These Final Hours review: It’s been a long time coming, but the Australian apocalypse drama still needs to be seen on the big screen.
Luke Ryan Baldock takes a look at the post-apocalyptic action film. Here’s his These Final Hours review.
These Final Hours review
Three bloody years we’ve had to wait for a theatrical release for These Final Hours. That’s far too long for a film of this brilliance, especially all the other tripe that has been and gone; I’m looking at you YA adaptations. Yes, once again we journey into a world where the world is actually ending, but rather than being post-apocalyptic, this is pre-apocalyptic, and when the faeces hits the air circulating instrument, it really will be the end of the world.
These Final Hours sees the world just hours away from ending. James (Nathan Phillips) makes his way to the last party on Earth, filled with drugs, women, and a damn good time. On his way he rescues a young girl called Rose (Angourie Rice) from some child abductors. His journey, and himself, begin to transform as he tries to reunite Rose with her father, while also questioning what he really wants from his last hours alive.
These Final Hours review
On its surface These Final Hours is far from a happy film. There’s no sense of escape or safety and we’re not faffing about with some government types as they launch missions to protect us. The end of the world is coming and that’s it. It would be very easy to become depressed by the film, but it’s the moments of hope and humanity that struggle through and keep us from feeling completely empty. James has no reason to save the Rose, and it’s likely to cause him more problems, but he does it because despite being self-centered, he’s not a complete shit.
Ideas of meaning in life permeate throughout, as James wrestles with his own conscience as to whether have the most fun he can imagine, or spend them with somebody who truly cares for him. This is all wonderfully portrayed by Phillips who is nothing short of phenomenal. Every choice he makes comes with confusion, trepidation, and even annoyance at himself. This is not your regular hero, and truth be told he’s hardly heroic at all. Phillips finds everything repulsive, lovable, admirable, and conflicting about humanity and puts it into a single performance. It’s very impressive indeed.
These Final Hours review
Zak Hilditch, who writes and directs, produces a film of great scope while being aware of his limitations. The film is shot with a blisteringly scorching look that keeps everything bright, but to a suitably uncomfortable level, it’s an excellent look from cinematographer Bonnie Elliot. Hilditch creates a terrifying world in which we cheer on the protagonist during tense moments of anarchy, only to realise during our comedown that everyone is doomed anyway. It may not sound too enjoyable, but the action is so well crafted and gets your heart beating that you feel the adrenaline that the characters must be dealing with.
These Final Hours is a real tour-de-force. Forcing you to confront mortality and humanity, while allowing you to get swept away in pulsating sequences of genuine terror. Every bit as humbling, emotional, and well written as the Playstation 3 classic The Last Of Us, Hilditch takes an overused concept, simplifies it, looks at the more important philosophical and ethical implications, and delivers a triumphant film. This should be smacking blockbusters out of multiplexes.
These Final Hours reviewed by Luke Ryan Baldock, May 2016.
These Final Hours is released in UK cinemas from 6th May.
