Welcome to Movie Shortens.
Follow us today to a 1985 post-apocalyptic science fiction film called: The Quiet Earth.
Before we start, be aware: there are spoilers!
Our story begins with a man named Zac Hobson waking up in a motel apartment.
He can’t find any stations on the radio.
He calls reception but no one answers.
Zac then drives his car and stops for petrol at a service station which seems to be unattended.
He looks in the workshop, all through the building but can’t find anyone.
In the kitchen the electric jug is almost boiled dry.
The toilet door is locked but no one is in there.
He drives down the empty street beeping his horn but there’s no one in sight.
He stops at a house and goes to have a look.
He breaks the glass in the back door to get inside but the house is empty.
It’s as if everyone has just disappeared.
As he drives down the highway, he almost hits an abandoned semi trailer.
He calls on the truck’s 2-way radio but there’s no answer.
He drives into the city but again, there’s no one in sight, only empty vehicles here
and there.
He finds a large pile of burning building rubble and when he has a closer look it seems
like a passenger jet has crashed there but there is no sign of any bodies or survivors.
Zac drives to a satellite research station where he works but once again it looks deserted.
He opens the computer to contact the other research stations around the world but none
of them are responding.
He prints out a memo from the printer which says something about “proceeding with project
Flashlight as scheduled.”
He goes down to the Sub Basement level and looks at another computer which says “Operation
Flashlight Complete.”
Zac goes to the Grid Control room and sees someone in there called Perrin, but when he
turns the chair around he finds that Perrin is very dead, with bulging eyes and burned
hands.
Immediately an announcement says there is a radiation danger and the lab will be sealed.
Zac runs to the elevator but he’s too late, it’s closed.
He has a plan!
He finds a gas burner and some large cylinders of flammable gas.
He lights the burner and turns on the gas then runs for cover.
Zac finds a recording device with a statement from someone saying that there has been information
withheld regarding Operation Flashlight.
He records his own voice stating that he believes he may be the only person left alive on earth.
Before he can finish his recording the gas bottles explode with devastating effects.
He finds an escape hatch and climbs out from below the facility.
Zac finds a local radio station and goes into the broadcast room and sends a message with
his name, address and phone number for anyone who is listening, to contact him immediately.
Then we see Zac painting his name, address and phone number on a large billboard.
He sits at home waiting but no one calls.
Then we see Zac driving a police car and talking over the P.A. loudspeaker for anyone to come
forward but there is no one in sight.
It’s evening and raining and we find Zac walking down a city street playing a saxophone.
Later, he’s sitting at home alone and just waiting and listening to his own radio broadcast.
He decides he should find a more up market residence in which to stay.
The next morning we see Zac waking up in a beautiful big house in a more exclusive area
of the city.
As he drinks his champagne and egg for breakfast he sees a sudden flash of light.
Now Zac is going to have some fun.
We see him driving a car through a shopping mall doing some shopping but of course not
paying for anything!
In the toy shop, playing with toy trains gives him an idea.
Now we see him driving a real train.
Next we see him playing snooker and pretending he’s playing against someone else.
Back in the bedroom, he starts to fantasize and tries on some women’s clothing.
Now he’s watching a video of a man talking about conspiracy theories of power held by
“the other side!”
Zac lifts a shotgun and blasts the TV screen, at the same time knocking himself backwards
out of the chair.
Now Zac starts to lose the plot and thinks someone is after him.
He fantasizes again, sets up audio tape decks and places cut out figures of past world leaders
on the front lawn.
He stands on the upper balcony and pretends he is the President of the Earth.
As he stands on the balcony in tears, the power goes off everywhere.
The next morning we see Zac walking around on the field of a large football stadium wearing
a woman’s undergarment.
Now he rushes into a church with a shotgun, looking for “someone,” maybe God.
He stands before a crucifixion threatening to kill “the kid” unless “He” comes
out.
Then he starts shooting the crucifixion.
Now he thinks “he” is God.
I think he’s really lost the plot now.
We see Zac driving a large excavator through a building and running over a pram.
He imagines what would have happened had there been a baby in the pram.
Momentarily, he considers shooting himself.
Next we see Zac swimming at the beach then he gets himself cleaned up.
He sets up the house for electricity with a large portable generator.
As he’s collecting some gardening supplies he thinks he hears a noise but maybe he’s
just imagining it.
Now we see Zac in a new house by the sea.
He checks the computer for the chemical content and condition of the outside environment.
Suddenly he hears a noise and turns around to find a girl standing in the doorway holding
a pistol, pointed at him.
The woman called Joanne tells him it’s not real then she walks in and they embrace each
other, both so glad to find another human being.
They sit and talk about their experiences when they first realized that everyone had
disappeared.
As they talk, Joanne falls asleep on the sofa.
The next morning they load up the utility truck and make small talk.
Joanne drives because Zac is hung over from too much champagne the night before.
They find the scene of an accident where a man has gone through the windscreen of his
car and a woman has died whilst trying to call for help on a 2-way radio.
Both are dead.
They stop at a motel for the night.
While Zac is cooking dinner, they talk about the possibility of finding other people alive.
The next morning they find a car for Joanne to drive and they both go in search of other
people.
At one point in time they both experience a strange feeling.
That night they theorize about what might have happened.
The following morning Zac wakes up in a motel room to the phone ringing.
Joanne is pretending to be the receptionist.
She opens the door and brings Zac breakfast in bed.
It looks like they’ve spent the night together.
Later, they both drive around looking for people again.
While Joanne is looking through a hospital, Zac is parked and recording some information
of changes in the fabric of the universe.
As Zac drives to meet Joanne he finds some roads blocked.
When he reverses out of a lane a truck rolls out and blocks his way.
As he takes a closer look, a man with a balaclava and a gun jumps out and takes him captive.
Zac tells him he’s alone but then Joanne calls on the radio and the man named Api realizes
Zac lied to him.
They go together to find Joanne.
As Zac walks over to meet Joanne, Api hides behind a pole but then he shows himself.
When Api realizes that they are no threat he walks towards them and they hug each other.
Now we see them driving down the road together enjoying each other’s company.
That night they’re camped around a fire and Api tells Zac and Joanne about his friend
and himself fighting and how he left his body and watched the fight from above.
How he was traveling towards a light but then he regained consciousness and his friend was
gone.
Joanne says that she experienced something similar.
Zac thinks back to when he woke up in bed and it looks like he may have taken an overdose
of tablets.
Each one had a near death experience at the time of the “Effect” which caused everyone
else to disappear.
Later, they find a large hall and Api plays the piano while Zac and Joanne dance.
They go to bed but Joanne wakes up to find Api is not in his bed.
She goes for a walk and finds him saying prayers over a nearby grave, so she goes back to bed.
The next morning Zac is studying the oscillations of the sun and believes the sun may soon collapse.
Meanwhile, Joanne and Api are out jogging.
Joanne is telling Api about her theories on friendships then she asks him the reason his
friend had tried to kill him.
Api tells her it was because he had killed his friend’s wife.
She asks him why he did it and he tells her it was necessary.
Now she sees him in a different light.
Now we see Zac loading up the truck to leave.
He tries to explain things to Joanne but she’s still upset over Api.
Zac and Api have words about who is in charge so Zac jumps in the truck and drives off.
Api chases after him in another truck then Joanne follows the two of them in a smaller
car.
As they’re driving, Api listens to Zac’s recording about the changes in the sun.
Api runs Zac off the road and Joanne grabs a gun from Api’s truck and fires a shot
near them to stop them fighting.
Zac tells Api he knew there was something wrong with Operation Flashlight.
Api realizes that Zac had tried to kill himself.
As the three of them drive down the road together, Zac explains that the Americans had withheld
information about the project.
Api doesn’t trust Zac because he didn’t tell him and Joanne the truth about the danger.
We see them in a facility where Zac is looking at data on a computer.
He tells Joanne that he believes the “Effect” will happen again tomorrow morning at 6 AM.
Suddenly, something strange happens and Joanne can’t find Zac or Api.
They’ve both disappeared.
After a few moments things return to normal.
Api has a plan.
Now we see them blasting the door off a large shed.
Inside the shed they find tons of Gelignite in boxes, so they load them onto a truck.
That night they drive to the satellite research station.
As they drive, Joanne tells Zac about the truth about Api's friend.
His friend’s wife was in love with Api but Api rejected her so she killed herself.
Api’s friend blamed Api for her death.
They come to a fuel truck blocking the road but Api pushes it out of the way then they
continue.
As they get closer, Zac’s instruments tell him that the research station is behaving
like a microwave oven and if the truck of Gelignite gets too close it might explode
too soon.
They drive together in the small truck to a small watch tower near the research station.
Zac tells them he has equipment back in the city that can take the truck in by remote
control.
He drives off alone, leaving Joanne and Api in the watchtower.
Just then, they hear the truck approaching.
They run outside to see Zac driving the truck down to the research station.
As Zac gets closer, the ground gives way and the truck cabin falls down into the facility.
Zac reaches for the ignition switch and sets off the explosives.
The research station is destroyed and we see what looks like the “Effect” happening
again.
The last thing we see is Zac waking up on a beach somewhere with strange cloud formations
in the sky and Saturn rising in the background.
Is Zac really dead?
Or is he in heaven?
What do you think?
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