Yahoo Movies The best post-apocalyptic movies
As Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga hits Sky Movies, we look at cinema’s darkest visions of the future.
They say that the world will end not with a bang, but a whimper. If cinema is any guide, that’s dead wrong: the world will end with running and screaming and a major role for motorbikes.
This week sees the launch of Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga on Sky Movies, so it feels like a good time to look at some other post-apocalyptic movies and see what we should be preparing for. Let’s stock up on canned goods and leather jackets and dive in…
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
What if humanity were no longer the top dogs on Earth? What if, in fact, the top dogs were apes? That’s the dark future conjured up in the Planet of the Apes series, both the Charlton Heston-starring original film of 1968 and the beautifully made prequels of the last decade or two. A plague devastates mankind, the chimps take over, and over four devastating films to date, humanity is reduced to a tiny rump of survivors hiding in remote locations while apes move into the ruins. It’ll make you reconsider visiting your local zoo ever again.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes is out on Disney+.
The Terminator (1984)
We only get a few glimpses of the future in the first Terminator film, but what we saw there scarred viewers for life. A nuclear war was only the opening salvo in this vision: after that, killer machines started to pick off the human survivors until only a tiny number of rebels remain. Still, however much John Connor leads the fight back, this future is still characterised by piles of human skulls being crushed under the metal foot of a lethal robot enemy. Make sure never to show ChatGPT this film; we don’t want it getting ideas.
The Terminator is available on MGM+.
Zombieland (2009)
Judging by Hollywood, zombies are the number one threat to civilisation: just look at the number of films that have been made about the shambling hordes. From George A. Romero’s original Night of the Living Dead to the much more comedic Shaun of the Dead, zombies have terrified us with their slow but unstoppable creep: like death itself, they can happen suddenly or after a long, gruelling chase. Zombieland is a helpful one to watch, however, because it provides rules on how to survive the zombie post-apocalypse like “beware of bathrooms” and “always carry a change of underwear”.
Zombieland is out on Netflix and Prime Video.
28 Days Later (2002)
What if zombies were fast? Ah, well then they’re called “infected” and Cillian Murphy’s Jim will be one of the few to survive the collapse of Britain to a “rage” virus that turns everyone else into slavering, biting, sprinting monsters. Honestly it’s pretty close to reality apart from the sprinting bit. This Danny Boyle film an unspeakably terrifying and utterly compelling vision of social breakdown, and with the second sequel 28 Years Later coming out (a little ahead of schedule) this summer, we’re going to get to see the long-term effect of living near these fast-moving hunters…
28 Days Later is available to buy and rent on digital platforms.
The Girl With All The Gifts (2016)
This British drama is not quite a zombie movie; here, the infection that ends civilisation is a fungal infection like one in hit game The Last Of Us. Children born to infected women, however, may hold the secret to a cure and Melanie (Sennia Nanua) is therefore the subject of observation and experimentation by Dr Caldwell (Glenn Close). But can they figure out the cure before her fellow infected destroy the last humans? It’s not looking good for non-plant-based lifeforms in this one.
28 Days Later is available to buy and rent on digital platforms.
I Am Legend (2007)
Another virus, but this one turns people into something more like vampires than zombies: sun-phobic and blood-drinking. Still, if you loved Cillian Murphy in an empty London, this offers Will Smith in an empty Manhattan. He is desperately trying to find a cure but also does relatable post-apocalyptic things like occupy a big house, commandeer a cool car and get loads of good films to watch with his dog. You know, he has a pretty dreamy life aside from the vampires. Maybe this apocalypse isn’t so bad.
I Am Legend is available on Sky Movies and NOW.
A Quiet Place (2018)
The biggest survival tip for A Quiet Place is also just good life advice: learn sign language. As well as helping you sneak around the “death angel” aliens that have invaded Earth and which hunt by sound in this chilling scenario, it will also allow you to talk in libraries right here and now. For the farming family in this story, it’s a lifeline as the monsters roam their neighbourhood listening for the slightest whisper. Oh, and you should probably stay away from people with allergies. A sneeze could be deadly here.
A Quiet Place is available on Paramount+.
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
Unquestionably the coolest vision of the apocalypse is the one in George Miller’s Mad Max series, and it’s turned up to 11 in this outing. Max (Tom Hardy) and Furiosa (Charlize Theron) each have their own reason to steal a “war rig” from the terrifying Immortan Joe, and must work together when he comes after them with his army of War Boys and one truck that’s just covered in amps, with a guy playing a fire guitar on the front. Civilisation may be done, but at least it’s replaced by something unbelievably metal.
Mad Max: Fury Road is available on Sky Movies and NOW.
