Throughout the 1960's, 70's and into the 80's, movies based around a post-apocalyptic earth emerged and met with some success. Some of the more successful examples include Planet of the Apes (1968), The Omega Man (1971), Escape from New York (1981), and the Twilight Zone episode "Time Enough at Last" (1959) with Burgess Meredith. Tons of copycat films soon followed and dragged the theme into b-crap oblivion - Warlords of the 21st Century (1982), Hell Comes to Frogtown (1988), Phoenix the Warrior (1988), and Waterworld (1995) just to name a few. These films dealt directly - and obviously - with man's ability to destroy civilization through domination and war. Survivors are left with heavy personal struggles and the star is usually an anti-hero that ends up with some civility to defeat evil. The New Zealand-made The Quiet Earth takes a different apocalyptic road and wanders into the "last person on earth" sub-genre but without the hero/villain action-heavy story. This movie is very reminiscient to 1959's The World, the Flesh and the Devil starring Harry Belafonte, Inger Stevens, and Mel Ferrer (notice the similarities in the race of the actors?)

Zac Hobson (brilliantly played by Bruno Lawrence) wakes up at precisely 6:12 am to find it odd that no one is around - no one at his work when he calls, no one at his hotel, no one on the radio, and no one at the local petrol pump. Slightly confused, he heads to work only to find that the secret cooperative project he's been working on called "Project Flashlight" has had a catastrophic failure contributed to his coworker (whose badly-burned body is still at the controls.) A quarantine program is initiated and Zac is sealed into the bunker but is able to escape by blowing up a room's ceiling. Feeling that his project may have something to do with the strange condition of the town, he heads into the capital, Auckland. Here, he finds a few bodies of the dead but otherwise complete abandonment - it appears that people have disappeared in the middle of their lives. Investigating an airplane crash he doesn't find any bodies but notices that the seat belts are still fastened. Desperate to find anyone, he records a loop at a radio station and paints signs on walls announcing his location. With no answer to his messages, Zac soon realizes that he may be alone in the world. Living a lifestyle that wasn't afforded to him before, he moves into large mansions and starts to live the swank life. As madness begins to creep into his brain, he believes himself to be the sole ruler of the world. He dresses in a negligee and makes a grand and comical nighttime speech to cardboard stand-ups of Adolf Hitler, Richard Nixon, Bob Marley, Queen Elizabeth, Alfred Hitchcock, and even the Pope. As the lights go out (both literally and figuratively) due to the lack of anyone attending the city's electrical facilities, he becomes overwhelmed with his situation and sticks a shotgun in his mouth. Waking from his schizophrenic state, he realizes that he needs to pull himself together if he is to survive and maybe even figure out what has really happened to mankind and possibly reverse it. While attending to his housekeeping duties, he is found by another survivor, Joanne (Alison Routledge), who is as desperate for companionship as he is. Life seems to return to normal as Zac and Joanne bond and start to live life. Still cautiously searching for others, they are both surprised by the appearance of Api (Pete Smith), a militant-looking Maori (the indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand.) However, friendship ensues despite the alpha male/sexual tension brought on by two males in the group. Another clue to their predicament can be found when they all share their stories of the exact moment the "effect" - Zac was trying to kill himself by overdosing on pills, Joanne was electrocuted in her kitchen, and Api was being drowned by his mate whose wife he killed. It seems that anyone within Death's grasp was immune to the "effect" and was left behind. Soon, the utopia they have created begins to deteriorate. Zac discovers that the sun is pulsating and that may be a sign the "effect" may occur again. Also, the dominant male tension rises to the surface as Joanne seems to prefer Api over Zac.

I had read about the title somewhere and with Netflix having it, I gave it a shot. Okay, to be completely honest, I wasn't expecting much from this movie at all! First of all, it was a Sci-Fi thriller made in the mid-1980's...combined, these could all be strikes in my book. For the exact reasons stated in the first paragraph, there was a lot of sci-fi crap made in the 80's and since I hadn't ever heard of this one, it couldn't have been good. Secondly, it was a foreign film, being made in New Zealand. Yeah, I know...Mad Max (1979) and it's sequel, Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981) - I'm not going to mention the third installment here! - were made nearby in Australia but so were a lot of z-grade copycats! Boy, was I wrong. While not an Oscar nominated foreign film, this was quite good. Not having much gun-play action, gratuitous nudity, or martial arts, this is a Sci-Fi fan's movie. While apes don't take over the planet or puss-faced albino vampires rule the night, the mystery and acting make this a worthwhile picture. The story is a little convoluted and the plot careens a bit in the end but it is nonetheless enjoyable.

Character development was a priority for director Geoff Murphy and the writers. There are really only three actors in this movie - the rest being non-speaking corpses. The acting as a whole was above average and is lead by Bruno Lawrence who is brilliant in this movie. His transformation into madness then to enlightenment is some of the best acting you could possibly ask for from an actor in this genre. Alison Routledge and Pete Smith held their own though at times, they seem to ignore their predicament just to make googly eyes at each other - what she saw in him is the real mystery here because he was the New Zealand equivalent of Mr. T without the mohawk! The interaction between the characters worked well but I think I would have rather seen more of the Zac and Joanne relationship. The introduction of Api pretty much was the beginning of the end.

The production value in this film is so-so but can be overlooked for it's time. It has always fascinated me how producers can convince city officials and businesses to evacuate their downtown for hours on end so that they can film "deserted" scenes for these movies. How much did that take out of the budgets? Some of the set pieces are dated especially when you see how computers looked and acted back in infant stages of the 80's. Even the matte backgrounds are evident but the feeling of the landscape was still effective.

I really enjoyed this movie and would recommend it to anyone who is looking for a Sci-Fi drama. The movie starts very intensely with Bruno being the only actor onscreen...his emotional metamorphosis will keep you glued to the movie. The ending will throw you for a loop and while you may not get it, you will feel the hopelessness it conveys. A great alternative to the apocalyptic action flicks like The Omega Man and the Planet of the Apes series. While not that big a fan of remakes, I wouldn't be upset if this one is remade because it mirrors what is going on even today with the energy crisis, greenhouse affects, and the general breakdown of governments and society.