Eric Duffert:
Children of Men
If you haven’t seen Children of Men yet, you really don’t know what you’re missing. As far as apocalyptic movies go, this is about as good as it gets. Loosely based on the P.D. James novel of the same title, this daring and boldly original film is a dystopian tale centered around a global infertility epidemic. Clive Owen plays a civil servant who is handed the assignment of escorting a pregnant refugee to safety. Not an easy task when no one is to be trusted and everyone wants you dead. Combining mind-blowing action sequences with gorgeous cinematography, Children of Men is like nothing you’ve seen before. Oh, and it has Michael Caine in it. Need I say more?
28 Days Later
When it comes to apocalyptic films there isn’t a storyline quite as exhausted and banal as the one that includes flesh-eating zombies. It’s been done to death—sometimes brilliantly but most often horrendously. One film that is without a doubt one of the better retellings is Danny Boyle’s 28 Days Later. Though it’s only a meager ten years old, the film has more originality than most of its predecessors combined. Of course, it’s hard to do wrong with Danny Boyle behind the camera. Directing such superb films as Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire and 127 Hours, Danny Boyle has established himself as one of Hollywood’s most gifted and original directors. If you have not seen the film, 28 Days Later tracks a band of survivors as they seek refuge four weeks after a mysterious and incurable virus spreads throughout the U.K. It somehow manages to avoid the clichés that plague the zombie horror genre while at the same time flipping it completely on its head. A rare and impressive feat to say the least.
Griffin Guinta:
Deep Impact
When a gigantic meteor heads towards Earth, the demise of mankind seems imminent. However, under the leadership of the president (who is, of course, played by Morgan Freeman) a team of elite astronauts take to the sky in hopes of detonating the meteor before it crushes the Earth completely. Meanwhile, people back on the planet scramble to make preparations for the impending attack. Though it has an eerily similar plot to the movie Armageddon, Deep Impact captures an extremely realistic sense of what it would be like to endure such a disaster. Due to its infusion of suspense and action, Deep Impact ranks among the top apocalyptic movies of all time.
I Am Legend
At the start of I Am Legend, A disgruntled doctor (Will Smith) and his trusty canine trudge through the empty streets of New York. At first glance, they seem to be alone and the city appears completely devoid of other people. However, we eventually find out that they are not alone after all. After a horrible pandemic strikes most of the globe, people begin transforming into strange creatures that bear resemblance to what we would classify as zombies. Though incredibly depressing at times, I Am Legend will keep you on the edge of your seat for the duration of the film. Will Smith’s hilarious and crafty persona keeps the movie from getting too dull, and strong action scenes consistently pique the viewer’s interest. If you’re a fan of the Walking Dead or any other zombie apocalypse-oriented genre, I Am Legend will be right up your alley.