Entertainment

By Richard in Entertainment, Films and TV, Media ⋅ December 20, 2007 ⋅  Email this post ⋅  Print this post ⋅ Post a comment

This is the second film, the first being The Fountain, that I've watched recently which tackles the question: "What if you could live forever?" Despite the similar premise, the two films do not share much in common and they look at the question from two very different perspectives. The Fountain is an arty, elegant and elaborate story while The Man from Earth is a low-budget (though the Fountain didn't exactly break the bank), independent film which is inherently simple yet incredibly intelligent.

The Man From Earth has an uncomplicated story, though there are a few twists as the film progresses, which doesn't distract from the intellectual debate which is the focal point of the film. It begins by introducing a college professor who is leaving his job after 10 years. His impromptu farewell quickly turns into an emotionally involving debate when he, almost casually, reveals that he is 14000 years old. With characters from varying fields of science (such as a Biologist, Anthropologist, Archaeologist, Christian Literalist, and Psychologist) the discussion covers all the issues about a potential immortal man, from the science of it to the religious implications.

The film is almost intentionally controversial in some of the views, with some challenging ideas on the subject of religion (this isn't really a film for the easily offended religious types) that lead to some on-screen tension between the religious character and the main character, who has ironically titled himself John Oldman.  Save for a brief interlude or two to develop the relationship between John and Linda, the film is all talk and no action, and takes place in a single location - which is in no way a bad thing when you have such an clever and thought-provoking script to work from. The film does not try to be a thrill ride, but it manages to be suspenseful and captivating and with an ideal running time of 90 minutes, it doesn't drag on.

The acting is exceptional for an independent film, with David Lee Smith giving an excellent performance as the central character. The presence of John Billingsly, one of the better known members of the cast, is one of a couple of Star Trek references that act as a tribute to the late writer Jerome Bixby, who was best known for his work on Star Trek.

This is a great film, minimalist in the best sense of the word. The filmmakers have not attempted to make this into a thriller, yet they have crafted a film which was as entertaining to me as many of the best action films of recent times. One of the reasons being that The Man From Earth manages to do what so many high budget sci-films couldn't dream of doing; the scientific explanations actually make the story seem plausible. It is often said that a good film leaves unanswered questions, and this film leaves quite a few, but that was to be expected from such a theoretical story. Obviously, I can't guarantee that you'll enjoy it, but if you have any interest at all in the subject matter then you'll find something to like about this film.

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4 votes, average: 5 out of 5

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