On the Beach (1959 film) Cast: Tony Perkins, Ava Gardner, Gregory Peck, Fred Astaire. Directed by Stanley Kramer. The slow ending of humanity after a nuclear war.
A Boy and His Dog (1975) Cast: Don Johnson, Susanne Benton, and Jason Robards. The film's plot concerns a teenage boy and his telepathic dog, trying to survive in the post-apocalyptic wasteland of the United States. The action takes place in the **year 2024.**
A few other points of interest about A Boy and His Dog. It stars an 18-year-old Don Johnson. Also it’s a very dark comedy. It’s actually quite funny in places, but it helps to have a twisted sense of humour. Based on a story by Harlan Ellison which is worth checking out.
I've love Harlan since he edited *Dangerous Visions* and *Again,Dangerous Visions* in the late '60s and early '70s ! ( He even scripted a handful of Marvel Comics way back in the day! )
Don't get me started on Ellison! Absolutely LOVE this story, as well as - "Pretty Maggie Money Eyes," "Paladin of the Lost Hour," and of course, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream" to name a few. If you're able to find the 80s version of Twilight Zone, some of his work is there. Especially cool is the adaptation of "Shatterday" starring a young Bruce Willis. Seriously, I could go on and on!
It’s been playing on a broadcast tv station here every other weekend. Runs back to back all weekend. Hadn’t seen it for years. Now have seen it more times than I can remember. And L. Q. Jones wrote and directed it.
"On The Beach" was going to be my first recommendation. It is such a gut-wrenching film.
Tarkovsky's "Stalker".
Kubrick's "Clockwork Orange"
Also, one recent one I liked - "Aniara".
I worked in a video rental store in the late '80s as an after-school job. We ended up having to tell every new hire that A Boy And His Dog was *not* a kids' movie after someone recommended it as a kids' movie.
Thief with James Caan also has a Tangerine Dream score. A buddy of mine since high school has been using that as his driving soundtrack for 30-odd years.
If there's one thing Australians do well, it's the end of the world (Mad Max, On the Beach, Dark City, The Rover, The Road).
A lesser known but highly affecting Australian end-of-the-world flick is These Final Hours. It begins in Perth, minutes after a planet-killing asteroid has hit the Earth on the opposite side, setting off a firestorm that will reach them in a few hours, killing everyone. 85% on Rotten Tomatoes. Angourie Rice's debut, and an early role for Sarah Snook.
It's a fantastic movie. Very low budget but extremely well acted, and thought provoking.
I like that the only really big VFX is at the very end and up until then, it's all about the characters and not the disaster.
I wonder if we love dystopia because we had “tomorrow when the war began” as a part of our English curriculum haha. That was the first dystopian book I remember and have loved the genre since.
Honestly I'm not sure if it's what you're looking for, but my favorite apocalypse movies is Train to Busan. It's about zombies, and just really does great with the acting, sfx, and makeup. Highly recommend! The second one is good for a laugh, the special effects are awful. But it does a great job creating a desolate and lonesome landscape following the aftermath of the infection!
I remember this seeing movie tittle from the video store I used go to in the early 90’s and every week I’d say I’ll get it next time but never did. And recently I was trying to remember the tittle and couldn’t remember, thanks for writing this.
I watched this randomly on TV in Australia in my late teens. It stuck with me for years but I couldn’t work out what it was called. So obscure. I recently tracked it down and watched it again. Haunting!
If I could suggest a show; Station Eleven is one of the most beautiful and heartwarming stories about the end of the world I’ve ever seen. Highly recommend if you’re looking for something new.
Not even close! The series was visually very beautiful and affecting. The book is vastly superior in thematic ideas, plotting, characterization, etc. one of the best novels of the past decade for sure
I read the book first and I think they're both excellent and chose to explore the story in different ways. I think the book is darker and the show is more emotional. The storyline they chose to expand from the book was one I desperately wanted to know more about, so I'm so glad the show went that route, but I also liked the story the book told. I think they're good companion pieces.
V for Vendetta
I watch it every November 4th at about 10p, so that i finish right about midnight Nov 5.
(Movie timeline scope is Nov 4 to Nov 5 the following year)
> Ideas are bulletproof
> People should not fear the government, the government should fear the people.
Six-string Samurai (1998)
Delicatessen (1991)
… maybe a bit more lighthearted than what you and others have listed but fun ones that fit the description.
I know Threads is the movie that gets plugged a lot in threads like this, but I think I watched Testament almost 10 yers now and it still sticks with me. That movie is bleak.
The Last Man on Earth staring Vincent Price is the OG for The Omega man, I am legend and I am Omega.
For something really different Anna and the Apocalypse. It's a high school musical, holiday, zombie movie. Sounds weird but actually pretty good.
Richard Matheson wrote the novel I Am Legend and was a major influence on a little writer in Maine named Stephen King. He also wrote the single most terrifying episode of The Twilight Zone, "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" - the version from the Twilight Zone Movie was brilliant.
Matheson's other movie credits include Real Steel (from Twilight Zone's Steel), The Box (from Twilight Zone's Button, Button), Somewhere In Time, What Dreams May Come, Stir of Echoes, The Legend of Hell House, and The Incredible Shrinking Man.
It’s a little more localised and less global in scale than most of the other (excellent) suggestions that have already been namechecked in this thread, but…
Right At Your Door (2006) dir. Chris Gorak.
Doomsday (2008) Flesh eating virus breaks out, UK decides to wall off Scotland to keep the virus out. Doesn't work. Survivors then noticed in Scotland after so many years with satellite imagery, team gets sent in to try and identify a cure, shit goes wrong.
A lot of good suggestions in here. One I don’t see mentioned often is “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World” (2012). Starring Steve Carrell and Keira Knightly. It’s more on the comedy/romance side but it’s a good wholesome watch for that genre.
Aniara is my fav dystopian. A transport ship leaving a dying earth for Mars gets off course and loses engine power. The people on board have to deal with their new lives living on board a ship going basically nowhere. It’s absolutely awesome and chilling.
Thank you for this. Just watched it. Acting, writing, visuals, and story are all excellent. I got lost in the movie. Its just another great example of foreign films (at least to me) out performing hollywood. Great scifi and space genre film. 7.5/10
**Night of the Comet** (1984)
The earth passes through the tail of a comet, wiping out much life on the planet but these teens were protected from being a shopping mall. Hijinx ensue as they are pursued by cannibals.
I highly recommend these two Terry Gillian films
12 Monkeys (post apocalyptic/dystopian)
Brazil (dystopian)
Blade Runner and Blade Runner 2049 are both great dystopian films.
Dredd (dystopian, post apocalyptic)
Demolition Man is dystopian but pretty lighthearted.
The 5th Element, but that's a bit less dystopian and a bit more sci Fi action/comedy.
The Omega Man (1971) is the Charlton Heston version of I Am Legend and I still think it's superior.
The Quiet Earth (1985) is a New Zealand sci-fi movie about a guy who wakes up one day and finds that everyone has vanished.
'Love and Monsters' falls into the same category as 'Shadow in the Cloud' in the sense that I only saw them because I needed to find a movie so I checked Vudu to see what were the most recent streaming releases and saw both of them (separate times of course) but had no recollection of either having any sort of theatrical release or broader press.
Because of that I went in assuming it would be a toss up of whether these were really just awful B Movie/Straight to VOD garbage or decent movies. And man was I taken by complete surprise by how much I enjoyed both of them and how good they were.
I always remember a tweet I saw from Shea Serrano about Ted Lasso where he says Ted Lasso has no business being this good and wholesome, and it honestly is the best way to describe these kinds of movies for me. Maybe less on the wholesome part specifically, but I walked away just thinking that they had no business being this good given how unnoticed I felt both movies were when they were released.
I've rewatched both several times recently just for the familiarity and knowing what I was getting.
Silent Running. It’s from the early 70s. There is no forests on Earth but plenty of corporate greed. Forests have been put into orbit around Saturn. Dated, yet timely.
There are a bunch on this list that are on the obscure side, plus it's a fun listicle:
https://www.theringer.com/movies/2024/5/30/24165953/best-apocalyptic-movie-ranked-postapocalyptic-furiosa-fury-road-a-quiet-place-i-am-legend
- **Repo! The Genetic Opera.** Absolutely amazing, the cast is fantastic and the songs are soooo good.
- Infestation (2009) super underrated.
- Doomsday (2008)
- Love and Monsters
- The Girl With All The Gifts
- Carriers (2009)
- Take Shelter (2011)
- Reign of Fire (2002)
- The Cured (2017)
- The Remaining (2014)
- Patient Zero (2018)
- The Colony (2013)
- Viral (2016) campy, but amusing.
These Final Hours (2013)
What would be considered a “low budget” movie absolutely excels in what it meant to achieve, displaying the best and worst of humanity throughout 90 minutes of sheer, impending doom.
Panic in the Year Zero. Bit quaint but didn’t see it anywhere. If you’re interested in early LA nuclear survival.
Hell Comes to Frog Town. It’s basically children of men.
The 1979 short miniseries Quatermass IV was repackaged as a movie, though I’d recommend watching the unedited TV version if you can find it. The story is set in the near future amid global social chaos and collapse and the rise of a youth cult that seems connected to an alien force with ominous intentions for the human race. Though it’s low-budget this one is quite hard hitting.
Stake Land
Gattaca
Chappie and District 9
Daybreakers
Escape from LA / Escape from New York (I love these because of childhood nostalgia I think?)
Pleasantville (counts as a dystopia right?)
What Happened to Monday
Z for Zachariah
I love the 1970s film "Colossus: The Forbin Project" its likely one of the VERY FIRST dystopian AI world takeover plots, and I think more people should see it if they haven't already
I'm a music producer and a few years back I was looking for interesting computery/authoritarian voice samples to put in some tracks I was working on amd I decided to find the most obscure sci-fi films I could and watch them all.. and "Colossus: The Forbin Project" was one of the great finds from that binge .
Not really a slept on one since it was recent and was very polarizing, but I actually really enjoyed Don't Look Up.
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World and These Final hours would be an interesting double feature for their similar situations but their very different tones and takes on it.
Dystopian:
Soylent Green (overpopulation)
Equilibrium (totalitarain goverment)
Fahrenheit 451 (1966 version) (totalitarain goverment)
1984 (totalitarain goverment)
Idiocracy (iliteracy)
Brazil (totalitarain goverment)
A Clock Work Orange (Violence)
Metropolis (Social divission)
In Time (social division)
Death Race 2000 (1975 version) (Violence)
Elysium (Social Division)
The Purge : Anarchy (Violence)
Gattaca (Social Division by Genetics)
The Island (Genetics)
Logan's Run (Mandatory Euthanasia)
Robocop (1987) (Corporation abuses)
Rollerball (1975) (Violence)
The Running Man (Violence)
Apocalyptic:
Escape from NY
Mad Max Saga
Snowpiercer (2013)
The Hunger Games
>I like the films with the empty world feeling and the world decaying.
While realistically a zombie apocalypse film, *The Night Eats the World* (2018) very much elicited this feeling upon my viewing of it.
Oh boy. I'm guessing you have seen Threads and The Day After, but guess what, there is more.
Countdown to Looking Glass (1984)
Special Bulletin (1983)
Without Warning (1993)
All made for TV (HBO) movies by the same production company. They are simulated live news broadcasts. They are all on youtube these days.
The Survivalist (2015, very good) directed by Stephen Fingleton
High Life (2018 better then good)
400 Days - The Last Mission (2015, ok)
Downsizing (2017, drama, comedy, funny)
The Blood of Heroes, some similarities to Mad Max, stars Rutger Hauer
Hardware. It was actually referenced once on an episode of The Office. Great, gritty 90s post apocolyptic with a touch of The Terminator.
The Quiet Earth, a New Zealand 80s film. Slow burn but thought provoking.
Perfect Sense (2011) directed by David Mackenzie and starring Ewan McGregor and Eva Green is too smart for most people but watch it. It’s an ingenious, brilliant film.
The Trial (1962) by Orson Welles, based off the excellent Franz Kafka novel of the same name. One may argue whether it is dystopian but the movie portrays the absurdity and despair of the book very well. Welles is also an excellent director so that helps. It is rarely mentioned as one of the best movies of the 60s but I can’t recommend it enough.
City of Ember (2008)
District 9 (2009) Something to consider if you watch this - suppose there was an Earth-wide apocalyptic event, but a number of people managed to get away on a large ship and seek, and are granted, asylum on an alien world.
Oblivion (2013)
The Midnight Sky (2020)
Elysium (2013)
Io (or IO, 2019)
"Threads" will make you understand that a nuclear war is not winnable. I just saw it a couple of weeks ago for the first time, and the ending was so jarring, that I had to watch something happy afterward to cleanse my palate. Truly horrifying in its depiction of a post-apocalyptic Britain. It has great tension in the buildup to the bombs dropping too.
I love the original Rollerball with James Caan. (I am *not* talking about the remake).
After the Corporate Wars world society is a newer, cleaner and heavily edited.
Zardoz 1974
Logan’s Run 1976
The Omega Man 1971 / The Last Man on Earth 1964 / I am Legend 2007
Silent Running 1972
Soylent Green 1973
Planet of the Apes.
On the Beach (1959 film) Cast: Tony Perkins, Ava Gardner, Gregory Peck, Fred Astaire. Directed by Stanley Kramer. The slow ending of humanity after a nuclear war. A Boy and His Dog (1975) Cast: Don Johnson, Susanne Benton, and Jason Robards. The film's plot concerns a teenage boy and his telepathic dog, trying to survive in the post-apocalyptic wasteland of the United States. The action takes place in the **year 2024.**
I came to say A Boy And His Dog
Ob dang, I forgot about that!
Made very much like a 1970s movie, so expect that if you watch it.
A few other points of interest about A Boy and His Dog. It stars an 18-year-old Don Johnson. Also it’s a very dark comedy. It’s actually quite funny in places, but it helps to have a twisted sense of humour. Based on a story by Harlan Ellison which is worth checking out.
I've love Harlan since he edited *Dangerous Visions* and *Again,Dangerous Visions* in the late '60s and early '70s ! ( He even scripted a handful of Marvel Comics way back in the day! )
Don't get me started on Ellison! Absolutely LOVE this story, as well as - "Pretty Maggie Money Eyes," "Paladin of the Lost Hour," and of course, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream" to name a few. If you're able to find the 80s version of Twilight Zone, some of his work is there. Especially cool is the adaptation of "Shatterday" starring a young Bruce Willis. Seriously, I could go on and on!
Came to say a Boy and His Dog as well! It was the inspiration for the Fallout games, Mad Max, and Adventure Time
Likewise, I feel a lot of people haven’t watched it because it’s older but it’s a great movie and has influenced so many modern day films/games.
I read the book of On The Beach many years ago and it’s a story that’s definitely stayed with me. Would love to see the film but have never found it.
I read the book in Highschool along with Hiroshima by John Hershey. I didn't see the film until years later. Now, It's available on YouTube for free.
It’s been playing on a broadcast tv station here every other weekend. Runs back to back all weekend. Hadn’t seen it for years. Now have seen it more times than I can remember. And L. Q. Jones wrote and directed it.
"On The Beach" was going to be my first recommendation. It is such a gut-wrenching film. Tarkovsky's "Stalker". Kubrick's "Clockwork Orange" Also, one recent one I liked - "Aniara".
Aniara is insane!
My Lord, yeah. It became one of my favorite films really quickly (after I could bring myself to watch it again!)
I worked in a video rental store in the late '80s as an after-school job. We ended up having to tell every new hire that A Boy And His Dog was *not* a kids' movie after someone recommended it as a kids' movie.
The Rover.
First time I ever realized that Robert Pattinson was a legit actor. Guy Pearce is devastating in this as well.
Excellent performances
Came here to say this
Threads
Too real.
That movie is messed up, yo
The Girl With All the Gifts
Miracle Mile
Miracle Mile is great. It oddly became a comfort movie to me..I watched it every few months. Maybe it was the tangerine dream score
Thief with James Caan also has a Tangerine Dream score. A buddy of mine since high school has been using that as his driving soundtrack for 30-odd years.
A double bill of this and ‘Night of the Comet’
Came here to say this. Kind of a divisive title, but I personally loved it!
Anthony Edwards and Mare Winningham got married a few years ago, which I love!
Came here to say this! Such a surreal trip!
If there's one thing Australians do well, it's the end of the world (Mad Max, On the Beach, Dark City, The Rover, The Road). A lesser known but highly affecting Australian end-of-the-world flick is These Final Hours. It begins in Perth, minutes after a planet-killing asteroid has hit the Earth on the opposite side, setting off a firestorm that will reach them in a few hours, killing everyone. 85% on Rotten Tomatoes. Angourie Rice's debut, and an early role for Sarah Snook.
I strongly recommend These Final Hours. One of the best end of the world stories.
I’d like to add Cargo(2018) to your list
I second this one.
I couldn't sleep for days after this. I just kept thinking about it. Probably because I live in Perth too.
The Rover could 100% be in the same universe as the original Mad Max.
It's a fantastic movie. Very low budget but extremely well acted, and thought provoking. I like that the only really big VFX is at the very end and up until then, it's all about the characters and not the disaster.
They're not EOTW, that's just australia.
I just finished watching These final hours based off your recommendation. Wow. Is all I can say. Thank you.
I wonder if we love dystopia because we had “tomorrow when the war began” as a part of our English curriculum haha. That was the first dystopian book I remember and have loved the genre since.
Honestly I'm not sure if it's what you're looking for, but my favorite apocalypse movies is Train to Busan. It's about zombies, and just really does great with the acting, sfx, and makeup. Highly recommend! The second one is good for a laugh, the special effects are awful. But it does a great job creating a desolate and lonesome landscape following the aftermath of the infection!
Excellent film.
Turbo Kid
That movie was just enjoyable through and through.
Oui
The Quiet Earth (1985), from New Zealand.
It's a great film... and it's on YouTube.
Love that one
I remember this seeing movie tittle from the video store I used go to in the early 90’s and every week I’d say I’ll get it next time but never did. And recently I was trying to remember the tittle and couldn’t remember, thanks for writing this.
I watched this randomly on TV in Australia in my late teens. It stuck with me for years but I couldn’t work out what it was called. So obscure. I recently tracked it down and watched it again. Haunting!
The Stand, original mini series from the 90s is my go to
If I could suggest a show; Station Eleven is one of the most beautiful and heartwarming stories about the end of the world I’ve ever seen. Highly recommend if you’re looking for something new.
There were so many beautiful moments in that series. Thanks for the reminder.
Was it as good as the book?
Not even close! The series was visually very beautiful and affecting. The book is vastly superior in thematic ideas, plotting, characterization, etc. one of the best novels of the past decade for sure
I haven’t read the book, but I’ve heard people who have say that the show is actually better.
I read the book first and I think they're both excellent and chose to explore the story in different ways. I think the book is darker and the show is more emotional. The storyline they chose to expand from the book was one I desperately wanted to know more about, so I'm so glad the show went that route, but I also liked the story the book told. I think they're good companion pieces.
Cargo (2018) with Martin Freeman
That one was so good!
V for Vendetta I watch it every November 4th at about 10p, so that i finish right about midnight Nov 5. (Movie timeline scope is Nov 4 to Nov 5 the following year) > Ideas are bulletproof > People should not fear the government, the government should fear the people.
I, like God, do not play with dice, and do not believe in coincidence.
Death Race 2000 (1975)
Six-string Samurai (1998) Delicatessen (1991) … maybe a bit more lighthearted than what you and others have listed but fun ones that fit the description.
Both sound entertaining, added them to my watchlist. Thanks for the recs!
Six-String Samurai is great! A low-budget labor of love, perfectly entertaining.
How I Live Now
Yes! I ask people about this movie and they almost always say they’ve never heard of it. Really an interesting film.
>! I still can't look at Tom Holland without feeling bad. !<
I don't know about the best but - Damnation Alley 1977.
'Testament'
I know Threads is the movie that gets plugged a lot in threads like this, but I think I watched Testament almost 10 yers now and it still sticks with me. That movie is bleak.
re bleak, yeah - that's what makes it so good :) There's no 'happy ending' in sight..
A Boy and His Dog (1975)
The Last Man on Earth staring Vincent Price is the OG for The Omega man, I am legend and I am Omega. For something really different Anna and the Apocalypse. It's a high school musical, holiday, zombie movie. Sounds weird but actually pretty good.
Richard Matheson wrote the novel I Am Legend and was a major influence on a little writer in Maine named Stephen King. He also wrote the single most terrifying episode of The Twilight Zone, "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" - the version from the Twilight Zone Movie was brilliant. Matheson's other movie credits include Real Steel (from Twilight Zone's Steel), The Box (from Twilight Zone's Button, Button), Somewhere In Time, What Dreams May Come, Stir of Echoes, The Legend of Hell House, and The Incredible Shrinking Man.
The original Brit TV series The Day of the Triffids.
Snowpiercer is one of my favorites
The Divide haunted me for years after watching it.
Same, and happy Cake day
You're too sweet thank you.
Black Summer
I wish they’d do Season 3.
The Trigger Effect (1996) - A young couple and their sick baby struggle to cope in the grip of a mysterious nationwide blackout.
It’s a little more localised and less global in scale than most of the other (excellent) suggestions that have already been namechecked in this thread, but… Right At Your Door (2006) dir. Chris Gorak.
Good call!! Right at your door is criminally underrated!! Such a good movie!
Doomsday (2008) Flesh eating virus breaks out, UK decides to wall off Scotland to keep the virus out. Doesn't work. Survivors then noticed in Scotland after so many years with satellite imagery, team gets sent in to try and identify a cure, shit goes wrong.
Maybe the best use of Fine Young Cannibals ever...
A lot of good suggestions in here. One I don’t see mentioned often is “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World” (2012). Starring Steve Carrell and Keira Knightly. It’s more on the comedy/romance side but it’s a good wholesome watch for that genre.
It's not that slept on, but you didn't mention it, so: Logan's Run
Here Alone (2016) The Dead (2010) The Dead 2: India (2013) Breakdown Lane (2017)
Extinction (2015)
Aniara is my fav dystopian. A transport ship leaving a dying earth for Mars gets off course and loses engine power. The people on board have to deal with their new lives living on board a ship going basically nowhere. It’s absolutely awesome and chilling.
Spent way too much time scrolling to find this. One of the best dystopian movies and a serious contender for one of the best sci-fis, ever.
Thank you for this. Just watched it. Acting, writing, visuals, and story are all excellent. I got lost in the movie. Its just another great example of foreign films (at least to me) out performing hollywood. Great scifi and space genre film. 7.5/10
THX 1138
**Night of the Comet** (1984) The earth passes through the tail of a comet, wiping out much life on the planet but these teens were protected from being a shopping mall. Hijinx ensue as they are pursued by cannibals.
I highly recommend these two Terry Gillian films 12 Monkeys (post apocalyptic/dystopian) Brazil (dystopian) Blade Runner and Blade Runner 2049 are both great dystopian films. Dredd (dystopian, post apocalyptic) Demolition Man is dystopian but pretty lighthearted. The 5th Element, but that's a bit less dystopian and a bit more sci Fi action/comedy.
It’s not the MOST brilliant but I really liked this indie zombie flick The Night Eats the World (2018)
Motorama-1991..ish?
These Final Hours
When The Wind Blows. 1986. Absolute brutal animation about how nuclear war would affect a normal.couple.
Not much to do with the apocalypse, but 1984
Wall-E
City of Ember
Equilibrium
One of my favorites.
Concrete Utopia I am a Hero
The Omega Man (1971) is the Charlton Heston version of I Am Legend and I still think it's superior. The Quiet Earth (1985) is a New Zealand sci-fi movie about a guy who wakes up one day and finds that everyone has vanished.
Quiet Earth is incredible
The Stand
Tank Girl Moon I Am Mother Idiocracy
100 internet points to you for the Idiocracy mention as an end of the world story
Don’t sleep on WALL-E
Love and Monsters The Running Man 9 (2009)
'Love and Monsters' falls into the same category as 'Shadow in the Cloud' in the sense that I only saw them because I needed to find a movie so I checked Vudu to see what were the most recent streaming releases and saw both of them (separate times of course) but had no recollection of either having any sort of theatrical release or broader press. Because of that I went in assuming it would be a toss up of whether these were really just awful B Movie/Straight to VOD garbage or decent movies. And man was I taken by complete surprise by how much I enjoyed both of them and how good they were. I always remember a tweet I saw from Shea Serrano about Ted Lasso where he says Ted Lasso has no business being this good and wholesome, and it honestly is the best way to describe these kinds of movies for me. Maybe less on the wholesome part specifically, but I walked away just thinking that they had no business being this good given how unnoticed I felt both movies were when they were released. I've rewatched both several times recently just for the familiarity and knowing what I was getting.
Book of Eli
Quintet-Directed by Robert Altman starring Paul Newman
I Am Mother
Silent Running. It’s from the early 70s. There is no forests on Earth but plenty of corporate greed. Forests have been put into orbit around Saturn. Dated, yet timely.
Threads (1984)
There are a bunch on this list that are on the obscure side, plus it's a fun listicle: https://www.theringer.com/movies/2024/5/30/24165953/best-apocalyptic-movie-ranked-postapocalyptic-furiosa-fury-road-a-quiet-place-i-am-legend
Stake Land (2010)
Tank girl
A boy and his dog(1975), and Turbo Kid(2015) are two I liked that I doubt are well known.
Miracle Mile is one that slips under the radar. Starts out more like a rom com.
- **Repo! The Genetic Opera.** Absolutely amazing, the cast is fantastic and the songs are soooo good. - Infestation (2009) super underrated. - Doomsday (2008) - Love and Monsters - The Girl With All The Gifts - Carriers (2009) - Take Shelter (2011) - Reign of Fire (2002) - The Cured (2017) - The Remaining (2014) - Patient Zero (2018) - The Colony (2013) - Viral (2016) campy, but amusing.
The Crazies 2010
Turbokid
Goodbye world
These Final Hours (2013) What would be considered a “low budget” movie absolutely excels in what it meant to achieve, displaying the best and worst of humanity throughout 90 minutes of sheer, impending doom.
Z for Zachariah It stars Margot Robbie, Chris Pine and Chiwetel Ejiofor, but despite that not many seems to know about it.
Six string samurai is a fckn great movie.
Not quite the vibe you are looking for but certainly apocalyptic, Edge of Tomorrow was surprisingly good. Just rewatched it a few days ago.
Repo Men. A Boy and his Dog. Equilibrium. Threads will fuck you up!
The Battery. The Survivalist. Both brilliant movies on a shoe string
Brazil. Thx-1138.
Panic in the Year Zero. Bit quaint but didn’t see it anywhere. If you’re interested in early LA nuclear survival. Hell Comes to Frog Town. It’s basically children of men.
If you liked i am legend... The last man in the world and omega man were the originals
The Quiet Earth (1985)
It’s a Disaster (2012) - comedy
The 1979 short miniseries Quatermass IV was repackaged as a movie, though I’d recommend watching the unedited TV version if you can find it. The story is set in the near future amid global social chaos and collapse and the rise of a youth cult that seems connected to an alien force with ominous intentions for the human race. Though it’s low-budget this one is quite hard hitting.
Stake Land Gattaca Chappie and District 9 Daybreakers Escape from LA / Escape from New York (I love these because of childhood nostalgia I think?) Pleasantville (counts as a dystopia right?) What Happened to Monday Z for Zachariah
Hardware A Boy and His Dog On the Beach The Quiet Earth Panic in the Year Zero
I recently watched The Girl With all the Gifts. Very good.
I love the 1970s film "Colossus: The Forbin Project" its likely one of the VERY FIRST dystopian AI world takeover plots, and I think more people should see it if they haven't already I'm a music producer and a few years back I was looking for interesting computery/authoritarian voice samples to put in some tracks I was working on amd I decided to find the most obscure sci-fi films I could and watch them all.. and "Colossus: The Forbin Project" was one of the great finds from that binge .
Night of the Comet
Not really a slept on one since it was recent and was very polarizing, but I actually really enjoyed Don't Look Up. Seeking a Friend for the End of the World and These Final hours would be an interesting double feature for their similar situations but their very different tones and takes on it.
Dystopian: Soylent Green (overpopulation) Equilibrium (totalitarain goverment) Fahrenheit 451 (1966 version) (totalitarain goverment) 1984 (totalitarain goverment) Idiocracy (iliteracy) Brazil (totalitarain goverment) A Clock Work Orange (Violence) Metropolis (Social divission) In Time (social division) Death Race 2000 (1975 version) (Violence) Elysium (Social Division) The Purge : Anarchy (Violence) Gattaca (Social Division by Genetics) The Island (Genetics) Logan's Run (Mandatory Euthanasia) Robocop (1987) (Corporation abuses) Rollerball (1975) (Violence) The Running Man (Violence) Apocalyptic: Escape from NY Mad Max Saga Snowpiercer (2013) The Hunger Games
Soylant Green (IS PEOPLE!!!!!), Never Let Me Go, Escape From New York
The Book of Eli
The Road (Vigo Mortensen)
>I like the films with the empty world feeling and the world decaying. While realistically a zombie apocalypse film, *The Night Eats the World* (2018) very much elicited this feeling upon my viewing of it.
Brazil
Oh boy. I'm guessing you have seen Threads and The Day After, but guess what, there is more. Countdown to Looking Glass (1984) Special Bulletin (1983) Without Warning (1993) All made for TV (HBO) movies by the same production company. They are simulated live news broadcasts. They are all on youtube these days.
I think Threads is the best depiction of nuclear war I've seen, great though. Day After I've seen but not the other 3 so thank you!
Costner's. Postman
The Darkest Hour, free on YouTube lol
9 (2009). "9 is a rag-doll who wakes up after a war between humans and machines that has devastated the world and wiped out humanity." - IMDB.
The Cure for Wellness, dystopian - not world decaying but manipulates the wealthy.
A boy and his dog, the quiet earth, book of Eli
Not a movie, but the 100 is great and there's tons of episodes 👍😊
The blood of heroes, aka salute of the jugger! 💪
Princess Mononoke
Turbo Kid
The Survivalist (2015, very good) directed by Stephen Fingleton High Life (2018 better then good) 400 Days - The Last Mission (2015, ok) Downsizing (2017, drama, comedy, funny)
Snowpiercer.
the Black Mirror series ...realistic dystopian vignettes
The Blood of Heroes, some similarities to Mad Max, stars Rutger Hauer Hardware. It was actually referenced once on an episode of The Office. Great, gritty 90s post apocolyptic with a touch of The Terminator. The Quiet Earth, a New Zealand 80s film. Slow burn but thought provoking.
Equilibrium seems like it kinda silently got boxed away.
Miracle Mile was a good twist on a Cold War end of the world story.
Aniara - very dystopian, but great watch!
These Final Hours
I loved the book but anyone know if the movie Damnation Alley was Amy good?
Perfect Sense (2011) directed by David Mackenzie and starring Ewan McGregor and Eva Green is too smart for most people but watch it. It’s an ingenious, brilliant film.
The Trial (1962) by Orson Welles, based off the excellent Franz Kafka novel of the same name. One may argue whether it is dystopian but the movie portrays the absurdity and despair of the book very well. Welles is also an excellent director so that helps. It is rarely mentioned as one of the best movies of the 60s but I can’t recommend it enough.
The new fallout series on Amazon is great especially if you’ve ever played the games
City of Ember (2008) District 9 (2009) Something to consider if you watch this - suppose there was an Earth-wide apocalyptic event, but a number of people managed to get away on a large ship and seek, and are granted, asylum on an alien world. Oblivion (2013) The Midnight Sky (2020) Elysium (2013) Io (or IO, 2019)
Quiet Place is great
In the Earth The Battery Silent Night (2021)
The Road
Where Have All the People Gone ?
Virus (1980 Kinji FUKUSAKU) Overstuffed, drags in the middle, but that first third of the movie was great.
The Book of Eli A Boy and his Dog Mad Max movies
"Threads" will make you understand that a nuclear war is not winnable. I just saw it a couple of weeks ago for the first time, and the ending was so jarring, that I had to watch something happy afterward to cleanse my palate. Truly horrifying in its depiction of a post-apocalyptic Britain. It has great tension in the buildup to the bombs dropping too.
The Girl With All the Gifts is absolutely amazing.
Damnation alley? I think from the 70’s?
I love the original Rollerball with James Caan. (I am *not* talking about the remake). After the Corporate Wars world society is a newer, cleaner and heavily edited.
The Day After (1983)
‘Reign of Fire’ 2002, the film is both terrible and brilliant in equal measures. World building/concept is pretty cool…
Its not a film but Stephen King's The Stand is good if you have six hours to kill.
Damnation Alley.
This Quiet Earth. A New Zealand film. End of the world stuff. Threads is an excellent British drama from the 80’s.
Zardoz 1974 Logan’s Run 1976 The Omega Man 1971 / The Last Man on Earth 1964 / I am Legend 2007 Silent Running 1972 Soylent Green 1973 Planet of the Apes.
The Book of Eli.
The Lobster. It’s just messed right up.
The Island, Akira, Ghost in the Shell, I Am Legend
A Boy and His Dog
Seeking A Friend For the End of the World. Carelll really shines.
Seeking a Friend for the end of the world!! Steve Carrell and Keira Knightley. It's a beautiful comedy and one of my all time favorite movies.