Amazing Film!. Review on The Last Wave Movie

The memory of the cataclysms was erased, not because of lack of written traditions, but because of some characteristic process that later caused entire nations, together with their literate men, to read into these traditions allegories or metaphors where actually cosmic disturbances were clearly described

Velikovsky from “Worlds in Collision”

Is the world going to come to an end? If yes, when is it going to end ? And what are the signs ? These are the questions many religions try to answer ..Each one has come up with their own explanations and theories ..The Hindus believe that the last Hindu reincarnation of God (Kalki) will come in a white horse. In the Christian text of Revelation ,it has been written that the heaven would open and there would be a “white horse” and the rider is called “faithful and true” and he “judges and make war “ . The people who follow Islam believe in “Judgement day “ . The Prophet had said that when the signs for the last hour come, it comes fast . There is an interesting theory proposed by Velikovsky in his work “Worlds in Collision “ when he says that the memory of the previous cataclysms has been erased from our mind ..In fact, tribal people in many parts of the world have their own concept for the end of the world too. ..Modern man has lost touch with these theories and he is too much immersed in the modern world as such...What if he comes into contact with his own lost spiritual life and his beliefs? This is the crux of this classic film by Peter Weir:”The Last Wave “. Unlike his movie “Picnic at Hanging Rock” (Please see my previous review), this is not a horror movie. But the movie is strange and weird in the sense that it addresses many issues which I had never seen before in films.

This is the story of a man who comes into contact with his lost spiritual past. David(Richard Chamberlain) is a middle-class lawyer in contemporary Australia .He is happily married and has kids too. It looks as if he is leading a peaceful and happy life.But,deep down inside, he is still restless and is being haunted by some strange dreams .These dreams are weird in the sense that sometimes they come true too…He desperately wants to get the answer to the questions but his family is not able to answer his questions ..He comes in contact with 5 tribal aboriginals who are accused of murdering a fellow tribal man. He takes their case and tries his best to help them. Strangely, he finds that Chris (Gulpilil) ,one of the accused, has answers to most of his questions. He realizes that he is a part of a civilization which had been destroyed by a big wave. He also realizes that the strange weather like the hail rain is one of the signs that indicate that the end of the world is near .

The character of David is interesting and has many layers. The beauty is that even he is not aware of it .He seems to be leading a peaceful life on the outside ,but inside, he wants to get in touch with his spiritual self . Richard Chamberlain is David and is amazing in this difficult-to-play role. He has to go through a myriad of emotions from anxiety to elation . His scientific bent of mind refuses to believe in the supernatural initially but slowly and gradually , he comes into contact with his own beliefs .He is amazing in the last scene when he gets the dream of the “last wave” .Check out his reaction which proves that he is a great actor, indeed.

Annie is David’s wife .She is a fourth generation Australian .When she says that she has not yet met an aboriginal, we realize the divide between the white settlers and the tribal people in Australia . Gulpilil is great as Chris who is stuck between two cultures. He doesn’t want to break his tribal law but at the same time, he wants to help David who wants to know the answer to his questions. The role of Annie (David’s wife) is played by Olivia Hamnett.She was very good in the scene when she gets really frightened when she sees Charlie(Nanjiwara Amagula) ,a tribal aborigine outside her house. Annie also tries her best to help David to come out of his fears. But then, there is little that she could do to help him as she did not have her answers .

The scene where Chris explains the concept of dream-time to David is great.. The concept of dream-time is very interesting in the sense that it is entirely a different system of perception. It doesn’t belong to the past but it is a continuing thing. Some people are capable of going to dream-time and coming back to our time. There are many things that can be explained in dream-time which cannot be explained in our current system of perception. The tribals believe that the law is more important the man where as modern men like David believe in the reverse.

One of the major strengths of the film is its screenplay. The second half of the film is more interesting than the first half. Though slow at times, it really helps us to understand David’s journey into his lost spiritual self. The background music in this film adds to the mood of the film . Peter Weir, the director seems to be an expert in subject related to the supernatural. In an interview , he had said that he wanted his audience “to walk out with more than the $4.00 or what a ticket costs”.. In this film ,he is very successful in making us (the audience) think about questions and issues which we might not have come across previously. It seems this film was made on a moderate budjet.While this fact was evident in certain scenes, it didn’t act as a deterrent for us to enjoy the film. The music and the photography in this film are the other highlights in this film. A must-see film …

Do see this movie if you get a chance!