The Quiet Earth (1985)

A man wakes up in a world in which he finds himself on his own – literally speaking. There seem to be no other people on earth, than him. We come to know the man is some kind of scientist. Naturally, he tries to get clear about what has happened. But all he sees is empty streets and empty stores. – This scenario, of course, is the backbone of any number of films about zombies and/or the apocalypse. But The Quiet Earth is a gem of quirky scenes. First of all, the protagonist is a plump, baldish man, not the typical action hero. We see him exploring this eerie surrounding of human things and infrastructure, but no people. The volume is turned down. Only two other characters are introduced, but of course they bring some drama into this story about the end of the world. And of course there has to be a love story. Where most other films about the apocalypse focus on showy effects, The Quiet Earth opts for depicting quite ordinary emotions such as fear, loneliness, boredom and jealousy. Sometimes, the film is a tad bit silly, but in my book, all this is excused due to the sheer strangeness of it all. Thematically, this treads the familiar path of criticism of overblown scientific projects. It turns out that the protagonist is partially to blame for the catastrophe earth has undergone. I like the film best when it is most lighthearted, when our scientist dresses up in a dress and just paces around this desolate place on earth (New Zeeland, apparently). The end of the film is so bad it might just as well be ... well, not good but the kind of awful that is necessary if the theme is sexual possession of a girl and, paired with that, a second end-of-the-world. This is, I must tell you, cheesy stuff all the way, but quite entertaining this film is all the same.  

Source code (2011)

I can't say I am a strict proponent of hard SF. In other words: if a film asks us to go along with preposterous "scientific" mumbo jumbo - fine. The thing that usually matters is instead the extent to which the film offers an enticing space for imagination. Visually, Source code tries hard to live up to the vibrant, colorful setting we all have gotten used to with films such as Matrix and Inception. On this level, the film is a failure. There is nothing we haven't seen before. The film simply follows the usual tracks in the 100 steps of making a Hollywood Blockbuster, explosions and all (but, thankfully, no sex scenes). Well, I guess the story is no better than the visual style. What we have here is a film that mixes 'what if...' questions with pretty shallow musings on Making a Difference in the World, Love and Eternity (or something along those lines). The brain of a dead soldier has been activated so as to help prevent terrorist attacks to come. Early on in the film, the soldier finds himself on a train, with a woman. This is all strange to him. Later on, we are informed that the brain of the dead soldier is connected with the victims of the explosion that occurs on that same train. The purpose is to, through some kind of simulation, build up an alternative reality that will help find the terrorists behind the bombings. Source code dabbles with the idea of changing the past, but considering the premises on which the film is developed, there are few hints about the existential urgency of that kind of wish. Because, you know, this is more of an action movie than it is a film about change. In that respect, Groundhog day is a far more ingenious and affectionate film that keeps the audience alive to some important questions - whereas Source code simply dulls the mind to pretty much everything beyond flashy pix of Chicago and Jake Gyllenhaal's face. When Source code tries to re-connect with ze Emozions, things just get ridiculously embarassing. Duncan Jones' earlier, much, much quieter film, Moon, is a far more interesting attempt to revitalize science fiction.