The Quiet Earth is a 1985 New Zealand science fiction doomsday film directed by Geoff Murphy and starring Bruno Lawrence, Alison Routledge and Pete Smith as three survivors of a cataclysmic disaster. It is loosely based on the 1981 science fiction novel of the same name by Craig Harrison.
Plot
July 5 begins as a normal winter morning near Auckland, New Zealand. At 6:12 a.m., the Sun momentarily darkens and a red light surrounded by darkness is briefly seen (as if through a tunnel). The Sun then returns to normal.
Zac Hobson (Bruno Lawrence) is a scientist working for Delenco, part of an international consortium working on "Project Flashlight", an ambitious experiment to create an energy grid around the Earth. He awakens abruptly in his bedroom, appearing somewhat surprised, turning on his radio he finds he is unable to receive any radio transmissions, gets dressed and drives into the city. On the way, he notices that everyone seems to have vanished. Investigating a fire, he discovers the wreckage of a jet, but there are no bodies, only empty seats with the seat belts still fastened.
He enters his underground laboratory workplace; a monitor displays the message "Project Flashlight Complete". The mass disappearance seems to coincide with the moment that Flashlight was activated. He notes on his tape recorder:
- "Zac Hobson, July 5th. One: there has been a malfunction in Project Flashlight with devastating results. Two: it seems I am the only person left on Earth."
After several days without finding anyone, his mental state begins to deteriorate. He puts on a woman's slip and alternates between exhilaration and despair. Eventually he breaks down altogether. He places cardboard cutouts of famous people (Including Adolf Hitler, the Queen, and Pope John Paul II) and addresses them from a balcony. He declares himself "President of this Quiet Earth", then goes on a destructive rampage. His insanity peaks when he bursts into a church, shoots the crucifix, and announces that he is now God. Finally, he puts the barrel of a shotgun in his mouth, but changes his mind.
He settles into a more normal routine. Then one morning, he comes across a young woman named Joanne (Alison Routledge). Zac is attracted to her, but she does not appear to reciprocate. While scouring the countryside for other survivors, they try to determine why they survived the effect. During an experiment, Zac discovers that the elementary charge, an absolute constant in the universe, has changed and is oscillating. He comes to the conclusion that the effect was a cosmic event and that the universe is now unstable.
Later, they find a third survivor, a large Māori man named Api (Pete Smith). The three determine why they survived the Effect: they were all at the moment of death when it happened -- Api was being drowned in a fight with another man, Joanne was electrocuted by a faulty hairdryer, and Zac took an overdose of pills in a suicide attempt. He had figured out that there were serious dangers with the experiment and was guilt-ridden for not speaking out.
A love triangle develops, but Zac is more concerned about some very disturbing observations: several fundamental constants of the universe are changing, causing the Sun's output to fluctuate. Zac fears that the Effect will occur again and decides to destroy the still-running Delenco facility in an attempt to stop it.
The three put aside their mounting personal conflicts and drive a truckload of explosives to the installation, only to be stopped at the perimeter when Zac detects dangerously high levels of ionising radiation that could prematurely set off the explosives. He tells the two that he must return to town to retrieve a remote control for the truck. Once he is gone, Joanne and Api make love. Afterwards, Api tells Joanna that he is going to sacrifice himself by driving the truck; he doubts that Zac's device will be capable of controlling a big semi. Then they see that Zac has reached the same conclusion. He drives the truck onto the weakened roof of the underground laboratory, which collapses under the weight. Just as the Effect reaches a maximum, he sets off the explosives.
Once again, a red light is seen surrounded by the dark tunnel. Zac finds himself lying face down alone on a beach. There are strange cloud formations, resembling waterspouts, coming up out of the ocean. As he walks to the water's edge, an enormous ringed planet slowly rises over the horizon. The film closes on Zac's bewildered face. He holds up his personal tape recorder as if to speak, then lowers it in complete bewilderment.
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