Until the End of the World Movie Review

Confusing but fascinating Wim Wenders road movie works best when viewed at least twice, and it's well worth the effort. It's 1999 and Sam Farber (William Hurt) needs to take some snapshots, and quick. His mom is blind, and dying. His dad (Max von Sydow) is one superbrain inventor, and has come up with a camera capable of recording images that can than be played back in a device that will allow mom to view them. A beautiful jetsetter (Solveig Dommartin), her lover (Sam Neill), a bounty hunter, a private dick, and a couple of bank robbers are all on his trail after the camera, stolen money, Hurt, or one of the other trackers. The route covers 15 cities worldwide, and ends up in the Australian outback at dad's secret lab. An about-to-explode nuclear satellite adds tension and leads to a dreamy aboriginal climax. Cinematically stunning. Wenders’ humor and life philosophies are apparent throughout and every performance from the international cast is top notch. Use of high-definition video (HDTV) is a first and the soundtrack is noisily hip. AKA: Bis ans Ende der Welt.

1991 (R) 158m/C William Hurt, Solveig Dommartin, Sam Neill, Max von Sydow, Ruediger Vogler, Ernie Dingo, Jeanne Moreau; D: Wim Wenders; W: Wim Wenders, Peter Carey; M: Graeme Revell. VHS, Beta, LV WAR