Last Updated on 9 August 2026

I searched the Internet for lists of the best nautical or ocean movies of all time. Criteria included the movies being ranked, not just listed, and generally created by groups, whether teams or committees or based on general public voting (like Ranker.com).

I was able to find 35 lists. I took the 35 lists and added all their content into a spreadsheet, noting the rank of every film. I ended up averaging the rankings each movie got (there were 120 that were on at least 2 lists) and dividing that average by a factor of the number of lists that movie was on. The lowest score meant a high ranking average on many lists. The complete spreadsheet is attached at the bottom.

The movies that were on the most lists (out of 35) were:

  • The Perfect Storm (2000) – 21 lists
  • Jaws (1975) – 18 lists
  • All Is Lost (2013) – 18 lists
  • Adrift (2018) – 17 lists
  • Life of Pi (2012) – 16 lists
  • Titanic (1997) – 15 lists
  • Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003) – 14 lists

Here are links to the lists I used along with dates the lists were created:

Best Nautical-Ocean MoviesDownload

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