I am
at my second Sundance Film Festival. These are my reviews.
Sundance Film Festival 2015 Reviews
Z for Zachariah DIRECTOR: Craig Zobel SCREENWRITER: Nissar Modi PRINCIPAL CAST: Margot Robbie, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Chris Pine U.S.A., 2014, 95 min., color
Plot (courtesy of Sundance): In a post-apocalyptic world, a young woman who believes she is the last human on Earth meets a dying scientist searching for survivors. Their relationship becomes tenuous when another survivor appears. As the two men compete for the woman’s affection, their primal urges begin to reveal their true nature.
Review: Sometimes you crave a movie to give you more information. You're desperate for backstory and details. That's definitely not the case in the very addictive Z for Zachariah. Ann (Robbie) is surviving in a post-apocalyptic radioactive world, hanging out on a farm, and a long comes Loomis (Ejiofor). They're different (race and religion). Robbie gives a wonderful performance and you feel her desperation to connect to a human after being alone for so long. She's also quite religious and a little navie. While Loomis and Ann grow closer, the monkey wrench know as Caleb (Pine) enters the picture.
The film takes on the love angle (triangle technically means everyone hooks up) and it's not annoying. Yes, most love triangles are annoying. You're just waiting for the dance of will they/won't they to get done so we can get on with the show. Instead, we're left with plenty to chew on, and even though you can see everything coming a mile away, it does not derail the enjoy of the film. The simple science fiction world and fantastic performances give the necessary jolt to a love angle that thankfully doesn't feel typical.
Since it in a film with only three performances (besides the dog) the film will leave you addicted to Robbie's beauty without makeup, Pine's blue eyes, and Ejiofor's wonderfully sloppy beard. I couldn't get enough of those things, or the basic human emotions of Z for Zachariah.
Score: 8/10