The Last Man on Earth (1964) User Reviews (240)

An under-appreciated classic

[henri sauvage · 7/10 · 6 September 2002]

This one seems to be less well known than others in Vincent Price's filmography -- possibly because the title makes it sound more like a romantic comedy.

In this first filmed version of Richard Matheson's superb short novel "I Am Legend", though, Price really shines in one of the best performances of his career. Far superior to its 1971 remake "The Omega Man" -- as if we needed yet another "Charlton Heston vs. the subhuman hordes" outing after "Khartoum" and "55 Days In Peking" -- the script follows Matheson's book almost scene-for-scene, but then, I think the author always wrote with one eye on the movie or TV rights.

Morgan (Vincent Price) is the only survivor of a worldwide plague that kills its victims, only to resurrect them as zombie vampires. (His own immunity was conferred by the bite of a vampire bat infected with a weaker version of the virus, when he was doing research in South America.) By day, he systematically searches out the plague victims and destroys them in the traditional Van Helsing manner, retreating to his fortified house when darkness falls and the vampires come out to play. Worst of all, his best friend Ben -- now a vampire -- is part of the crowd that nightly besieges his house, thirsting for his blood.

Unlike "The Omega Man", very little of this film is devoted to Morgan's one-man war against the vampires, who as others have noted have a kind of "Night Of The Living Dead" ambiance, minus the gore. Instead it focuses on his utter isolation, both physical and spiritual, his mission as an exterminating angel the only purpose now left to his life.

A large part of the movie is taken up by a flashback to three years previous, to the beginning of the plague, as his friend Ben arrives at a birthday party for Morgan's daughter bearing an armful of presents. Against the background of the children's shouts and laughter the adults worriedly discuss the appearance of a new virus. The world then proceeds to fall apart in a quietly terrifying re-enactment of the Black Death, complete with National Guard "bring out your dead" units and a 24/7 immolation pit for the anonymous, canvas-wrapped corpses. Morgan's wife and daughter succumb to the virus in a sequence that is quite stunning in its low-key, almost clinical lack of the standard histrionics.

The black-and-white cinematography is as stark and minimalistic as the story (and, admittedly, the budget). The exterior scenes set in a deserted Los Angeles -- well, actually Rome, shot in the early morning -- are often quite effective in mirroring his internal desolation. Cast and crew alike do an excellent job with the material, despite the monetary constraints. Unlike so many in our current "bash you over the head" school of film-making, the real horror of the situation is allowed to speak eloquently for itself.

If you're expecting the high camp of one of Price's Roger Corman flicks, you'll probably be bored stiff by this movie. If instead you're looking for a surprisingly good adaptation of a great story, you can't do much better than "Last Man On Earth".

The best filmed version of Matheson's story

[Groverdox · 8/10 · 3 March 2019]

"The Last Man on Earth" is an English language, Italian production of Richard Matheson's classic horror tale "I Am Legend", starring the great Vincent Price in the titular role.

This story was also done with Charlton Heston as "The Omega Man", and "I Am Legend" with Will Smith.

This is probably the best filmed version of this story I have seen. The black and white photography is fantastic, as is the direction, which really makes you believe you are witnessing a post-apocalyptic scenario. Above all, Vincent Price is surprisingly well cast as the titular last man, haggard, face drawn, less an action hero than a scientist trying to solve the problem of apocalypse.

The creatures in the movie are apparently vampires - they cannot go out in the day time, and they must be "staked" - yet they behave much more like the kind of zombies that George Romero would change the horror landscape with a few years later. I wonder if he was inspired by this film.

A Cult Classic!

[Whizzer-2 · 8/10 · 26 July 2001]

Richard Matheson's seminal sci-fi horror novel, "I Am Legend", published in 1954, is first and foremost, a character study, and any film producer must come to terms with that, if there is to be a successful adaptation from print to screen. The novel was adapted to screen in 1964 as "The Last Man On Earth"; producer Sidney Salkow, hampered by a tiny budget, intuitively did the best he could and came close to pulling it off! What Salkow did was convey the novel's mood, tone, atmosphere and plot in primitive fashion, crudely capturing the gist of the novel - that of one man, Robert Neville's confrontation with a horrendous existential dilemma - to be, himself, that is; or not to be, a plague- induced vampiric shell. While "TLMOE" was not entirely successful in translation, especially in the ending - co-scripter Matheson ultimately distanced himself from the final product - it nevertheless, clearly outshines a later, technically superior 1971 remake, "The Omega Man" in the aforementioned aspects. "The Omega Man", taken on it's own, is an interesting, entertaining film; but when referenced against the novel, falls flat on it's face. (Matheson himself stated that that film and his novel are two completely different animals.) In contrast, "TLMOE" fares much better when referenced: it shows that Morgan's (Neville's) battle is more with reactions within himself than with the vampires as a physical threat per se, as it becomes obvious that the vampires are slow-moving, dull-minded individually, and disorganized as a group, each instinctively and savagely interested only in HIS blood. Besides the perpetually nightmarish nuisance of the vampires, who have a collectively demoralizing effect on him, Morgan (Neville) must fight against the horror generated by the desolation and doom of a post-apocalyptic world, against the loneliness of being the last human on earth and against the agony of tragically losing his wife and daughter to the plague. In the final analysis, "The Last Man On Earth" could be likened to a series of crude, but brilliant brush-strokes of feeling-tones. As such it fully deserves cult-classic status.

Vincent Price is Legend!!

[kdruhm · 20 February 2002]

I'm not sure why this film is as underrated as it is. This is an amazing, depressing and in many ways brilliant film based on the Richard Matheson classic novel "I Am Legend". Vincent Price effectively conveys the terror and despair of being the last living man on an Earth that is now overrun with vampires and/or zombies. The depiction of Price's day to day bleak existence is a moving and powerful thing to behold and the continual menace of the hordes of zombies is creepy in the same way as was later depicted in "Night of the Living Dead". In fact, as noted by others here, one can not watch the scenes where the zombies lay siege to Price's boarded up house and attack his car without recognizing how close these scenes would later be copied by George Romero in his classic zombie films. If you are a fan of horror film history or just looking for a classic and unique film with an interesting story, track down this lost gem.

Worthwhile adaptation of Richard Matheson's cult sci-fi/horror novel.

[barnabyrudge · 6/10 · 25 January 2010]

Richard Matheson's novel I Am Legend was an innovative, genre-defining masterpiece – a book which rejuvenated horror and science fiction writing of the time, and made popular and exciting the (then) relatively new idea of post-apocalyptic fiction. This Italian dramatisation of the book is a worthwhile film, with an enthralling performance by Vincent Price as the lone survivor of a worldwide pandemic. Price seems an improbable candidate for the role – when reading the book, he's not at all the kind of actor you'd envisage if you had to cast for the character. And yet Price really holds this film together, delivering a subtle and intelligent interpretation in one of the high-points of his long and illustrious career. That's not to say The Last Man On Earth doesn't have its negatives; it isn't perfect by a long shot. But it is a commendable attempt to film Matheson's prescient futuristic story.

Robert Morgan (Vincent Price) believes he is the last remaining human on Earth. A virulent plague has wiped out mankind, leaving millions dead. Some of the dead have been reanimated as vampires. They stalk the streets at night and sleep through the day. Morgan spends the daylight hours hunting and destroying them, taking their staked corpses to a nearby pit where he burns their remains. Morgan's life has become a long and tedious cycle – by day he kills his sleeping enemies; scavenges for supplies of food, drink and garlic; and repairs his house. By night he barricades himself in while the vampires taunt him from outside and occasionally try to smash their way in. Then one day Morgan discovers a woman (Franca Bettoia) walking in broad daylight, apparently unaffected by the sunlight, apparently not a vampire, apparently a 'normal' human being like himself. But when he discovers that she is, in fact, one of a number of plague-sufferers who have managed to create a serum which controls the vampirism to a certain degree, he is devastated. He realises that the vampires are not the freaks any more – they are the "norm". Morgan himself is the freak, the last remaining example of a bygone legend called "man".

The Last Man On Earth is filmed in a subdued black-and-white hue which enhances its atmosphere of hopelessness and isolation. As mentioned, Price gives a strong performance as the lone vampire-killer who has somehow survived longer than nature intended him to. It's a little disappointing that the vampire characters are shown to be so slow and clumsy and, frankly, stupid-looking. In the book they were more nimble and physical and posed a greater threat to Morgan's safety. Here, he is able to single-handedly shove whole gangs of them away from his car or doorstep without much difficulty. They don't come across as formidable adversaries, and this loses the film some potential suspense. Also, Bettoia's character is sadly under-developed. Her appearance in the story has huge implications to the plot and to Morgan's eventual fate, yet she has barely any screen time and isn't built up properly at all. Nonetheless The Last Man On Earth stands as a worthwhile adaptation of a significant and thought-provoking sci-fi book. For its despairing atmosphere, not to mention Price's tour-de-force performance, it should be sought out and seen at least once.

Price is legend

[petra_ste · 6/10 · 1 August 2007]

An adaptation of Richard Matheson's classic I Am Legend, The Last Man on Earth is evidence of how a compelling actor can carry a movie all by himself: this time it's the unforgettable Vincent Price.

What's funny is Price is oddly cast - some would even say miscast. With his aristocratic look and cold demeanor, he really has nothing of the "average guy faced with extraordinary circumstances". And yet he captures the viewers' attention with his trademark charisma.

Price stars as Robert Morgan, last survivor of a plague which turned all other humans in vampire-like beings; each day Morgan follows a creepy "seek and destroy" routine to eliminate the creatures, but spends every night besieged in his house.

The movie is an elder brother of Night of the Living Dead, a grandfather of modern zombie flicks such as 28 Days Later. Do not expect visceral, frantic action, though; this is horror of the disturbing, unsettling variety.

The Last Man on Earth is not flawless: while I was never bored, I did not find it particularly scary, and the low budget shows. Still, Matheson's brilliant premise and Price's charisma save it from mediocrity.

The source material was later adapted in the 2007 Will Smith movie, which was everything this one wasn't (high-budget, action-heavy, with a stupid ending unfaithful to the novel).

6,5/10

Amazing film! The apocalypse rarely felt this real.

[Coventry · 9/10 · 5 December 2004]

I never read Richard Matheson's novel 'I am Legend' but I'm particularly intrigued by (science fiction) movies with an apocalyptic theme. And this adaptation simply is one of the most fascinating stories of an already brilliant decade for this type of films. Much more than a grim horror film, this is a gripping drama with an excellent (as always) Vincent Price as the sole and devastated survivor of a deadly plague that exterminated the entire human race, including his own wife and daughter. Price is Dr. Robert Morgan and due to his immunity to the lethal germs, he's the only one to fight victims who return in the shape of vampire/zombie-like creatures. Even though it has already been 3 years, Morgan desperately continues his search for other survivors…This is one of the most impressive performances Price ever gave away, and a lot more difficult than his usual roles of villains and madmen. Judging by today's standards, I guess the film looks very dated and you can't really refer to the tame 'vamp-zombies' as threatening anymore. But the empty streets and depressing cities, shot in unsettling black and white, still are the ultimate in eeriness! I love it when a film makes you feel miserable and worried…and the lower the budget is, the more efficient this effect is reached!

Like several of my fellow-reviewers already pointed out, this also was an immensely influential film. You can't watch 'Last man on Earth' without being reminded of George A. Romero's milestone genre film 'Night of the Living Dead'. If you then realize this movie was made 4 years before Romero's classic, you can't but reckon the underrated brilliance of this film. The same hopelessness-aspect that made Romero's film so tense features HERE first, in 'Last Man on Earth'! This production offers an ideal proportion of frights and sentiments, luckily without too many tedious scientific speeches or faked drama. 'Last Man on Earth' has to be seen by every SF/horror fan on this planet. For some reason this is one of the most underrated genre efforts ever, and that urgently has to change.

Depressing slice of post-apocalyptic horror

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 16 August 2016]

One of three filmed versions of Richard Matheson's classic tale I Am Legend (the others being THE OMEGA MAN, starring Charlton Heston, and I AM LEGEND, with Will Smith), THE LAST MAN ON EARTH has strengths and weaknesses in equal measure. On the plus side, the film achieves a real sense of true horror. This is not the jump-in-your-seat kind of horror though, but a heartfelt feeling of isolation and despair felt at the situation Vincent Price's character is in. Unfortunately, the subject matter of the film is hardly one to make the viewer happy, so it leaves a general depressing tone to the proceedings, but then again that's the point, isn't it? Vincent Price is on top form as the stern and resolute survivor who is plagued (no pun intended) by responsibility and memory of what has happened, and his dulcet tones are perfect for the narration of the story. Filmed in Rome, the locations are all authentic too, and they add hugely to the feel of the film and the grand isolation of it all. There are some action scenes interspersed through the film, generally fights with vampires, but the camera tends to cut away at the deaths instead of concentrating on them. There is also a terrific finale where Price is being chased by the half-vampire squad intent on gunning him down, and a stomach-thump downbeat ending.

The images of the vampires knocking at the windows and trying to break into the house is a very bleak, hostile one, and it has recurred since in the cinema, most notably in Romero's NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, where hordes of white-faced (or green-faced, if you watch the colourised version) zombies try to force their way into a deserted farmhouse to eat the survivors trapped inside. On the down side, the simple nature of the film means that it tends to get bogged down in character study in what is essentially a one-idea movie. Also, some scenes veer on boredom, especially the drawn out scene where Price remembers the events leading up to his situation, which seems to have simply been added in to fill out space. These flaws are not important however and they don't affect the film too much overall, leaving it a thought-provoking, if depressing, under-rated classic. Well worth getting.

Frightening and Dark View of the Fate of Mankind

[claudio_carvalho · 8/10 · 16 February 2006]

When a plague devastates life on Earth, the population dies or becomes a sort of zombie living in the dark. Dr. Robert Morgan (Vincent Price) is the unique healthy survivor on the planet, having a routine life for his own survival: he kills the night creatures along the day and maintains the safety of his house, to be protected along the night. He misses his beloved wife and daughter, consumed by the outbreak, and he fights against his loneliness to maintain mentally sane. When Dr. Morgan finds the contaminated Ruth Collins (Franca Bettoia), he learns that there are other survivors. He uses his blood to heal Ruth and he becomes the last hope on Earth to help the other contaminated survivors. But the order of this new society is scary.

"The Last Man on Earth" is a frightening and dark view of the fate of mankind. In those years, the preoccupation with radiation and biological weapons due to the cold war leaded people to this type of fear and preoccupation; later with AIDS; and presently with the disease in chickens. Fortunately science has developed means to cure or at least avoid epidemic situation, but we do not know how far we might be from such sad end of mankind. Vincent Price has a great performance in this movie, particularly in the beginning of the insanity of his character showed when he sees a photo of his family. The screenplay is very well developed, but the violent conclusion is weird. I always thought that George A. Romero was the creator of the "zombies", because of his excellent 1968 "Night of Living Dead". But now I can see that the origin of these creatures was in "The Last Man on Earth".

When I was a teenager, the remake "The Omega Man" was a very successful film in the movie theaters. I had not had the chance to see the original movie, since "The Last Man on Earth" (and "The Omega Man") had not been released on VHS or DVD in Brazil. Fortunately a minor Brazilian distributor has just released "The Last Man on Earth" on DVD, giving me the chance to see this great unknown movie. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Mortos Que Matam" (Dead That Kill")

Obs: On 25 May 2008, I watched this great classic movie again.

On 15 March 2014, I saw this movie again.

Groundbreaking and iconic

[GroovyDoom · 7/10 · 2 February 2007]

"The Last Man On Earth" remains the most faithful adaptation of Richard Matheson's "I Am Legend" to date, not as ambitious as "The Omega Man" and much creepier. This movie's hero, Robert Morgan, seems to be the only living man to survive a plague. He spends his days stalking and staking plague victims that have been reanimated as vampires, and his nights are spent barricaded inside his house while they beat on the door and moan for his blood.

Certain scenes in the film, such as when Morgan tries to drown out the cries of the vampires by playing records on his phonograph, are genuinely disturbing. The early portions of the film, where we see Morgan in his horrific daily routine of rising with the sun and clearing the city of vampires, are especially effective, among the best "end of the world" type films ever made. The most frightening sequence takes place during a flashback, when Morgan loses his wife to the plague and then insists on burying her instead of burning her body. Just as he has simultaneously denied and dreaded, she returns from her grave whispering "Let me in...let me in..." Other aspects of the film do not work as well, and have dated badly. After Morgan discovers that he may not be the last person alive after all, the film begins to unravel. It never quite makes the transition from Morgan's personal horror to the dread of the new "vampire society" emerging. The actress who plays Ruth (or rather the actress who vocalizes her, since the entire movie is dubbed and since the actors were mostly Italians, the English voices may have been performed by others) delivers her lines with a muddled voice that makes her hard to understand and seems a little silly. Likewise, the action sequence at the conclusion where the "new humans" chase Morgan through the streets is awkwardly realized and works in concept only.

The movie does make an inventive departure from the novel by having Morgan "cure" Ruth of her vampirism, therefore proving that he could have saved the rest of the survivors from their own affliction, yet they kill him in cold blood because he has become a villain in their eyes.

"The Last Man On Earth" is significant for providing a number of aesthetic references for the horror genre, namely the shambling corpses and barricaded protagonists. George Romero effectively expanded on this a few years after the fact in "Night of the Living Dead", with a much greater impact. The sight of the ghouls hammering at Morgan's house, which has a few reinforcements that seem alarmingly inadequate, are still unnerving.

If you can get past some of the dated hairstyles, attitudes, and the clumsy plot elements, "The Last Man On Earth" has a nostalgic creepiness that may work for you. Plus, Vincent Price is always worth a look!

Barely Watchable

[utku_kamil_ozen · 3/10 · 15 March 2023]

I don't care if this is the first movie ever to invent zombies or zombie-vampires or whatever they are, nor do I care that if it inspired future movies of similar kind. A movie needs to stand alone and must be judged as its own thing. This movie had a concept that was not too technically challenging, so it all comes down to good old filmmaking and acting and it fails in both departments. The most annoying thing about the movie is general sound design. Everyone is dubbed horribly and it has an awful soundtrack that won't stop for a minute. Acting is hilarious at times and awkward most of the time, and when I say bad acting, I mostly mean the zombies. They are just ridiculous. And if anyone wants to defend the movie based on the time it was made, this movie was made in 1964, it is not an excuse for the bad acting, directing and sound design. Psycho (1960) was made 4 years before this, The Third Man was made in 1949 and Casablanca was made in 1942. These comparisons might seem arbitrary, but I'd like to remind you again, this was not a technically challenging movie, my point is that the time it was made is not an excuse for the awkwardness and the awfulness of the movie. I can understand if you are a fan of the genre and want to watch this, but other than that, no one should bother.

Price gets apocalyptic in this extraordinary zombie flick!

[The_Void · 8/10 · 8 June 2005]

Made four years before Night of the Living Dead, The Last Man on Earth tells a very similar story. Based on Richard Matheson's novel "I Am Legend", the film tells the tale of a terrible plague that has wiped out all of mankind and replaced them with vampire-zombie like creatures. Well, it's almost wiped mankind out - one man, Vincent Price, still remains. Now that he has inherited the Earth, the last surviving human has to hunt these creatures by day and then hole up in his house during the night. Vincent Price says most of dialogue in voice over, which gives this apocalyptic horror film a great element of pessimism, which is essential in order for the film to work. The way that Price reads his lines is done in such a way that it seems he has simply given up all hope, and this helps the tragic element of the movie, which is this film's main backbone. The dreary black and white cinematography helps this element of the film also, as it adds the degree of hopelessness and pessimism, which this story thrives on.

Quite how this film has reached the ripe old age of forty and still not garnered the praise and respect it deserves is beyond me. While Night of the Living Dead deserves the praise for 'really' creating the zombie movie that we all now know and love, this film got the theme first, and thus deserves it's place in the annals of film history. The story, even without the horror of the zombie creatures, still makes for fascinating food for thought. The idea of being left all alone on the Earth is simultaneously fascinating and horrifying, and by showing us the things that the protagonist has do every day to ward off the vampires (mirrors and garlic on the doors, hunting them by day), along with such quotes as "another day to live through" show the true horror of the idea behind the film. Of course, Vincent Price is one of the greatest actors of all time and his presence in the movie is easily one of the highlights. Price's great screen presence helps to offset the obvious low budget of the film and even during the slower moments, The Last Man on Earth still ensures that we are interested in what's going on, just by the fact that Price is there. On the whole, this is an extraordinarily brilliant film and one that deserves your viewing!

one of price's better horror films

[ksf-2 · 7/10 · 24 March 2022]

The vincent price one! Black and white. The title says it all. It's him against the zombie people that keep coming and trying to get into his house. We hear his thoughts, as he goes shopping and plans out his defense against the intruders. This one isn't bad! Price had made so many cheesy, campy horror films in the 1950s and 1960s, where he played the organ and laughed at his own jokes. This one is played quite seriously. It's pretty good. Fifty five minutes in, he walks past a building that looks like a space ship, it's still a working restaurant in rome... ristorante il fungo, and has a web page. Directed by sidney salkow. He had directed a bunch of the lone wolf films with warren williaim, back in the 1940s. Based on the book by richard matheson. He had a bunch of his short stories and novels made into film.

Good Books Tend Not To Make Great Films

[Theo Robertson · 5/10 · 19 September 2009]

In my review of the recent remake of I AM LEGEND I made the point that Richard Matheson's source novel is probably unfilmable for several reasons . Having recently seen this 1964 adaptation which sticks to the story rather closely my fears were confirmed

There's nothing more difficult than to make a solitary literary character cinematic andaudience friendly . Thought processes are turned in to expositional voice over and all screen writing gurus agree that you should never use voice over to tell a story and THE LAST MAN ON EARTH is full of expositional voice over . What makes it worse is that original author Richard Matheson ( Writing under pseudonym Logan Swanson ) co-wrote this screenplay . Couldn't the story have started with the plague sweeping across America thereby eliminating the need for any exposition ? We could have started the story from the beginning with the audience discovering the plot turns as Robert Morgan discovered them ? A much better way of narrative storytelling

It's not just the storytelling that's the problem , it's the production values too . TLMOE was filmed in Italy and the director Ubaldo Ragona seems to have been influenced by Italian Neo-Realism . Can there be a more tedious cinematic movement than Italian Neo-Realism ? The directing doesn't make a fantastical story anymore credible it just makes the on screen events drag along at a snail's pace . Indeed there seems to be an abrasive clash of styles as we're shown slow burning visuals alongside cheap horror gimmicks such as intrusive melodramatic music . There's other niggling things too like a child who looks like she's at death's door and her mother wondering if she should be sent to school ! Things like this makes characterization ridiculous

Since the film revolves around a major protagonist that the audience have to latch on to it's imperative that an actor of charisma is cast and I'm afraid that Vincent Price is not that man . He's not helped by the banal dialogue he's given " Everyday there's more of them as I take them to the pit . The pit . The pit " but he's not really the type of actor who can carry a film which explains why he's best remembered for appearing in cheap B movies like this one , but I guess he was fairly cheap to hire

So in effect the best version of I AM LEGEND is the 1971 movie THE OMEGA MAN . I say " best version" because it is cinematic even though it dispenses with the essential subtext of Matheson's novel and goes its own way but that movie was very entertaining where as this movie and the recent Will Smith star vehicle prove that good books tend not to make great movies

"I am the last...man."

[Backlash007 · 1 May 2002]

The Last Man on Earth is a great film to watch alone. Horror veteran Vincent Price plays Dr. Robert Morgan, a desperate and lonely man who's left alone in an apocalyptic world; A world ruled by zombie-like vampires as a result of a widespread plague. These vampire zombies are highly reminiscent of George Romero's walking dead in Night of the Living Dead. Price does a remarkable job interacting with practically nothing. He's alone throughout the majority of the film. His performance largely carries this low budgeter. When you watch the movie alone, you really feel where his character is coming from and a sense of hopelessness is established. The Last Man on Earth is really a thought-provoking, creepy classic. I recommend it be watched with Charlton Heston's The Omega Man to see another take on the same story (both were based on Richard Matheson's "I Am Legend").

a decent flick

[dixonc-62562 · 7/10 · 5 December 2017]

the last man on earth one of my favourite movies and has a very sad theme. the film is self- explanatory but there are parts where even I get sad and feel for the main character. the film is about dr.Robert Morgan who is trying to survive in a world that has been overrun by vampires. Morgan is a very likable characters and the film gets you to feel and has sympathy for him. he is played by Vincent Price who is very convincing alone in this film but there is his background of him once being happy and then having everything he loves taken away from him. in the movie I am surprised he didn't just stick a gun outside the window and shoot the $h!t out of the one vampire that always calls his name and taunts him. but int he end it is a good and in a way touching the story of survival, insanity, and in the end loneliness.

A fun, eerie thriller, but not without its faults.

[Jim-D · 6/10 · 15 January 2008]

Having seen dozens of Vincent Price films over the years, I was surprised to realize I had never seen this classic. A wild, eerie schlock-fest, this re-telling of Matheson's "I Am Legend" comes across as a truly nightmarish tale, albeit not without some faults.

The title succinctly explains the entire plot of the film and the book upon which its based. What isn't explained in the title is that the last man on Earth now finds himself fending off legions of roving monsters - ex-humans who now thirst for blood.

The film, which is set in small-town America but obviously filmed overseas, walks a thin line between creepy and silly. The "vampires" thud against Price's front door like mindless zombies, chanting "Come out" over and over. One viewer might find the image and accompanying, hollow voice quite horrifying, while another could easily see it as low-budget campiness. While I loved seeing Price bed down for the night with a cup of tea and loud jazz music while the monsters mindlessly attack the exterior of his house, the image is equally ridiculous if one tries to take it seriously in the context of the film.

Surprisingly enough, I found this film to pale in comparison to 2007's I Am Legend, starring Will Smith. Not one to enjoy modern remakes, I found this superior feature captured the emptiness of Matheson's classic novel with much more tenacity. While the first film version of this book is still a fun ride, I am surprised to recommend the latest version of this story with a bit more enthusiasm.

Frighteningly Prophetic Movie

[mxsuba26 · 10/10 · 12 April 2020]

This is a cheesy movie, but due to current events, I give it a ten for that reason only. Vincent Price is Robert Morgan, a scientist studying the plague that wiped out the earth's population, or so it seems. Set in the USA, but filmed abroad - all buildings and foreign cars give it away. Price loses his beautiful wife and child to what he states is a virus (sound familiar?) that travels in the air (sound familiar?). He is the only healthy survivor living in his house loaded with provisions. Those who died and were not burned in pits to destroy their bodies came back as zombie vampires which includes his close friend. Robert goes out daily to finish them off with the approved method of a stake through the heart and locks himself in his home each night while the Zombies attack it trying to get him. He makes new batches of stakes daily in his house at his home lathe. Why not? Not much else to do. Robert traces his immunity to the fact that while working in Panama years earlier, he was bitten by a bat that carried the virus. Yes, a bat. Sound familiar? Not making this up. Way to accurate. Eventually he finds a a sexy young female survivor who is infected by manages to self medicate to stay normal. She states that she had been in hiding for years but still looking good in her skirt, make-up and heels. These plague survivor girls know how to look good in any situation. Turns out she is part of a tribe of similar survivors who are out to kill him cause he staked a few of their group by mistake. Wild chase and battle at the end of the movie with all the members dressed in black, driving jeeps, carrying spears and Russian sub-machine guns chasing him. This movie is the father of the Omega Man and the grandfather of I am Legend. Too spooky due to current events. Fact that it was made in Italy is even more chilling.

Cult Film Of "Legend"

[virek213 · 7/10 · 25 January 2008]

THE LAST MAN ON EARTH is one of those end-of-the-world sagas that posits the notion of what it would be like to live in a largely dead world after some ghastly war or plague with nobody else left. The twist here, taking its basis from Richard Matheson's classic 1954 novel "I Am Legend" (the first of three adaptations of that book, in fact), is that you do have one human protagonist left alive, and a world full of things that want to kill him.

Vincent Price stars as Robert Morgan (though he is Robert Neville in both the book and the latter film THE OMEGA MAN, and the 2007 version with Will Smith, under the author's original title), the only survivor of a terrible plague that decimated Earth, and turned everyone into vampires. By day, Price goes out into the city to stake and burn as many vampires as he can. And at night, he must barricade himself against the hordes that prowl around his isolated fortress each night, including his ex-friend Ben Cortman (Giacomo Rossi-Stuart), wanting to get at him. Price tries to find a logical and scientific explanation for the vampire plague (explained in flashbacks to when the plague began); and in due time, he happens upon another survivor, a woman (Franca Bettoia) who seems to be normal. But there is a fairly diabolical twist that Bettoia turns out to have in store, for both Price and the vampires.

Often seen as a precursor to George Romero's 1968 horror classic NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and Danny Boyle's more recent 28 DAYS LATER, THE LAST MAN ON EARTH, though very flawed in many aspects due to its rather low budget and its being filmed in Rome (Matheson's original novel is set in post-plague Los Angeles, as is THE OMEGA MAN), does have an extremely high creepiness factor that is very difficult for a lot of horror/sci-fi hybrids to come by, especially today. Price may not have necessarily been the ideal one to play Robert Morgan (one of the many reasons Matheson disavowed the film and used his pen name Logan Swanson for the screenplay credits), but he does a fairly good job all the same. The direction of Sidney Salkow and Ubaldo Ragona is fairly perfunctory for the most part, but certain scenes do stand out, including Price being caught outdoors at dusk after visiting his wife's grave; and Price having to see his wife come back from the dead as a vampire.

Matheson's novel remains one of the high points of both horror and science fiction literature, not only in its consistently interesting scientific explanation for vampirism (making it without much doubt the greatest vampire story since "Dracula"), but also because of its basic psychological and scientific horror; and it has proved to be quite impossible to film properly per the author's intentions and still fit Hollywood's insatiable box office need (THE OMEGA MAN differed wildly from the letter of the novel but retained the basic spirit of it, while the Will Smith version is its own creation, still using elements of the novel). But if one ignores the inherent flaws of this near-Poverty Row production, THE LAST MAN ON EARTH can easily be seen as a fairly good cult film of "legend"--and, in many ways, a disturbing and thought-provoking one.

excellent early post-apocalyptic thriller

[ThrownMuse · 8/10 · 15 December 2004]

"The Last Man on Earth" is an early example of how fantastic, even on a minimal budget, a movie set in a post-apocalyptic world can be. This movie starts with Morgan (Vincent Price) waking up to another day of being the lone survivor of a vicious worldwide plague...disposing of bodies, stocking up on mirrors and garlic, crying over his lost loved ones, and battling the undead. There are lots of silly parts in this movie...but there are also lots of really cool innovative aspects. And talking zombie-vampires?! "The Last Man on Earth" is a nifty precursor to the Romero trilogy. The movie tends to drag after the first 15 minutes or so, but it really picks up from the middle on. Definitely recommended to anyone who enjoys apocalypse movies and zombie movies. My Rating: 8/10.

Probably the best adaption of 'I Am Legend'

[Red-Barracuda · 6/10 · 9 November 2015]

A plague has turned the population of Earth into vampire-like creatures of the night. Except for one man who is immune to the disease. He fights a daily battle for survival against these creatures, always with the hope of future companionship.

The Last Man on Earth is the first cinematic adaption of Richard Matheson's novel 'I Am Legend'. It has subsequently been remade a couple of times since. The book was an interesting one in the way it combined a sci-fi premise with a traditional horror one, while also focusing strongly on themes of isolation and loneliness. It is a very early example of the sub-genre known as post-apocalypse or pandemic to be precise in this case. As a result it feels quite modern for its time and most probably served as something of an influence for the later genre-defining classic Night of the Living Dead (1968). It stars Vincent Price in the lead role. Despite this being a horror film, he is not necessarily the most obvious actor for this film as his over-the-top style seems at odds with the somewhat melancholic aspects this story demands of its lead character. Yet, despite these initial reservations, Price puts in one of the strongest performances of his career here and shows what a versatile actor he could be.

It's not a perfect film though, as it never really generates much tension despite a set-up that has lots of potential for suspense. It's similar in this way to the later adaption The Omega Man (1971), in that the vampires make for somewhat surprisingly feeble monsters on the whole and never threaten as much as they really should. Unlike in that Charlton Heston film though, at least here they are not philosophical beings and do at least have one sole objective to kill our protagonist; it's just a pity that they usually attempt to do so in such clunky and easily-avoidable ways. That said this film is the only adaption that is brave enough to have a dark ending which serves this version very well and works better for the story as a whole. But despite the horror material, much of the focus here is on more easily relatable themes such as loneliness and isolation. Part of the success of the film is that the audience can put themselves in the shoes of the protagonist and imagine what they would do and how they would cope.

Shot in crisp black and white, it looks great. There are many shots of deserted cityscapes which give off a very effective ambiance. There is an oddness to these, in that despite the film being set in America it was actually shot in Rome, meaning that we often see distinctive Italian architecture which always seems a bit off. It works quite well though, in that it merely adds a layer of almost dreamlike strangeness to proceedings. On the whole, this is a good, albeit flawed, movie which is quite original in approach.

First Adaptation Of "I Am Legend".

[AaronCapenBanner · 4/10 · 25 September 2013]

Vincent Price stars as Dr. Richard Morgan, the apparent sole-survivor of a world-wide plague that has turned humans into vampire-like creatures that come out at night, trying to kill him. He has barricaded himself in his home at night, but ventures out in the day to gather supplies, and kill any of the "undead" he can find. He will come to discover that he isn't in fact the "last", but he may as well be...

Based on the famous novel by Richard Matheson, film doesn't really succeed, despite a good performance by Vincent Price. Script is full of holes, and becomes dreary and ultimately unsatisfying, even unintentionally funny at times. Has really good source material that explores and attempts to explain vampire lore, and the reasons behind it(like garlic and mirrors) but this is barely covered. Has some atmosphere, but not enough.

Engrossing futuristic horror

[TheLittleSongbird · 9/10 · 28 August 2012]

Of the three films based on I Am Legend, The Last Man on Earth is my personal favourite. I also liked The Omega Man, though didn't care for the 2007 film I Am Legend. This futuristic horror is very engrossing stuff, slowly paced yet deliberately so with an ending that has always moved me. There may be lapses in logic in the script, however so much compensates. The sets and filming are minimalistic and stark, and this approach adds much to the apocalyptic feel of the story. The score is haunting, the creatures are appropriately creepy, the film is beautifully directed and the story is full of suspenseful yet beautiful atmosphere. Vincent Price here gives one of his more restrained performances, often interacting to little or nothing, very different from the arch yet sympathetic roles that show him at his very best. While also stoic and vulnerable, he shows terror and despair brilliantly.

All in all, engrossing with a different but wonderful performance from Price and a real sense of atmosphere. 9/10 Bethany Cox

"They want my blood, their lives or mine..."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 7 September 2005]

"The Last Man on Earth" opens with the desolation of city landscapes betraying not a hint of activity, and bodies lying in the streets. A community church billboard heralds: "The End Has Come". Against this desperation, one man survives and marks time on the walls of his home. For three years he has wearily resigned himself to his mission, to destroy every last vampire within the confines of the city, searching for their resting places in hopes of discovering a large colony he can destroy all at once instead of the one or two he may happen upon at random.

Vincent Price portrays Dr. Robert Morgan, curiously immune from the vampire plague. We learn that his tolerance may have occurred years earlier when he was bitten by a bat in Panama, somehow acquiring antibodies in his system to combat the disease. Via flashback sequences, we come to learn that Morgan once had a wife and young daughter, and while working at a medical lab, the plague hit, first in Europe, and then carried wind borne to other parts of the world.

The apocalyptic feel of the movie is both effective and discomfiting at the same time. The viewer shares in Morgan's hopelessness and despair, knowing that should he fulfill his mission, there is no relief from the loneliness and boredom of a solitary existence. Having lost his family, and even his dog to the ravages of disease, Morgan is driven not so much by revenge, but by a choice made to make things right in the world even to his last breath.

All of your standard vampire lore is explored in the film; Morgan protects his home with ropes of garlic, and dots his rooms with mirrors. He makes his own stakes for subduing them, and his daily forays into the city show him carrying his equipment and a mallet in readiness for what he may find.

Watch for a continuity error early in the film - the first time we see Morgan load his station wagon with dead vampire bodies, he puts them in head first, with feet coming out the back. When he arrives at the burning pit to dispose of them, the one he pulls out of the car is facing him head first.

"The Last Man on Earth" is not an easy film to watch. It's one of the few "B" grade films of the genre that actually make you think about what you might face if you suddenly found yourself in an apocalyptic nightmare. Particularly poignant is my timing to view this film, some eight days following Hurricane Katrina, with it's desolation of New Orleans. The contrast between the leveled landscape of Louisiana with the stark remains of the movie's locale bear an uncomfortable similarity. It's unsettling to realize that a work of fiction can come so close to capturing the mood and despair of an entire region faced with a tragedy beyond it's control. This is not a film to entertain, and there is no happy ending.

Effective.

[DigitalRevenantX7 · 5/10 · 4 June 2008]

The Story: 1968, three years after mankind was wiped out by a strange disease. Robert Morgan, a former scientist, is the sole survivor. He spends his nights barricaded in his house while the remnants of humanity, transformed into vampires by the disease, come howling at his door. During the day, Morgan combs the city in an effort to destroy the vampires.

In 1954, budding writer Richard Matheson wrote a book called "I Am Legend", which became one of the best sci-fi / horror novels ever made. There have been three different films adapted from the book, this film being the first. Matheson wrote the script himself. The film was originally planned to have been made by the British Hammer studios but was canned when it ran into censorship problems. As a result, the Italians took the script & filmed it on the cheap. Where, I hear you ask? In Italy, of course! While this film may have been made on the cheap, as a horror film it does succeed on it's own, limited terms. There is a certain effectiveness to have Vincent Price going about his daily routine, if you call what he does routine, going to a deserted supermarket to replenish his garlic supply, making stakes on a wood lathe, then searching the city, killing vampires as they sleep. The film does have the usual problems associated with many low-budget films, with sound drop-outs, poor continuity & awkward pauses on the soundtrack. The film also preserves the book's ending intact.