7 Apocalyptic Films to Watch Before The Road
Cormac McCarthy’s Dark Novel Creeps Onto the Big Screen
May 20, 2009
Long gone are the halcyon days of gritty road warriors and radiated mutant flicks streaming out of Hollywood. As the lines between modernity and science fiction become increasingly blurred, the wasteland still seems an all too real possibility.
The following titles will prepare those who dare “carry the fire”...
The Films of Konstantin Lopushansky
If one could point to a single master of the post-apocalyptic film, one need look no further than the Russian genius Konstantin Lopushansky. It is rare to find a visionary so able to traverse both sacredness and science fiction. Heartrending, disturbing, and darkly beautiful, Lopushansky would have been right at home directing The Road.
1. Ugly Swans (Gadkie lebedi)
Filmed almost entirely in the ominous glow of “infrared light” and set in a prohibited zone where it never stops raining, where children have been turned into callous super-geniuses and a mysterious new species of human inspire the wrath of those outside the zone’s force field. Konstantin Lopushansky, 2006.
2. Visitor of a Museum (Posetitel muzeya)
In a future torn to pieces by over-consumption, a lone traveler seeks answers in a mythical destination known only as “The Museum.” A loose science fiction adaptation of the story of Jesus Christ. Konstantin Lopushansky, 1989.
3. Letters from a Dead Man (Pisma myortvogo cheloveka)
A deeply unsettling dystopian vision of life in the last days of the human race after a nuclear attack. A scientist confined to the bunkers of the last bastion of human life tries to encourage those around him that all is not lost. This film was sponsored by Soviet scientists as a warning against nuclear weapons. Konstantin Lopushansky, 1986.
4. The Final Combat (La Dernier Combat)
Early Luc Besson feature reminiscent of French New Wave genre ventures, set in a ruined cityscape where it rains both fire and fish, and humanity no longer has the ability to speak. Jean Reno is chilling in his role as The Brute. Luc Besson, 1983.
5. The Lathe of Heaven
Adapted from the brilliant novel by Ursula LeGuinn, this film was originally broadcast on PBS and remains the most requested movie from its archives. It was tied up in legal red tape for years, only to see the light of day again recently with a proper DVD release. Lathe tells the story of a man who’s dreams literally come true. To say any more would give too much away. Fred Barzyk, David R. Loxton, 1980.
6. Threads
A cult classic made for the BBC, this is another film that, until recently, had distribution problems and was difficult to find. Threads is a brutally realistic depiction of life leading up to and following a nuclear exchange with the Soviets, and to many it might be difficult to watch. It may be watched with some relief knowing that the Cold War need not keep one up at night any longer. Mick Jackson, 1984.
7. O-Bi, O-Ba - The End of Civilization (O-bi, O-ba - Koniec cywilizacji)
One might call O-bi, O-ba the “Polish Brazil,” as it is a stylized and dark comment on consumerism. Generations have gone by in the vault without the “Ark” coming to return the people to the outside world. One man tries to convince them that they are free to leave any time they want.
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