By Ray Walton

On the Beach (1959) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

After a global nuclear war, the residents of Australia must come to terms with the fact that all life will be destroyed in a matter of months.

Starring: Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner, Fred Astaire, Anthony Perkins and Dona Anderson

Now streaming on: Prime Video and AppleTV

The apocalyptic subgenre has become a bit difficult to stomach, and I read the book beforehand, though in a coffee shop and not in my quiet room, and I liked it a lot. I also had friends over to watch this, and all of us were pleased. While I will acknowledge that this movie is a bit watered down compared to the book, it is a solid adaptation. It was 1959, I understand why they omitted some things, and I am honestly glad they did. However, this was the first Hollywood movie to address the possibility and consequences of a nuclear war, so with what they could get away with, this was a good starting point. Both the book and the movie are very character driven. We care about all of the characters, which makes the knowledge that they will all die difficult to process. The camerawork showing vacant cities are also effective, especially one scene in particular that gave me The Last Man on Earth vibes. At the end of the day, I was satisfied with this adaptation.

Ray Walton

Neurodivergent movie lover. Here to share reviews for horror and non horror movies that fall into the “Dark Cinema” category.