Reviews & Ratings for
4:44 Last Day on Earth More at IMDbPro »

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63 out of 86 people found the following review useful:
Over-dramatic, so what? It's the end of the world, 19 January 2012

Author: Adam Cuttler from United States

How would you spend your last days on Earth if you knew the world was going to be destroyed in the morning? That's the premise in Abel Ferrara's (King of New York, Bad Lieutenant) claustrophobic new movie, starring Willem Dafoe and newcomer Shanyn Leigh in where the two play a Manhattan couple coming to terms with their final moments of existence.

Ferrara's choice to shoot the majority of the film in one setting with a minimal amount of takes made me feel as if I were watching a play - not at all a bad thing, especially when the lead actor is Dafoe. This play setting, along with the 'the sky is falling' scenario practically begs for fueled performances to which both Dafoe and Leigh delivered. The actors made the most of their surroundings and turned their emoting skills on high, only occasionally finding themselves being caught in fits of overacting. This is where the movie falters, when the attention pays too much to the acting and not the scenario. Still, the little bursts of over-the- top moments weren't enough to detract me from the movie as a whole.

Fans of both doomsday scenario movies and movies that show close-ups of Willem Dafoe's pubic region should walk away eerily pleased from this one.

56 out of 81 people found the following review useful:
If the viewer could only FAST-FORWARD to the end of the world ..., 9 April 2012
Author: thomasjwilliams from Kansas City, MO, USA

"Ugh!" What a way to start a review; but in all honesty I cannot come up with a better word to use to express my thoughts on 4:44 Last Day on Earth, a rather dreadful indie film about "the last day on earth" as experienced by a successful actor played by Willem Dafoe (Spider-Man, The English Patient, Finding Nemo). He lives in a large/sprawling NYC high rise apartment with his much-younger artist girlfriend, Skye (an unknown Shanyn Leigh). The two spend their last day together making love, squabbling, using their computers a lot (as there is a LOT of Skype-ing we must be in the very NEAR future!), sleeping and eating (she also paints while wearing evening gowns - a LOT, which doesn't fit into the time scale of the film as they dry awfully quick(ly)!).

The film set-up is that at 4:44 the following morning life WILL end. It is the announced time of the end of the earth and therefore ALL life as we know it will be coming to an end! The film never goes into the definitive specifics of it all; but it has apparently been "proven" by science and so EVERYone has accepted this as fact (it is the general acceptance by all that is actually much-more outlandish than the end-of-the-earth scenario presented here). As one political party is beginning to pride themselves on the premise that they deny all-things-science this film is NOT allowed to work as is.

According to the film, Al Gore was right about global deterioration although he was horribly wrong forecasting how long our planet had before it would all come to an end (Gore is yet another reason this would be considered "hogwash!"). The ice caps aren't the problem in 4:44 -- the fully depleted ozone layer is! It will completely disappear at 4:44 Eastern Standard time (around the world all at ONCE as the film just uses the LOCAL time for the title --which is more conceivable than Harold Camping's implication that God needed 24 one-hour slots to end the world as we know it as He apparently isn't all-powerful!).

As you can tell, 4:44 tries to be heavy and meaningful (using many good/wise clips of the Dalai Lama shows how "serious" the film wants to be) but the film means nothing because it is outlandish and the characters aren't believable. I AM one who believes that eight billion (+) people on the planet with X-amount of them driving vehicles (meaning billions) does most-likely cause some kind of damage; but I do NOT buy the main premise presented here -- that of the ozone depleting ALL AT ONCE! It isn't the Rapture, an alien invasion, a nuclear meltdown or a planetary collision (see Melancholia) that brings about the end of humankind. ... and that the EXACT time is known makes it all the more IMplausible -- puh-lease! As for the story, Dafoe plays an actor named Cisco who is sooo worried about the end of everything he spends his final day with his young love but he also ventures out a few times to see some old friends. There are MANY problems with these visits such as Cisco never greeting one "friend" whose house he goes to because he coincidentally bumps into an old friend there and the scene turns into a fate/cosmic destiny speak-scene which rendered the initial flat-inhabitant (the actual visit-ee if you please) unnecessary. Another HUGE problem (probably my BIGGEST) I had with 4:44 is that I am assuming mankind had been given a head's up on "the end" and yet Cisco has decided that a three-minute Skype conversation with much-loved relatives is adequate to to say goodbye and that he loves them. IF this is how much he truly cares it is a good representation of how much I didn't care for anybody in 4:44 either.

The streets of NYC are always full of traffic and the sidewalks are well-populated ... and there seems to be no chaos! Dafoe does see a man plummet to his death; but that appears to be the only despair on display in 4:44. This is seriously ALL the film is about ... another ridiculous scene has the couple order Chinese food for delivery. If it is someone's favorite, I'd understand wanting it to be one's last meal; but would restaurants really be open a few mere hours before the END of ALL LIFE? And -- if they did deliver, what is the point of waiting around to get paid?! What is one going to do with that money TOMORROW? I oftentimes found myself chuckling and/or talking to the screen because so much of the film doesn't work and everyone on screen doesn't appear to understand this. Leigh is one of the worst actresses I have seen lately -- her faux giggles and scowls were irritating. Dafoe was dense and spoke in circles. And -- I didn't care about either of them. How BAD is it that one wishes they could fast-forward to the end of a film because he/she'd rather see MASS DEATH than experience any more of these two characters' mundane lives?! Ugh.

34 out of 52 people found the following review useful:
Not with a bang but with with a fizzle?, 28 March 2012

Author: padron702 from Las Vegas, United States

Not with a bang but with a whimper...

The story is about how two particular people would spend their last hours on earth if they new the world was coming to and end at a specific time. The story contains little fanfare and no special effects. It did remind me of a play more than a movie, as was mentioned by another reviewer. The story of the two main actors is interspersed with a variety of spiritual leaders weighing in on such weighty matters as good, evil and the meaning of life. Hard to convey much depth given the brevity of these interviews.

At one point one of the characters decides to visit an old friend and his walk thru the city reminds us all that people are still drinking, hookers are still hooking and most importantly lounge singers are still singing. Nice to know that we would all stay in character right till the end. I guess I better go see that new movie today since the world is going to end tomorrow... It all just seems a little improbable and hollow.

The acting was good but would have been better with a much more well thought out script.

This film must have been pure profit for the makers. I think about 20 percent of it must have been archived footage from around the world. The biggest problem I had with this movie is that it reminded me of a mediocre film school project at best. It tried to be artsy but failed. It tried to be philosophical but failed. It tried to be an emotional tale of a shared ending and failed. It tried to tie all these together with the worst music and sound effects that I have heard in some time. My ears are still ringing. Do yourself a favor and stay away from this one unless you happen to be in the mood to be severely underwhelmed.

No bang, no whimper, just kind of a fizzle...

25 out of 38 people found the following review useful:
Worth the time, if you give it a chance and some intellect, 25 June 2012

Author: A.N. from CA

This is one of those movies that requires rapt attention to the screen and the ability to "just get into it" and accept it for what it is. After about 20 minutes it grew on me. You need to try to put yourself in their position, not just watch it as an observer.

Yes, it could have been done better or differently, and could have covered a lot more psychological ground, but it worked for me in its own context. The director had a consistent vision, even if some viewers will never get it.

The attitudes of some external characters seemed oddly upbeat and that wasn't explained, but maybe that's how it would be for some. The casters may have studied people in the real world who knew they were going to die, so the world essentially ends for them anyhow. That may be worse than knowing everyone else is coming with you. There are endless psychological angles to this plot.

The vague technical explanation for the world's condition reminded me of "The Road" but little else about it resembled that film. I thought the acting was plenty good and the sparseness of characters and dialog (except for numerous Skype scenes) fit the mood that was created.

Just give a try and don't watch it with shallow, loudmouth people interrupting (I can't see it doing well in a typical theater setting). You may find it quite compelling and it could make you appreciate life more. That's the main effect it had on me.

10 out of 10 people found the following review useful:
The Boring and Dramatic Last Day on Earth of a Couple in New York, 10 February 2013

Author: Claudio Carvalho from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The ecologically devastated world will end at 4:44 h of the next day. In New York, the fifty and something year-old Cisco (Willem Dafoe) and his younger wife Skye (Shanyn Leigh) spend their last day together in their apartment, waiting for the coming doomsday.

"4:44 Last Day on Earth" is a boring and dramatic movie by Abel Ferrara disclosing the last day on Earth of a couple of lovers in New York. The movie seems to be sponsored by the Skype with many calls from their apartment using this software. The uninteresting plot is basically a filmed storyline with the usual use of religious images by Ferrara and nothing else. My vote is three.

Title (Brazil): "4:44 - O Fim do Mundo" ("4:44 - Last Day on Earth")

13 out of 16 people found the following review useful:
Lagging and tedious yet a few very good scenes, 5 September 2012

Author: fortionat1 from United States

End of times and the last day on earth with Cisco and Skye. A promising notion for a good movie, yet it was drawn to slow death with a tedious and slow screenplay enough to ruin the movie and bore the audience.

I found myself annoyed and frustrated with Dafoe's character Cisco as he went through the movie in his selfish and morass way. There were some scenes setup for promising dialog and emotion, like when he was saying goodbye to his daughter, yet turned out plastic and annoying. There was, however, two scenes I thought were well acted and the best part of the movie; when Cisco sat with his brother and his brother shared some wise words (which Cisco did not heed) while the other friends partied with booze and drugs. The other decent scene was when the delivery boy said goodbye to his family via Skype. (I think Skype paid for the movie)

Overall the movie left an empty feeling as the end approached with what seemed like a junior high school first film attempt with various and ridiculous cuts from films and news clips, none of which really tied anything together. I found the movie boring and besides a couple of decent scenes that were well acted or at least approached what one would expect toward the end, overall it was poorly written and haphazardly put together.

6 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
Awful, 16 December 2012

Author: rzmasli from United States

Other than the opening sensual scene (which didn't add to the storyline), the only other redeeming quality was the film short run time. The stories references to religion uses montages and didn't advance or enhance the story.I am sure there were significance references that I had missed, but it was hard to stay focused on story that didn't go anywhere. The premise was interesting, "What would you do with your last day on earth?". After watching this movie, "Bore everyone to death" seems appropriate. The movie appears to be an under graduate's senior project with family money to promote it. This was 90 minutes I can never recover.

11 out of 16 people found the following review useful:
The last day on earth - How NOT to spend time, 29 August 2012

Author: emanuel-aguas from Portugal

If, for some unfortunate reason, you're about to die, here's an advice: do not watch this movie... it's a complete waste of time, even for someone healthy, new born, or just someone with a long life ahead. I was hoping something between Melancholia and The Road... but it turns out to be sad FLOP with lame acting, a poor script, where the actors seem to drift from one line to another with no feeling at all. There's a scene when Willem Dafoe get's to cry some unbelievable crocodile tears... You've been warn! If it's your last day on earth due to health or environmental reasons, you might want to consider in putting an end to your misery before watching this unbearable picture!

6 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
I felt like 4:44 was the length of this dismal movie..., 27 November 2012

Author: davespix from San Francisco, California

If you like psychobabble filled dreary little movies with terrible music, lousy editing and an anticlimactic ending .... then this smelly wet dog of a movie is for you.

One would figure with Willem Dafoe in the title role that it would have been at least worth the effort. But this was almost as bad as some of those goofy (arty) foreign movies that make no sense.

This turkey made $8,355 on 3 screens in March 2012 ... then was shut down. That right there should tell you all you need to know.

I am so glad I fast-forwarded to the end after I got a little over half way thru it. I saved at least THAT much time in my life I didn't waste.

1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
Pretentious, cheap and horrible...waste of an hour and a half!, 16 March 2013

Author: ed_bardo from Tucson, Arizona

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

**Spoiler alert!!** I may unintentionally reveal plot *laugh, laugh* elements

I am stunned at the way some filmmakers and actors think they can do a movie and make a political statement and think by making it pretentious, it will be all that much more important. Enter this piece of pretentious garbage! I don't have anything good to say about this except that it finally ended. Everything is wrong about this film. The science is laughable (how the world is supposed to end). The characters are irritating, unlikable human trash and even worse, stupid! I kept praying they would get killed sooner rather than later. The camera work is terrible (you can actually see the jerky motor drive motion). The special effects (if you can call them that) are worse than a teenage kid does on his laptop nowadays. The poorly included soundtrack required turning the sound down it was so irritating. I don't know what more I can say to warn you not to waste your time.

Let me try one last angle. If you consider yourself a liberal, this is the type of trash conservatives think you come up with which is why they don't take you seriously. If you are conservative, this is such liberal garbage, you won't want to waste your time watching this.

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