (1999)
An American-born Jewish adolescent, Hannah Stern, is uninterested in the culture, faith and customs of her relatives. However, she begins to revaluate her heritage when she has a supernatural experience that transports her back to a Nazi death camp in 1941. There she meets a young girl named Rivkah, a fellow captive in the camp. As Rivkah and Hannah struggle to survive in the face of daily atrocities, they form an unbreakable bond.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOn the Beach (2000)
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 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.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Fail Safe?
The closest matches to Fail Safe are Fail Safe (1964), The Fourth War (1990) and The Idealist (2015). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Fail Safe?
People who watched Fail Safe most often go on to Fail Safe (1964), The Fourth War (1990) and The Idealist (2015).
What is the highest-rated movie like Fail Safe?
Fail Safe (1964), rated 7.8/10 by 515 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Fail Safe?
Hammarskjöld: Fight for Peace (2023) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Fail Safe?
Yes: Fail Safe (1964), The Fourth War (1990) and The Iron Curtain (1948).
How are movies similar to Fail Safe chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Fail Safe, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.