The World, the Flesh and the Devil (1959 film)
| The World, the Flesh and the Devil | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Directed by | Ranald MacDougall |
| Produced by |
Sol C. Siegel George Englund Harry Belafonte (uncredited) |
| Written by | Ranald MacDougall |
| Screenplay by | Ranald MacDougall |
| Based on | novel The Purple Cloud by M. P. Shiel story End of the World by Ferdinand Reyher |
| Starring |
Harry Belafonte Inger Stevens Mel Ferrer |
| Music by | Miklós Rózsa |
| Cinematography | Harold J. Marzorati |
| Edited by | Harold F. Kress |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
|
Release date
|
|
|
Running time
|
95 minutes |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1,659,000 |
| Box office | $1,085,000 |
The World, the Flesh and the Devil is a 1959 American science fictiondoomsday film written and directed by Ranald MacDougall. The film stars Harry Belafonte, who was then at the peak of his film career. The film is set in a post-apocalyptic world with very few human survivors. It is based on two sources: the novel The Purple Cloud by M. P. Shiel and the story "End of the World" by Ferdinand Reyher.
African-American coal mine inspector Ralph Burton (Harry Belafonte) becomes trapped underground in a cave-in while inspecting a mine in Pennsylvania. He can hear rescuers digging towards him, but after a few days they slow down and then stop completely. Alarmed, he digs his own way out. Reaching the surface, he finds a deserted world. (No bodies are seen at any time in the film.) Some discarded newspapers provide an explanation: one proclaims "UN Retaliates For Use Of Atomic Poison", another that "Millions Flee From Cities! End Of The World". Ralph later plays tapes at a radio station that an unknown nation had used radioactive isotopes as a weapon, yielding a dust cloud that spread globally and was completely lethal for a five-day period.
Travelling to New York City in search of other survivors, he finds the city vacant. Ralph busies himself restoring power to a building where he takes up residence. Just as the loneliness starts to become intolerable, he encounters a second survivor: Sarah Crandall (Inger Stevens), a white woman in her twenties. The two become fast friends, but Ralph grows distant when it becomes clear that Sarah is developing stronger feelings for him. Despite living in a post-apocalyptic world and despite the fact that Sarah seems unconcerned with their racial difference, Ralph cannot overcome the inhibitions instilled in him in a racist American society.
Ralph regularly broadcasts on the radio, hoping to contact other people. Eventually, he receives a signal from Europe, indicating there are at least a few other survivors. Things become vastly more complicated when an ill, white Benson Thacker (Mel Ferrer) arrives by boat. Ralph and Sarah nurse him back to health, but once he recovers, Ben sets his sights on Sarah and sees Ralph as a rival. Ralph is torn by conflicting emotions. He avoids Sarah as much as possible, to give Ben every opportunity to win her affections, but cannot quite bring himself to leave the city.
...
Wikipedia