Adam and Adam and Eve and the end of the world
Z for Zachariah
(out of 4) Starring Margot Robbie, Chris Pine, Chiwetel Ejiofor. Directed by Craig Zobel. 97 minutes. Opening Friday at the Carlton, VOD same day. PG In Z for Zachariah, a divine Margot Robbie plays a modern-day Eve, a determined preacher’s daughter at the apex of a postapocalyptic triangle as the last woman on Earth.
Set in an Appalachian valley that has somehow escaped the fallout from a nuclear disaster more than a year before, Ann Burden (Robbie) figures she is alone in the changed world and is struggling with the fact.
With calm determination, she works the family farm as she’s able, scavenging for everything else, not always successful in dealing with loneliness with only a windup Victrola and her dog to break the silence.
That changes when Loomis (Chiwetel Ejiofor) arrives, a scientist in a fancy protective suit who managed to avoid the radiation that wiped out humanity. His palpable joy at finding the lush valley makes him reckless and Ann, thankful to finally have company, nurses him after an inadvertent radiation exposure.
They tentatively negotiate life together, unsure how to deal with being the only people left. Mistakes are made but closeness builds. Director Craig Zobel takes his time, making their daily routine and small triumphs on the farm pleasurable to watch.
It’s a fascinating premise. Ejiofor is compelling as the older Loomis, a practical man who puts his faith in science, unlike the younger Ann, who comes from a deeply religious background. Ann sees the dire global situation as God’s plan, although she’s not sure that stretches to Loomis’ suggestion they tear down her father’s hand-built clapboard church to get the materials to build a waterpowered mill. She does agree that they need electricity, however.
Loomis considers aloud that they may not be alone for long. Ann interprets that statement literally — are more people coming?
Surprisingly, yes. Miner Caleb (Chris Pine), who survived the de- struction by working underground, is the serpent in this Eden tale. His aw-shucks demeanour, careful politeness and deliberate show of Christian piety fascinate the inexperienced Ann.
Loomis is less inclined to welcome the stranger and certainly doesn’t trust him, even less so when he notices there may be something between these two. But he figures Caleb may have a purpose.
Based on Robert C. O’Brien’s novel and expanded to three characters, director Zobel, whose Compliance was one of the most talked-about indies of 2012, goes for a dramatic shift in tone for the second half of the film. It’s a careful infusion of tension and foreboding that contrasts with earlier pastoral scenes of Loomis and Ann building a new world.
This gives Z for Zachariah a fuller purpose. But it’s the three actors that make the film work, particularly Australian actress Robbie who follows a small-yet-effective role in The Wolf of Wall Street with more nuanced and ultimately powerful work.