The Quiet Earth Movie Review

For scientist Zac Hobson (Bruno Lawrence, the Gerard Depardieu of New Zealand films), it really is the day the Earth stood still as he awakens one morning to find himself seemingly alone in the world. This part of the film is best, as he desperately searches for survivors, sets up housekeeping in a mansion, and enjoys the run of the city before beginning to go a bit mad. Then, recalling The World, The Flesh, and the Devil, he finds two survivors, a woman and a Maori tribesman. Predictable sexual tensions erupt before Lawrence turns to the more pressing issue of trying to restore the damage wrought by a government experiment that disrupted space and time. A film of many dimensions, and a haunting, enigmatic finish. Director Geoff Murphy later directed Freejack.

1985 (R) 91m/C NZ Bruno Lawrence, Alison Routledge, Peter Smith; D: Geoff Murphy; W: Bruno Lawrence, Sam Pillsbury, Bill Baer; M: John Charles. VHS, Beta, LV FOX