Z for Zachariah (2 out of 10) – Directed by Craig Zobell; Written by Pall Grimsson; Starring Margot Robbie, Chris Pine, and Chiwetel Eliofor; Not Rated; 95 minutes.
Most post-apocalyptic movies revolve around the characters doing their best to survive against threats such as zombies, vampires or evil, self-aware robots. It’s actually quite rare to find a film that focuses on the day-to-day and mundane tasks necessary for survival, but that is the reality that “Z for Zachariah” has chosen to present to us along with a love triangle between what may be the last people on earth. Had the movie followed through on its promise, it could have been interesting and not the waste of an hour and half it actually delivers.
The people on earth have been wiped out due to an implied nuclear war. The air is unbreathable and the water is so irradiated it will kill anyone who so much as drinks a mouthful of it. Thankfully for Ann Burden (Margot Robbie), her home was not affected as it was built high on a mountain in a pristine valley that escaped the ruin that surrounds it. During a quest into a local, deserted town for supplies, she stumbles upon Loomis (Chiwetel Eliofor), the first person she has seen since her father and brother left to look for more survivors. Loomis is suffering from severe radiation poisoning, but Ann uses his medical supplies to slowly nurse him back to health. As his strength returns, Loomis helps Ann fix farm machinery and works on building a waterwheel to use a local waterfall to power a generator to restore electricity. Loomis beings to become romantically attached to Ann, but all that is changed when Caleb (Chris Pine) discovers the farm as well which sets up a passive-aggressive battle between the two men for her affection.
The one thing going for “Z for Zachariah” is that it is absolutely gorgeous. The cinematography rivals that of any big budget movie, and from the opening credits to the final moments of the film, the eye is perfectly drawn to where it needs to be to enjoy the experience. It was filmed in New Zealand which, as always, provided breathless vistas, forests and wilderness that set the isolated yet beautiful tone of the movie.
I really wish I could say that the rest of the film matches the level of excellence the cinematography provided, but everything else here is an absolute mess.
I normally avoid hyperbole, but this was probably the most boring movie I have ever seen. I am not exaggerating when I say that it’s an hour and half about three people trying to build a wheel. Seriously, 90 minutes to build a freaking wheel! Sure there is the love triangle that has been hyped up in the prerelease, but even that is insipid and focuses on people looking longingly or angrily at each other. My friends and I have been joking that it was like “Twilight” aimed at a more mature crowd, except “Twilight” was more interesting because at least something happened in that movie. I don’t even know how it really ended because the writer and director decided to go with a vague pseudo-finale that cut to credits with, again, people staring off into the distance.
I walked out of the screening wishing I could get that hour and a half of my life back and angry that I missed out on some of the much better movies that had been playing at the same time. Take my word for it and stay as far away from this one as possible.