The Last Journey is available on digital and DVD from March 7th. The film won Sitges’ Best Film award in 2020.
Synopsis
2050. Temperatures have reached new, unbearable heights. Most wildlife species have gone extinct, and hundreds of millions of people have become climatic refugees, while the world’s oil, coal and gas reserves have been exhausted: the sixth mass extinction is no longer a hypothesis, it is real. As the mysterious Red Moon is dangerously nearing Earth, only one man can save our world: his name is Paul W.R.
Review
In the year 2050 humanity sits on a precipice. After bleeding dry all our natural resources, a new energy source arises in the form of a new Red Moon. Scientist Henri W.R (Jean Reno) and his company has exploited the moon for its limitless energy simultaneously setting it on a collision course with the Earth.
Our story picks up with little over a week to go before humanity is set to be destroyed. Our only hope is the son of Henri W.R., Paul (Hugo Becker). Paul has gone missing, running as far as is physically possible from his role as saviour.
Director Romain Quirot has crafted as sumptuous landscape for his vision of the future. The visual effects, costume and set design teams have surpassed all expectations in their level of detail. Falling somewhere between Mad Max and Blade Runner, The Last Journey is every bit as epic as its Hollywood counterparts. With an independent release such as this there are always concerns that they will reach beyond their budget, cheapening the final result. That couldn’t be further from the truth here.
Quirot has carefully chosen locations for visual impact, enhancing them with aspects of visual and practical effects rather than constructing the world purely in CGI. The desert world where Paul has escaped lends itself perfectly to the end of the world idea. Littering the sandy landscape with vestiges of the past creates a busy images but perfectly communicates the idea of being post-apocalyptic to the audience.
Visual effects range from the huge Red Moon which cuts across the backdrop of the desert, to small handheld communication devices and screen readouts. The production team has cleverly kept visual effects to a minimum where possible, carving out chunks of the budget for the larger, more dominating moments.
Much of the narrative hangs on the shoulders of Hugo Becker as Paul. His dynamic with teenage girl Elma (Lya Oussadit-Lessert) is the heart at the centre of the story. Elma and Paul find themselves thrown together and travelling the desert as Paul continues to escape his destiny. Oussadit-Lessert has a lot of weight to carry as Paul’s moral compass but she pulls it off effortlessly.
To add conflict to proceedings there is Eliott W.R (Paul Hamy). Eliott is sent up to the Red Moon in Paul’s place. Unfortunately he is killed in the process and returns to Earth reanimated with some rather lethal telepathic powers. Given the already high emotions it’s not a necessary subplot but does add a worthwhile layer to the already complex story.
Underpinning all of this is a fantastic score from Etienne Forget. Forget’s score mixes more traditional musical elements with more fantastical synthesiser beats. It evokes a feeling of watching an 80’s science-fiction epic and teams perfectly with Quirot’s visuals.
Verdict
Romain Quirot presents a visionary take on the end of humanity. The visual effects heavy landscape is littered with outstanding performances from the film’s main cast.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
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