Post-Apocalypto
I've heard it said a lot recently that we’re living through ominous times. Regardless of whether or not this is true, the theme of impending doom has definitely become a fixture in our cultural discourse of late. The good news is, it has begun inspiring works of post-apocalyptic fiction: novels (The Road by Cormac McCarthy), movies (I Am Legend), comics (Y: The Last Man), television (Battlestar Gallactica), etc.I could not be more excited about this trend. I’ve always loved dystopian novels (1984) and films (Brazil), with the last-man-on-earth subgenre being a particular obsession, especially when it comes to movies. Sadly, there aren’t that many of them.
Post-Apocalyptic movies are notoriously difficult propositions, elaborate productions that rarely make any money. The genre has frequently served as an outlet for idiosyncratic directors to realize their most ambitious and crazy ideas. So the end results tend to be either amazing or awful and nowhere in between. But even when they’re awful (The Postman), they’re so peculiar as to be fascinating.
I love these films for a couple reasons. For starters, they have a great aesthetic. It would appear that the end of the world produces a lot of cool clothes, funky contraptions and unorthodox hairstyles (not to mention inventive weaponry!). I’m thinking especially of the rough-and-ragged, old-meets-new, makeshift look popularized in the Mad Max movies.Post-apocalyptic movies also tap into the appeal of the “simple life” in a major way. What a relief it would be if one’s only concern was for survival! It might clarify our priorities and keep things in perspective, right? And who hasn’t yearned for the Bobby McGee-style freedom that an atomic wasteland would offer?! If nothing else, it’s fun to think about.
Mainly though, I sympathize with where these movies are coming from on an ideological level. The idea that the human race will destroy itself – that the human race is destroying itself – may sound cynical, but it is not foreign to Christian thinking. After all, the biblical estimation of human nature is pretty low, and pending the Second Coming, isn’t self-annihilation inevitable? Nothing illustrates that we are our own worst enemies better than, well, nuclear Armageddon.
On the other hand, you’ll notice that these films are rarely nihilistic in tone; there is almost always a redemptive story being told. Which should not surprise us, at least not if we have the Cross in mind. In light of Calvary, we know that the death of all things does not necessarily spell the end of all things. It might even spell the beginning of all things. Seriously! The sweet gadgets are just icing on the cake…
Bottom line is, I find post-apocalyptic movies to be incredibly hopeful and uplifting and cool, and I’m glad more of them are being made. That being said…
Eleven Good Post-Apocalyptic Movies1. 12 Monkeys
2. The Road Warrior
3. 28 Days Later
4. Planet Of The Apes [The Original. Duh!]
5. Delicatessen
6. Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
7. Escape From New York
8. Children Of Men
9. The Stand [TV mini-series]
10. The Omega Man
11. Mad Max
Four Not-So-Good Post-Apocalyptic Movies
1. The Postman [It really is as bad as people say.]
2. The Matrix [The second two are particularly bad.]
3. Doomsday
4. Zardoz
Three Post-Apocalyptic Movies That Could Have Been Much Better If They Hadn’t Been Heavily Edited By Their Studios
1. Southland Tales
2. Waterworld
3. Aeon Flux
posted by DZ at
11:52 AM
19 Comments:
I'd love to know if I've left any key movies out. Has anyone seen "A Boy And His Dog?" I also need to see "Red Dawn" asap.
Delicatessen is one sick flick...
Right on, Dave!
I've watched Waterworld about 5 times (don't ask me why), and I couldn't agree with you more.
How about "Sunshine"-- the latest Doyle movie? Amazing!
Watch "red dawn" immediately.
I find films about people thinking it's the end of the world also very interesting. Have you seen "the Giant Robot"?
I also enjoyed the below. Although big Hollywood productions and not high art, they were terribly entertaining:
1. Armageddon
2. Deep Impact
3. Independence Day
4. Terminator (1-3)
And what about "War Games"? I could go on, and on...
Thank you Marc Choi for reminding me of some very important apocalyptic movies. I have say that I cry almost every time Bruce Willis throws Ben Affleck back into the air lock chamber and says, "I love you" and then Affleck yells back through tears, "Harry, I love you!" Man, that gets me every time.
I also have to say War Games was one of my favorite movies as a kid. Who would have known Tic-Tac-Toe would save the world? I don't know why they didn't employ that tactic in Terminator or iRobot to defeat the computers, but I will certainly not forget it whenever computers do take over the world.
Interesting. Very interesting. Has anybody read 'The Road'? To me, it's the best piece of post-world fiction I've read, besides of course, Matheson's "I am Legend". (Which is far superior to it's film version "The Omega Man" in my opinion)
I still like "Zardoz".
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dusty, is "the omega man" the prequel to the "omega code"?
sorry, I was getting Sean Connery's character in Zardoz confused with Ming the Merciless in Flash. . .
no goatee, but that mustache is out of control!
I have to say, I really loved Doomsday. I think it is a fine commentary on what eventually happens to a society with Scottish Presbyterianism at its foundation. I have never seen as many decapitations in one movie in my entire life!
DZ, I love how you gave a shout out to Omega Man. I AM legend is excellent "Power in the Blood." Red Dawn is a must, it really demonstrates the Patrick Swazey (spelling) is so much more than a dancer; he is a dynamic leader.
ZARDOZ is wonderful. Like, on about a gazillion levels.
Any movie that begins with a giant stone head floating through the sky which says in a deep voice:
THE GUN IS GOOD
THE PENIS IS EVIL
has got to be pretty swell.
Also, the wonderful choral adaptation of Beethoven's 7th (beginning of the movie and also the end) is some of the best use of film music ever created. Really evokes an Ecclesiastes like understanding of the sad and poignant and cyclical drama of human life.
Here's a true story about ZARDOZ. A few decades ago, at the beginning of the school year at Indiana University, some high ranking administrator asked the chair of the IU film studies dept to pick a couple movies for all the entering freshman and their parents to watch. He chose a double feature of TOP HAT and ZARDOZ. The audience was bewildered, stunned, and overwhelmed. Later after some indignant letters were written he said, a bit baffled, "What's the problem? I just picked two good movies."
By the way, one of the most important science fiction novels of the mid-20th century is A CANTICLE FOR LEIBOWITZ.
It has a definite Christian sensibility and a real sense of humor too.
C.S. Lewis liked it a lot.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Canticle_for_Leibowitz
DZ, Great post and Happy 29th Birthday!
Have you seen Wenders' "Until the End of the World"? Might be one to add to the list.
-JAZ+
Also, you should probably check out "Cyborg", which is arguably Van Damme's second best film (after Bloodsport obviously).
I've certainly made references to Mad Max as a type of Christ.
Waterworld would have been better if it hadn't been edited so much? I think it would have been better with about two hours less movie. Do you know that a great deal of the cost was in the computer work it took to meet Costner's requirement to have his hair look thicker when wet? Knowing that when I went into the movie sort of made me wish the "smokers" would win. Still, sweet catamaran scene.
1. John, I agree: Zardoz scores major points for that opening scene. In fact, it really deserves its own category. I'll have to check out A Canticle For Liebowitz.
2. Jake, Doomsday may not hold up to any of the 30 films it rips scenes from, but you're right, it's an incredibly fun time. I will never forget seeing that little rabbit getting blown to pieces!
3. Marc, I loved Sunshine! But I'm not sure it (or Independence Day, etc) count as post-apocalyptic movies. They're more straight-up apocalyptic, right? That said, we should make a definitive list of disaster/end-of-the-world movies.
Next up: Dystopian Sci-Fi!
How can you dis the original Matrix? Where is Blade Runner?
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