These Final Hours

On the Beach will likely always hold the honor as the best film about a group of people in Australia waiting for the world to end. But while most of the characters in Stanley Kramer’s 1959 film handle their impending doom with aplomb and quiet dignity, this isn’t the case for the folks in These Final Hours, who turn readily to violence, mayhem, sex and general hedonism when they learn that the end of the world is upon them.

Written and directed by Zak Hilditch, These Final Hours begins as a frenetic dash across a world gone to hell. As the rest of the globe has been engulfed by some apocalyptic event, the good people of Australia have about 12 hours until they are totally fucked. The film begins as James (Nathan Phillips) says goodbye to his lover, Zoe (Jessica De Gouw), telling her that he wants to go out on his own terms, aka completely numb with drugs and drink, rather than adhere to her plan of cuddling and watching the world end from the beach. But on his way to a big party, James is attacked by a machete-wielding assailant and then saves a young girl from a pair of would-be rapists. James agrees to help the girl, Rose (Angourie Rice), find her father, a last chance to redeem himself before the world is engulfed in flame.

In its best moments, These Final Hours is a thrilling game of scruples that asks: what would you do if the end of the world is nigh? As he traverses the nightmare that Perth has become, James encounters desperate people resorting to desperate measures. A visit to his sister’s home turns out to be the scene of a quiet tragedy. And when he finally gets to that party, he realizes his friends aren’t really the type of people he wants to be around.

We’ve already seen so many films where civilization has broken-down completely that it’s hard to find anything new These Final Hours brings to the genre. It does have, however, some quietly chilling scenes of empty neighborhoods, including one with a house on which someone has spray-painted “Sorry, I had to leave,” in big letters. It’s no wonder James finds innocent goodness in the young Rose while the world burns around him.

With its end preordained, it’s difficult to feel like there is anything at stake in this film. James’ ultimate decision does not feel completely revelatory and the film’s limited budget strains in its final scene. It is also hard to believe that Nathan, Zoe and Rose are the only three people left who haven’t gone bat shit crazy in this universe. While These Final Hours will leave you questioning how you would act if you knew the world was about to be wiped out, it doesn’t do too much to take that discussion to a deeper level.