THESE FINAL HOURS (2014) MOVIE NEWS & REVIEW

these final hours (2014) movie

Genre              |   Science Fiction

Classification   |   MA 15+

Running time   |   87 minutes

Released         |   31 July 2014

cast

Jessica De Gouw ... Zoe
Nathan Phillips ... James
David Field ... Radio Man
Angourie Rice ... Rose
Sarah Snook ... Mandy's Mum
​Lynette Curran ... James' Mum

director

Zak Hilditch

writer

Zak Hilditch

cinematographer

​Bonnie Elliott ... director of photography

music

​Cornel Wilczek

film editor

​Nick Meyers ... (edited by)

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box office result

Worldwide               $ not reported  

Australia                 $​​310,000

North America        $​ not reported

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movie minutiae

​Perth is antipodal to Bermuda in the Atlantic. Therefore, an asteroid strike in the North Atlantic would leave Perth as one of the last places on Earth the firestorm would hit.

​This movie was produced under a very limited budget of 2.5 million US dollars.

​The drunk man from whom James steals the taxi is singing the Claremont Tigers' WAFL club song which shares most of the lyrics with the Richmond Tigers' AFL club song.

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THESE FINAL HOURS (2014) STORY SYNOPSIS

It's the last day on earth, twelve hours before a cataclysmic event will end life as we know it. James makes his way across a lawless and chaotic city to the party to end all parties. Along the way, he somewhat reluctantly saves the life of a little girl named Rose who is desperately searching for her father. Stuck with the unexpected burden of responsibility, James is forced to come to terms with what really matters in life as the final hours tick away.

THESE FINAL HOURS (2014) MOVIE REVIEW

Reviewed by Mark Geraghty   |   Review date 30 July 2014

​Pop ​Movee Rating

Zak Hilditch's feature film debut is a mixed affair that has moments of poetry punctuated by the disturbing and downright bizarre. It's a credit to this young filmmaker that he has managed to write, secure financing, direct and get a distribution deal done on a film whose very title suggests that all is not going to end happily...

THESE FINAL HOURS is about James, a young man with a troubled past whose response to the news that the world is coming to an end is to abandon the girl he's got pregnant and head to the world's last great hedonistic party. 

On face value the character, played by Wolf Creek's Nathan Phillips, doesn't seem like such a great guy, but Hilditch's story is one of redemption and love. James’ journey to his friend's party turns into modern day Homeric Odyssey when he is, at first, attacked by a machete wielding psychopath and then, in homage to Bruce Willis saving Ving Rhames in Pulp Fiction, rescues Rose, twelve year old actress Angourie Rice, from two would-be rapists.

It's not easy to watch in parts, but the first 15 minutes of THESE FINAL HOURS sets James and Rose on a journey that has the clock ticking down to the end of the world.

James is initially reluctant to spend any more time than he has to with Rose, but it becomes apparent to him that to leave her means that she will die alone. Still unwilling to take full responsibility, James takes Rose to his sister's house and then on to the party itself. It's only when he arrives at the party that James realises that he's got it all wrong.

When Rose is fed a drug by an out-of-her-mind party-goer, played by Sarah Snook, James decides it's time to start doing something right in his life and leaves his demented friend Freddy, played by an over-the-top Daniel Henshall, and Vicky, James’ crazy other-girlfriend, played by Kathryn Beck, to face the end of the world among drug-crazed strangers!

The second half of the film is much stronger than the first, as the three key sequences post the party scenes are far less frenetic and hone in on the acting skill of Phillips and Rice.

Lynette Curran's performance as James’ mother brings a presence and maturity missing from the movie's first half.

There's also some great cinematography in the second half, especially at Rose's Auntie’s property and Bonnie Elliot’s photography helps to enhance the story as she captures the heat-soaked outer suburbs of Perth. The scenes at Rose’s Auntie’s property feel the most 'Australian' in terms of their look and sound and Hilditch doesn't force the pace too quickly which makes the reveal of what's happened more powerful.

There's an extremely heart-wrenching moment, with James behind the wheel of the car that anyone who's ever experienced any kind of loss will be able to sympathise. 

There are many moments that lift THESE FINAL HOURS above the standard apocalyptic, end-of-the-world movies.

What the film lacks in polish, it makes up for with heart and a desire to present something that is different and, at times, extremely challenging to watch.

​Zak Hilditch and his cast & crew have made a film that is genuine in its desire to show that goodness will prevail in the face of the most daunting of odds. In this case, the backdrop is the end of the world; not the most appealing subject matter, but, more often-than-not throughout its 87 minute run time, the story works. It’s encouraging to see an Australian film that is prepared to take these kinds of risks and succeed.

THESE FINAL HOURS MOVIE (2014) USEFUL LINKS

These Final Hours - Wikipedia
​These Final Hours (2013) - IMDb
​These Final Hours (2015) - Rotten Tomatoes​

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