The next apocalyptic uprising has arrived with the new short Apocalypse Now Now. Directed by Michael Matthews, the proof-of-concept short is based on an urban sci-fi novel of the same title written by Charlie Human.
The film introduces us to the main character and narrator right away, Baxter Zevcenko, and he’s not doing too well. As he sits on the passenger seat, he catches us up on the quick version of his recent life, and how he’s ended up with Dr. Ronin, the driver and owner of the car they’re in. We realize right away that Baxter is a bit of a sinister character himself and discover that he might’ve had a hand in his girlfriend’s death. He claims that Dr. Ronin is the only one who can prove his innocence, and that’s why he’s on the road with the guy.
Dr. Ronin takes us to a small neighborhood where he begins to do some weird stuff. We see their surroundings, supposedly a supernatural underground version of Cape Town, and it’s a total disaster. There’s trash everywhere and dead bodies too. Dr. Ronin finds a freshly dismembered limb and uses whatever blood is left in it to draw a circle of protection around Baxter. Baxter doesn’t know why Dr. Ronin does this but proceeds to play along anyway. We see Dr. Ronin start to set up some raggedy equipment before he sits down in a somewhat meditative position to wait.
And they wait. And wait. Nighttime comes and Baxter is still standing inside his circle of protection. He begins to step out of it when Dr. Ronin yells, “Stay in the circle, Spark.” Dr. Ronin must’ve said this to Baxter several times until Baxter realizes why. We hear a noise come about. It’s weird and it’s definitely not human. We finally begin to realize what the film is all about. We see a creature slowly come out of the dark, except it’s like no other creature. It’s big and clunky, animal-like and mechanic at the same time.
It has a heap of trash on its back, and it’s walking toward Baxter and Dr. Ronin. According to Dr. Ronin, the creature is an elemental, made of pure electricity. Dr. Ronin was just preparing to attack the creature when a random woman appears behind them. The woman is carrying some type of gun, which she uses to attack the animal. We’re not shown this attack, but we know she’s getting devoured somehow. As the camera pans away from Baxter, we see remains of the woman’s body thrown right by Baxter. He’s not moved by it, but he realizes what he was there for and why he can’t leave his circle.
Dr. Ronin is using Baxter as bait to attract the elemental. It works and the creature inches in towards Baxter, mouth open and ready to attack. Baxter stands there still, scared but not scared at the same time. He realizes that this is exactly the type of world he’s wanted to live in, the type of world he plays in his video games. We see Dr. Ronin pose an attack, and the creature is down and dead for good.
Apocalypse Now Now is an impressive short full of disturbing visuals and interesting characters. It’s completely unique and has the potential to become a really good feature film. Check it out and see what the buzz is all about.
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