Director: Boris Sagal
Starring: Charlton Heston, Anthony Zerbe, Rosalind Cash
Year: 1971
From the same story as I Am Legend, The Omega Man tells a similar tale of mankind on the brink of annihilation, this time a little more virus and a little less vampire. Also, far too much early 70s ridiculosity and Charlton Heston braggadocio. Will Smith did it better, and he had a dog, which was cool, but Heston did it first, which, I guess, is something. Neither movie is great, and this one has the negative aspect of being outdated past forgivability, which is strike three, you’re out.
Dr. Neville is the last man alive in his city, now that humanity has been wiped out by a chemical weapon that turned into a devastating virus. Well, that’s not exactly true, there are others, but they, The Family, can’t be out during the day, spurn all technology, and have basically become a bizarre cult that is glad the world has moved on. When Neville discovers that there are others like him still surviving, he makes a plan to create a vaccine from his own blood so that they don’t turn into weirdos. But, of course, you know what they say about best-laid plans.
Omega Man is pretty damned awful. It’s the Will Smith movie in its original format, but with a Blaxploitation feel that icks you out and a Heston gunfight mentality that’s just juvenile. The acting is abysmal, the story is all over the place, 90 minutes feel like 900, and by the end you’re wishing you were dead too. All I can say is that post-apocalyptic movies are fun, and this one is no different, but that doesn’t mean that it’s good, like, at all. Planet of the Apes gone horribly wrong, stay away from revisiting this quasi-classic; there are better dated sci-fi flicks.
My rating: ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆