Live, Man, Live: Top Survival Films

MANILA, Philippines - In movies, anything is possible. The unexpected becomes the expected. This, however, doesn’t bother viewers at all. In fact, more often than not, vie-wers enjoy the feeling of seeing the lead character surpassing great challenges, even if it’s clearly impossible. Somehow these movies encourage people to continue facing life’s trials no matter how hard they may seem; also, in a way, it promotes unity. Here are some of the most encouraging survival movies:

Alive. A supposedly exciting and happy trip turns into a survival experience as an airplane carrying a rugby team crashes in the freezing Andes Mountains. With limited food and water, what are the survivors left to do?

Daylight. An explosion occurs in a highway tunnel which causes great damage and traps people inside the tunnel. Worse, water just keeps on flowing inside the tunnel until it floods up to the highest level. Former Medical Services Chief Kit Latura (Sylvester Stallone), together with some survivors, tries to find the way out of the tunnel. Will they ever get out of it alive?

Cast Away. After their plane crashes, Chuck Noland (Tom Hanks) ends up as the sole survivor from the accident. With supplies running out and the fact that he’s all by himself, he tries to live each day hoping to be rescued and to be reunited with his long-time girlfriend, who serves as his only inspiration to hang on to his life. Truly, no man is an island. 

28 Days Later. A virus is fast spreading among people. After 28 days, Jim (Cillian Murphy) who is in a coma wakes up and finds out that he is alone — well, not really. He explores the whole city and discovers that there are actually people but not the kind he would like to be with; they are infected by the virus, making them wild and ready to attack. Will Jim be able to find a normal human being or will he be infected, too?

The Day after Tomorrow. When nature gets back at us, will we survive? Thes movie is about people finally experiencing nature’s ultimatum — hail storm, snow storm, heavy rain. Watch the movie and find out how the characters survive and why some would just give up.

Saw. The movie and its sequels give a lesson on valuing one’s life. In every Saw film, characters who neglect their lives are thrust into a game of life and death just to let them realize that wasting one’s life away is not an option. Sadly, only a few people survive the game.

The Edge. A billionaire and his beautiful wife, together with a photographer and an assistant, set off to the wild to do a photo shoot. When their plane crashes, they’re left on their own to fend for themselves. Are they physically and emotionally equipped?

Eight Below. Eight intelligent sled dogs are left at a base camp in Antarctica. When a snow storm comes, the sled dogs rely on each other to survive. Meanwhile, their owner comes back with full determination to save them. This is a touching movie about friendship, loyalty and survival.

Diary of Anne Frank. The movie is based on the true-to-life story of Holocaust victim Anne Frank. It tells about the time when Anne and her family, together with some friends, hide in a secret room at the top of a family friend’s establishment during World War II. It isn’t easy because they need to be careful with their every move; moreover, they are not allowed to go anywhere but the hiding place. It makes you wonder how to maintain your sanity while staying in one room for a long time.

Jaws. The famous film about a killer shark is truly timeless. A group of men courageously goes on a mission to hunt and kill a shark that has been menacing the guests of a popular resort. It seems an easy task, but it's not.

Will the men be able to kill the wild and mad shark or will it be the other way around?