End of the World (2013)

A group of Apocalyptic fanatics must use their knowledge of apocalyptic movies to save the world from a devastating solar flare.

Director:

Steven R. Monroe

Writers:

Jason Bourque, Sydney Roper

Stars:

Greg Grunberg, Neil Grayston, Caroline Cave

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Greg Grunberg	...	Owen Stokes
Neil Grayston	...	Steve Palmer
Caroline Cave	...	Selena
Mark Hildreth	...	Max
Brad Dourif	...	Dr. Walter Brown
Merrilyn Gann	...	Betty Palmer (as Merrilynn Gann)
Amitai Marmorstein	...	Leonard (as Amitai Mamorstein)
John Shaw	...	Dr. Cochran
Serge Houde	...	General Ramis
Paul Herbert	...	Smythe
Fred Henderson	...	Bill
Robert Moloney	...	Reiser
Graem Beddoes	...	Louis
James Ralph	...	Traffic Cop (as Jim Ralph)
Simon Chin	...	Orderly

Storyline

A group of Apocalyptic fanatics must use their knowledge of apocalyptic movies to save the world from a devastating solar flare.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action and some disturbing images.

Details

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 February 2013 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hrozící konec sveta

Filming Locations:

Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Syfy, Cinetel Films, World Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

85 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Owen is at the security station at the mental ward, there is a b & w clip on the monitor which appears to be Jack Nicholson in "One Flew Over the cuckoos Nest".

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Goofs

The nuclear bomb explodes in the center of Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia & not in land locked area of Siberia, Russia, pointed to by Steve Palmer on the computer monitor when he found a pit mine in a remote location.

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Quotes

Owen Stokes: What do you think?
Steve Palmer: The dude from Heroes is awesome in this.

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Connections

References Storm Cell (2008)

User Reviews

To me, the best movie SyFy has ever done...

Until End of the World, The Lost Future held that distinction, so there was proof that SyFy could make a good movie. Unfortunately, those good movies are too few, there are a handful of tolerable if not great ones but most of them are just awful to bottom of the barrel. End of the World is not one of the best movies I've ever seen, but I wasn't expecting that. I was hoping that once in a while SyFy would make something that was entertaining instead of being ineptly done in all areas. And I got that. The production values are so much more polished than what we usually see. I have seen one too many of their movies that look as though they were edited on bacon slicers completed with half-finished special effects. That was not the case with End of the World. The scenery fits with the tone of the movie very well and it is competently shot and directed. And of the special effects of any SyFy movie, End of the World's are by far and large the best. Watching the gore is like watching something like Spartacus, and for me it was not excessively used or too in-your-face. And this is one of those rare occurrences where we actually see a real explosion, mostly it is a cheaply rendered computer effect with SyFy, but not here and it is thrilling.

The scoring isn't much of a problem either, it doesn't come across as sluggish or generic. End of the World is one of the better written SyFy films too, whether it said anything telling or new or not doesn't matter when you're having fun rather than rolling your eyes in contempt. Instead of cheesy and awkward, the script was witty with some refreshing inside humour, and delivered strongly. Whereas many SyFy movies had the script as a major weak point, here it was what made End of the World fun to watch. The story admittedly is standard and one that we have seen the basic concept before, there are moments that are unbelievable(like with a video store still existing after all that had happened) and admittedly it did feel at times that it was more an excuse to string its many homages together. But for once it didn't feel predictable, it was zippily paced, didn't take itself too seriously despite the seriousness of the situation and the references/homages to movies- by admission having varying degrees of subtlety- and to Grunberg's Heroes character made for a standard concept made fresh. Subtlety may not have always been a strong suit, but I could not deny that these references were cleverly used and moved the story forward on the most part instead of bogging the film down.

End of the World's characters are not much different from the usual ones we see in a SyFy movie as we do see many of the SyFy disaster movie clichés. The difference is that there is an attempt to make them likable and we do care for their situation. The drama resonates with you without being cloying, there is some decent suspense amid the referencing and the scientific elements are thrilling(I never did worry too much about whether the science was poorly researched or not, there have been far more blatant instances around). End of the World is almost certainly the best acted SyFy movie, which is saying a lot. Not just that the performances are great, but they do make the dialogue believable at least and there is definite chemistry between them. Brad Dourif's screen time is not large, but he makes the most of it and is very enjoyable to watch. Caroline Cave is also good and sympathetic without feeling like a bookend and not much else. Neil Grayston was a pleasure to see on screen again, and he is very endearing and actually looks as though he cares about the situation his character is in. But Greg Grunberg does the best work here, one of few actors in a SyFy that blends comedy and drama perfectly and with a magnetic presence to boot.

All in all, a surprisingly good movie and the best SyFy film- The Lost Future will have to contend with a close second as of now- by a mile. 8/10 Bethany Cox