# Movies/TV about being last person alive on earth **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 21, 2014, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906 "2014-05-21T08:12:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/1 "2014-05-21T08:12:15Z")
I remember a twilight zone (or similar) episode where the guy wants to read all of the books but then he breaks his glasses. Futurama parodied it and his eyes fell out and his limbs fell off as well… If it was the twilight zone - is it here: > **[Lists of The Twilight Zone episodes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_The_Twilight_Zone_episodes)** > > There have been four versions of the anthology television series The Twilight Zone. Each has its own episode list: Also are there any movies like that? Also movies/TV where every single other person is a mutant or zombie counts. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/2 "2014-05-21T08:25:20Z")
I know the one you’re talking about. It is indeed the _Twilight Zone_. “Time Enough at Last” starring Burgess Meredith. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/3 "2014-05-21T11:02:36Z")
Doesn’t he break his glasses? ---
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/4 "2014-05-21T11:25:48Z")
Yep they shatter and they fall out of the frames. ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/5 "2014-05-21T11:58:34Z")
The 1985 New Zealand film [The Quiet Earth](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Quiet_Earth_(film)), based on a novel, has the premise that a scientist played by Bruno Lawrence is the last man on Earth. He finds the rest of NZ devoid of life, with the cities empty and ruinous. But, I hear all the Australians say, how could he tell it was any different to normal? From there it gets complicated. Good film, Bruno Lawrence’s performance is great, and his early death was a great loss to both NZ and Australian film and TV. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/6 "2014-05-21T12:19:23Z")
Well, a sentimental old favorite anime of mine, [_Kurogane Communication_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurogane_Communication) features a girl who seems to be the last _human_ on (post-apocalyptic) Earth; but it’s disqualified in that, there being a small number of intelligent robots left, she’s not really the last _person_ on Earth. Unless you’re a filthy carbon chauvinist speciest. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![campp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@campp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/campp)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/7 "2014-05-21T12:24:21Z")
The World The Flesh and The Devil from 1959 is my favorite post-apocalyptic film. Harry Belefonte is the last human (he thinks) until he meets up with two more people. Great film for the imagery of an empty New York. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/8 "2014-05-23T02:38:53Z")
Richard Matheson wrote the sci-fi novel [I Am Legend](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Am_Legend_(novel)) back in 1974, a pioneering piece of the zombie apocolypse genre. So far it’s been adapted for three movies, _I Am Legend, The Omega Man,_ and _The Last Man on Earth._ ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/9 "2014-05-23T05:35:58Z")
The very first Twilight Zone episode has a man thinking he’s all alone. There’s also a made for TV movie called “Where Have All the People Gone” ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/10 "2014-05-23T05:43:41Z")
And of course there’s “Night of the Comet” ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/11 "2014-05-23T05:52:03Z")
There is a move called “I Am Legend” with Will Smith. > **[I Am Legend (2007) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0480249/)** > > I Am Legend: Directed by Francis Lawrence. With Will Smith, Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan, Salli Richardson-Whitfield. Years after a plague kills most of humanity and transforms the rest into monsters, the sole survivor in New York City struggles... He’s not exactly the last person left on earth, but it’s very close. He’s not certain. But he lives his life as if he is the last person in New York City. There are other people, but they are all infected with a deadly “zombie” type disease. It got a 7.2 on IMDB but I didn’t like it hardly at all - mostly because it starred Will Smith. You may want to take a look at it anyway. There is also a much earlier B&W movie with a very similar title. I couldn’t find it and I doubt you’d want to because it was not nearly as good as the Will Smith one. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/12 "2014-05-23T05:58:21Z")
Another one is “The Day of the Triffids” (1963) > **[The Day of the Triffids (1963) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055894/)** > > The Day of the Triffids: Directed by Steve Sekely, Freddie Francis. With Howard Keel, Nicole Maurey, Janette Scott, Kieron Moore. After an unusual meteor shower leaves most of the human population blind, a merchant navy officer must find a way to... This was rated 6.1 on IMDB but I liked it more than that Will Smith movie. It’s an English movie and it’s not exactly only one person left alive, but almost everyone is blinded by a meteor storm and there are monstrous plants roaming the world killing everyone. It’s touch and go whether people will survive. You might like this one. Oh. I just rememebered another one. It’s called “When Worlds Collide” (1951) > **[When Worlds Collide (1951) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044207/)** > > When Worlds Collide: Directed by Rudolph Maté. With Richard Derr, Barbara Rush, Peter Hansen, John Hoyt. As a new star and planet hurtle toward a doomed Earth, a small group of survivalists frantically work to complete the rocket which will take them... It got a 6.8 and is much better than either of the other two. Scientests discover a huge star is hurtling towards Earth and will wipe out all life. They are correct. So they build a space ship that can hold 40 people and try to fly away to a new planet before the star collides with Earth. It’s quite a bit of fun. I liked it a lot. ---
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/13 "2014-05-23T06:41:03Z")
> **[Treehouse of Horror XIV |](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treehouse_of_Horror_XIV#Stop_the_World.2C_I_Want_to_Goof_Off)** > > In a parody of the 1963 Twilight Zone episode "A Kind of a Stopwatch", Bart and Milhouse get a stopwatch through an advertisement in an old comic book that actually allows them to stop time. Realizing the power behind the watch, they set off to prank Springfieldians with impunity, such as giving Principal Skinner a pantsing and stealing Homer's donuts and clothes. They have a blast using the watch to terrorize the town, but they are eventually outsmarted by Mayor Quimby, who laid an ultraviolet p... In this Simpsons Halloween episode, Bart and Milhouse freeze time and they’re the only ones who can move and they’re like that for a few years. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/14 "2014-05-23T11:30:53Z")
Does it have to be only one person? Or would wider forays into the post-apocalyptic genre be ok? For film Dawn and Day Of The Dead capture the feel well, also The Road. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/15 "2014-05-23T12:47:36Z")
I think there may be a low-budget film of Mary Shelley’s The Last Man. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/16 "2014-05-23T12:48:29Z")
**The Day of the Triffids** was an absolutely terrible adaptation of a book that was the perfect candidate for a monster movie. **[Five](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043539/)** is one of the first movies to depict the scenario.\* There was also the awful Fox comedy, [Woops](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103583/) \*It came out four months before **When Worlds Collide** ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/17 "2014-05-23T13:08:05Z")
Adventure Time is a very light hearted cartoon take on the premise, thousands of years after the mushrook war Finj is the last human. ---
**Author:** ![Ashley\_Pomeroy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c68b51/32.png) [@Ashley\_Pomeroy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashley_Pomeroy)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/18 "2014-05-23T18:35:28Z")
> [@Charlie\_Wayne](#): > > Another one is “The Day of the Triffids” (1963) > > [The Day of the Triffids (1963) - IMDb](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055894/) A better choice is the 1981 BBC TV mini-series version, which has dated and is very much of its time - the lead character is the kind of tidy beard-wearing primary school teacher that seemed to dominate British TV drama in the very early 1980s. The kind of museli-eating, whole foods eating, post-hippie environmentalist that was at the time extremely hip and then became incredibly unfashionable and has become fashionable again. Beards weren’t fashionable in the early 1980s, you had to be clean-cut instead. Er, yes. I remember it scaring me as a kid, and looking at it nowadays it’s reminiscent of _28 Days Later_ (similar plot arc). The Triffids themselves are mostly in the background. Along vaguely similar lines the BBC’s _Survivors_, from the mid-1970s, posited a scenario where the population was greatly decreased… but the odds were greatly increased that I may someday get a chance to kiss your lips. I thank the Lord each day for the apocalypse. Folks are mostly disfigured or dead, but Sugar I won’t let it go to my head. My momma’s face has dripped down into the dirt, but I’m still chasing chitlins, whisky, and skirt. In the words of the song. I’ve digressed, sorry. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/19 "2014-05-23T18:36:11Z")
A brief blog article I wrote on the subject. > **[RIP Richard Matheson: Godfather of the Undead - DrunkSunshine](https://drunksunshine.com/richard_matheson_1926-201/)** > > Richard Matheson, who died yesterday at 87, was a master of dystopian paranoia, but always managed to imbue his stories with a streak of hope and heroism. And I second the recommendation for the BBC _Day of the Triffids._ ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906/20 "2014-05-23T18:50:02Z")
Larry “Bud” Melman’s short made for Dave Letterman’s show, "The Last man in the World’ [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/HMkqB8LnAeI/hqdefault.jpg ""The Last Man in the World" David Letterman show 1985") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMkqB8LnAeI) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-tv-about-being-last-person-alive-on-earth/688906.md?page=2)