The Quiet Earth (film)
Encyclopedia
The Quiet Earth is a 1985 New Zealand science fiction
Science fiction film
Science fiction film is a film genre that uses science fiction: speculative, science-based depictions of phenomena that are not necessarily accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial life forms, alien worlds, extrasensory perception, and time travel, often along with futuristic...

 post-apocalyptic film directed by Geoff Murphy
Geoff Murphy
Geoff Murphy is a successful New Zealand filmmaker best known for his work during the renaissance of New Zealand cinema that began in the last half of the 1970s....

 and starring Bruno Lawrence
Bruno Lawrence
Bruno Lawrence was a New Zealand musician and actor.Initially notable as founder of 1970s musical and theatrical "Blerta", he had well-regarded roles in several major films, and starred on the 1990s Australian satirical TV series Frontline.-Biography:Born David Charles Lawrence in Worthing, West...

, Alison Routledge
Alison Routledge
Alison Mary Stuart Routledge is a New Zealand actress.-Film:-Short Film:-Television:-Theatre:-Citations:*Majority of Information sourced from Alison Routledge's Agents' Website - Karen Kay Management - refer actors' page...

 and Pete Smith
Pete Smith (actor)
-Biography:In 2006, he won Best Performance by a Supporting Actor at the Air New Zealand Screen Awards for his role in The Market. He presents a gardening show on Māori Television called Maramataka — Once Were Gardeners.-Selected filmography:...

 as three survivors of a cataclysmic disaster. It is loosely based on the 1981 science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 novel of the same name
The Quiet Earth
The Quiet Earth is a 1981 science fiction novel by New Zealand writer Craig Harrison.The novel was adapted into a 1985 New Zealand science fiction film of the same name directed by Geoff Murphy.-Alone:...

 by Craig Harrison. Its other sources of inspiration have been listed as the 1954 novel I Am Legend, Dawn of the Dead, and especially the 1959 film The World, the Flesh and the Devil, of which it has been called an unofficial remake.

Plot

July 5 begins as a normal winter morning near Auckland, New Zealand. At 6:12 a.m., the Sun momentarily darkens and a red light surrounded by darkness is briefly seen.

Zac Hobson (Bruno Lawrence) is a scientist working for Delenco, part of an international consortium working on "Project Flashlight", an experiment to create a global energy grid. He awakens abruptly; when he turns on his radio, he is unable to receive any transmissions. Zac gets dressed and drives into the deserted city. Investigating a fire, he discovers the wreckage of a passenger jet, but there are no bodies, only empty seats.

He enters his underground laboratory; a monitor displays the message "Project Flashlight Complete". The mass disappearance seems to coincide with the moment Flashlight was activated. He notes on his tape recorder:
"Zac Hobson, July 5th. One: there has been a malfunction in Project Flashlight with devastating results. Two: it seems I am the only person left on Earth."


From this point onward, Zac refers to the crucial moment and its result as "The Effect".

After several days, his mental state begins to deteriorate. He puts on a woman's slip and alternates between exhilaration and despair. Eventually he breaks down altogether. He assembles cardboard cutouts of famous people (including Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...

, Elizabeth II, and Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...

) and addresses them from a balcony. He declares himself "President of this Quiet Earth", then goes on a rampage. He later bursts into a church, shoots the crucifix and announces that he is God. After accidentally crushing an empty pram
Baby transport
Baby transport consists of devices for transporting and carrying infants. A "child carrier" or "baby carrier" is a device used to carry an infant or small child on the body of an adult...

, he puts the barrel of a shotgun in his mouth, but changes his mind when he witnesses an explosion resulting from his destruction.

He settles into a more normal routine. One morning, a young woman named Joanne (Alison Routledge) appears. Zac is attracted to her, but she does not appear to reciprocate. While scouring the countryside for other survivors, they try to determine why they survived.

They find a third survivor, a large Māori man named Api (Pete Smith). The three determine why they survived: at the instant of The Effect, they were all at the moment of death—Api was being drowned in a fight, Joanne was electrocuted by a faulty hairdryer, and Zac had overdosed on pills in a suicide attempt. He had realized there were serious dangers with the experiment and was guilt-ridden for not speaking out.

A love triangle
Love triangle
A love triangle is usually a romantic relationship involving three people. While it can refer to two people independently romantically linked with a third, it usually implies that each of the three people has some kind of relationship to the other two...

 develops, but Zac is more concerned about his observations: several universal physical constants are changing, causing the Sun's output to fluctuate. Zac fears that The Effect will occur again and decides to destroy the Delenco facility in an attempt to stop it.

The three put aside their personal conflicts and drive a truckload of explosives to the installation, only to be stopped at the perimeter when Zac detects high levels of ionising radiation that could detonate the explosives prematurely. He goes back to town to retrieve a remote control for the truck.

While Zac is gone, Joanne and Api have sex. Afterward, Api tells Joanne that he will sacrifice himself by driving the truck; he doubts that Zac's device will be capable of controlling the vehicle. They then see that Zac has reached the same conclusion. He drives the truck onto the weakened roof of the laboratory, which collapses. Just as The Effect reaches a maximum, he triggers the explosives.

Once again a red light is seen surrounded by the dark tunnel. Zac finds himself lying face down on a beach. There are strange cloud formations, resembling waterspouts, rising out of the ocean. As he walks to the water's edge, an enormous ringed planet slowly appears over the horizon. Zac stares in disbelief, then realises he's still holding his tape recorder. He lifts it up as if to speak, then lowers it, completely bewildered.

The precise meaning of the final scene is left to the audience. In the DVD commentary, the director suggests a recurrence of The Effect because of Zac's second death. But he also allows a lapsed-Catholic colleague's idea of a second term in Purgatory. In any case, he says that "a little obscurity" is a good thing.
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