Five (1951)

The world is destroyed in a nuclear holocaust. Only five Americans survive, including a pregnant woman, a neo-Nazi, a black man and a bank clerk.

Director:

Arch Oboler

Writers:

Arch Oboler, James Weldon Johnson (poem)

Stars:

William Phipps, Susan Douglas Rubes, James Anderson

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
William Phipps	...	Michael
Susan Douglas Rubes	...	Roseanne (as Susan Douglas)
James Anderson	...	Eric
Charles Lampkin	...	Charles
Earl Lee	...	Mr. Barnstaple

Storyline

Five people are miraculously spared when the fall-out from a super-atomic bomb eventually kills all of the rest of humanity on earth. They are Roseanne Rogers, a pregnant woman who was in an X-ray room; Michael, a sensitive young poet and philosopher; Charles, a black man; Mr. Barnstaple, a banker; and Eric, a cosmopolitan Alpinist who was saved from the radio-active dust because he was climbing Mt. Everest at the time of the explosion and fall-out. Eventually, they all wind up in a Frank Lloyd Wright-designed house on a California mountaintop. There is a lot of symbolism, especially with the mountain climber, who represents decadent and alien fascism and the banker who brings greed and arrogance to this new Eden on Earth. Soon, only two are left.

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Plot Keywords:

mountain climber | california | bank clerk | hairy chest | bare chested male | 

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Taglines:

Four men and one woman are the last five people on Earth...This is their story!

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

October 1951 (USA)

Also Known As:

5ive

Filming Locations:

South Broadway, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$75,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Arch Oboler Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Filmed in a house called "Cliff House" designed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright. It was the home of the film's producer/writer/director, Arch Oboler, and sat on his 360-acre ranch in the Santa Monica Mountains along Mulholland Highway. Outdoor scenes were filmed on his property as well as other nearby locations in the Santa Monica Mountains.

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Goofs

When looking at the soap box powder in the store, the name of the soap is "Atomic Suds" but when the box is tilted by the actor you can clearly see the box top reads "Tide".

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Quotes

[last lines]
Roseanne: I want to help you.

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Connections

Featured in Great Balls of Fire! (1989)

User Reviews

A superb, gripping movie you'll never forget.

This movie proves that, like giving birth, even inexperienced, poorly funded and virtually unknown independent individuals can produce a masterpiece. Once you have seen this movie, you will never forget it. A "Day After" movie that will have you mentally holding your breath hoping these five people will be able to start rebuilding the human race and repopulate the earth. But wait, these are not special hand picked superior examples of humanity. They are common everyday people who bring their own baggage to their situation. Racism, lust, suspicions, envy, pride, you name it. Will humanity survive, and learn, or will they follow the same path that led inexorably to the final conflict that laid waste to the planet. A similar movie, "The World, The Flesh and The Devil" with Harry Belafonte and Inger Stevens while very good, in my view, doesn't achieve the stark realism of "FIVE"