Kirikiriroa on Film: The Quiet Earth

Hamilton plays itself in the 1985 post-apocalypse sci-fi cult classic, The Quiet Earth. Directed by Geoff Murphy (of Goodbye Pork Pie and Utu fame), the film follows scientist Zac Hobson (played by the always-brilliant Bruno Lawrence) waking up to find deserted streets, abandoned cars, and dead radio airwaves. After efforts to search for other survivors, he reluctantly concludes that he’s the last person left alive on earth. Thought provoking and affecting, The Quiet Earth examines isolation and the meaning of human connection, while musing on scientific hubris. The film depicts urban desolation and unclaimed spaces in a way that will excite fans of The Omega Man (and its later remake I Am Legend) and 28 Days Later, but altogether is a sparser and more contemplative experience.

Midway through the movie there’s a series of sequences taking place in and around Hamilton, and although it’s never directly named as such, the scenes are littered with references which ring true to local ears - with particular mentions of “searching both sides of the river”, and name dropping the corner of Mansel Ave and Hillcrest Road. Other scenes give us good 1980s glimpses of Waikato University, the hospital, and the lake. The filmmakers seemed to have had the run of the area around Alexandra Street, with a number of scenes shot there - culminating in a confrontation in the middle of (a much grassier) Garden Place.

Come for the beguiling sci-fi weirdness, stay for the shots of Hamilton circa 1985.

The Quiet Earth is available for rent and sale via NZ Film On Demand.