The Last Days DVD Review

     Actors: Jose Coronado, Quim Gutierrez, Mikel Iglesias

Directors: David Pastor, Alex Pastor

Format: Multiple Formats, Color, Widescreen, NTSC

Language: Spanish

Number of discs: 1

Rated: Unrated

Studio: MPI HOME VIDEO

DVD Release Date: July 15, 2014

Run Time: 103 minutes

 

 

        This Spanish post-apocalyptic thriller imagines the end of the world in a new manner, which is saying something considering how many of these films we have seen in the last decade. This is a narrative familiar to brothers and filmmakers Alex and David Pastor, whose debut feature (Carriers) was also about a viral pandemic. The unique aspects of The Last Days are the lack of answers about how the disease is spread and reasons for why it is happening, not to mention the original attributes to the infection itself.

 

        There are no zombies in The Last Days. The only monsters are found in the desperation and selfish cruelty of humanity. Through flashbacks we are able to piece together the symptoms of the outbreak referred to as ‘The Panic,’ because at first everyone seems to be perfectly fine despite the chaos and mess. The disease spread amongst all of humanity causes an inability to go outside. What appears to be a simple case of sudden agoraphobia has physical effects that follow the fear; anyone forced to go outside dies from some sort of seizure and heart-attack. After three months living in the Barcelona office he was working at, Marc (Quim Gutiérrez) is able to reach the subway tunnel with a group of other survivors. With a tumultuous alliance with Enrique (José Coronado), an advisor who was in the process of firing employees before the contagion spread, Marc sets out across the city to find his girlfriend (Marta Etura).

 

        The strength in this film lies in the creativity required to show how Marc and Enrique are able to navigate their way around Barcelona without going into the open, using sewers and subways alike. It isn’t a fast-paced film, at least not in the expectations of this sub-genre, but it works well due to the relationship built between Marc and Enrique. When action does occur, it means more when we actually care for the characters involved. In some ways, this is a story which has been done before many times before with a slight variation, but the material is handled so confidently by the Pastor Brothers that it is easy to enjoy the journey just the same.           

 

        The DVD includes a trailer.

 

Entertainment Value: 7.5/10

Quality of Filmmaking: 7.5/10

Historical Significance:  7/10

Special Features: 1.5/10


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