Le Dernier Survivant

If you're looking for a science fiction flick that has nothing to do with little green aliens or intergalactic civil war, check out this film. A terrific story about a man waking up to find out that everybody in the world is gone. Vanished! He is the only one on Earth. A great part of the film deals with the struggle of having to be alone. Very original, very interesting, and very entertaining. Check it out.

This movie has little action, instead focussing on the realities of being put in a situation where you are the last person on Earth. It deals with the mental problems that might arise and one man's descent into, and ascent out of, madness.

The science behind the disappearance of the whole human population is best ignored as complete nonsense, but otherwise the movie is solid enough fare.

Likewise the non-Hollywood ending appealed to me, even if I haven't the faintest idea what happened, or why.

And if you find yourself sneering at what the hero gets up to on screen ask yourself this - What would you do if you were the last person on Earth?

Years before Peter Jackson's movies brought New Zealand cinema to the fore, Geoff Murphy's adaptation of Craig Harrison's novel was an interesting release from the tiny country. "The Quiet Earth" is not really a post-apocalyptic tale, per se. It seems to be posing the question to the viewer of what you might do if thrown into this absolutely bizarre situation. The late Bruno Lawrence plays a man who wakes up to find out that everyone else on the planet has simply vanished. But it turns out that a project on which he has been working holds the answer to this.

Without a doubt, the end scene is up for interpretation, in the same way that the end of Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey" is. But most importantly, "The Quiet Earth" is not an action movie. It's very much about the characters, and I really liked it. Also starring Alison Routledge and Pete Smith (an Orc in "The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King", on which Geoff Murphy served as 2nd Unit Director).

I love films with an apocalyptic theme. And this is definitely one of the better ones. Even though the basic story has been around quite a few times, e.g. "Omega Man, The (1971)", it is always interesting to see what has happened before and how it ends. Here, the emphasis is put on human relations, not so much on action. The scientific explanation for the "effect" is also somewhat implausible, but due to that rather authentic scientist Hobson I believed it anyways. And fortunately, the authors chose a non Hollywood-style ending for the movie!

New Zealand surely isn't that illustrious, but this film is an incredible work that is begging to be rediscovered. It isn't a science- fiction in the way of aliens and action; despite it's meager budget, it uses mood, suggestion and great storytelling. The protagonist doesn't fight bloodthirsty monsters, but human nature.

Zac wakes one morning to find himself alone; the entire human race has seemingly disappeared overnight during a phenomena known as "The Effect". As his mental state begins deteriorating, he meets two other survivors, but it isn't long before problems in their relationships begin to happen.

For an inexperienced director, inexperienced cast, and probably inexperienced crew, the movie is surprisingly professional. At a time when other sci-fi movies like Back to the Future and Brazil, The Quiet Earth unfortunately and undeservedly faded into obscurity. Plus, dare I say, this movie features the greatest ending ever put to film (Think Planet of the Apes x10).

Please do your best to find this movie, you will surely enjoy the wonders of filmmaking outside of Hollywood once you do.