August 28th in Chicago, IL. While cruising the internet looking for knowledge, I came across this article on current films in the theater that should be seen. Two of the three were not appealing but the 3rd one was and it just happened to be OnDemand and I convinced my fiance to watch it. The film is based on a book by Robert C. O'Brien. Set in the post-apocalyptic future (I've got a thing for this theme) where radiation has contaminated everything except for this lone valley. The caretaker of the valley is a young girl Anne (Margot Robbie), who is the last survivor of her family (her family farm is located in the valley). She farms, she hunts, she has a homemade radiation suit and leads about a normal a life as possible in this situation. Make no mistake though, she is alone but not overcome by the isolation which has lasted for about a year. She ends up running into a dude (Chiwetel Ejiofor) in a pond and informs him that the pond is contaminated. The dude suffers from radiation poisoning but eventually he gets better with Anne's help.
He recovers at Anne's house and the mysterious dude explains that he is Loomis, an engineer who was holding out in a government fall out shelter until he decided to make his way out of the darkness. Loomis proves to be useful (as engineers can be) by getting fuel for the tractor and proposing a plan to get electricity from the contaminated waterfall (Anne has an uncontaminated fresh water supply in the form of a well from an underground water supply) but it would meaning cannibalizing the wood from the church where Anne's dad used to preach and Anne isn't too keen on the idea. There are a couple of awkward moments between the two, once Loomis gets drunk and kind of almost crosses the line into sexual assault. Then in another scene, Anne offers herself to him but he abstains from sex which confuses Anne so the share the same bed instead.
Then one day, hunky stud Caleb (Chris Pine) shows up (just when Anne thinks she's alone in the world, her valley turns into a post-apocalyptic Grand Central Station) and upset the delicate balance at Anne's house (now there are three really good looking people at the house)...
Caleb was a miner when the sh*t went down and made his way into the valley. Right off the bat Caleb and Anne are attracted to each other (it's a real stretch I know) and it doesn't go unnoticed by Loomis. There's more than a bit of tension between Caleb and Loomis in regards to Anne (there's a scene when the two are hunting, they place a wager and the stakes are "jokingly" Anne). I don't think I'm giving too much away when I mention that Anne and Caleb do it. Loomis seems to be ok with this (he gives Anne the ok to "explore" if she wants to) but he's really not that ok with it. Eventually, the three of them use the wood from the church to make the water wheel and place it near the waterfall. Caleb and Loomis go out to administer the final touches and BOOM! Electricity. Except that the two of them went out and only Loomis came back. Loomis explains to Anne that Caleb left to search for an alleged sanctuary, leaving all his gear back at the house.
First off, this film is not for everyone. The story is designed not to move very fast, the pacing is what it should be for this type of film, and there's no big action. The film got an 80% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and it's well deserved but there's a reason that this film didn't get a wide release. The film was directed by Craig Zobel, who does a nice job with small casts and minimalist settings (check out Compliance a film he wrote and directed). The dynamic between the three actors is very good and the acting is also very good. Though I did feel that Chris Pine was miscast but I can't place my finger on it. He did a fine job but I didn't buy into him being that character. Ejiofor gives his standard excellent performance (this guy is real good and I hope that he continues to attach himself to good projects) and Margot Robbie is not just eye candy as she is very convincing as Anne.
Since this picture is based on a book that I never read, I'm sure there were changes. However, there were some stuff that seemed kind of obvious as to where the plot was going. Once a 2nd good looking guy is introduced, it's not a stretch to imagine that something will go down with the additional sexual tension. Also, we can't have the black guy and the white woman do it. They can share the same bed as long as there's nothing is going on (this may have been a theme in the book about Loomis and Anne not coupling).
This was an interesting picture and something that I may not normally see (something I'm trying to do more of). I don't believe the film has a mass appeal but to me it's worth watching.
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