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The The Night Eats the World (2018) is a survival horror drama film. The movie was reviewed by Kadmon.
Product: La nuit a dévoré le monde / The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
Original title: La nuit a dévoré le monde, English title: The Night Eats the World
Series: -
Other adaptations of the story: Alone (2020), and #Saraitda / #Alive (2020) feels to me like adaptation of the same premise
Setting: contemporary fantasy Earth
Product type: Film, Genre: survival horror drama, Features: horror, survival horror, drama, post-apocalyptic, zombie (creature), Style: ?
Release: Premiere: 2018.01.13 (Festival Premiers Plans D'Angers), Release: 2018.03.07
Reviewer: Kadmon, Type: Male, 40s, Preferences: Immersive, logical story, consistent setting, prefers surprises to spoilers, prefers establishing elements before referencing them
Watched: very recent (2021.11), first time
Rating: Good (2+ out of 3 points), Enjoyment: Good (2+ out of 3 points)
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This is my review of The Night Eats the World, a survival horror drama movie from 2018. It's about a guy trapped in a building during a zombie apocalypse. The The Night Eats the World film is interesting and engaging, I recommend it.
La nuit a dévoré le monde / The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
image © Haut et Court
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Review (spoiler-free) - The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
I didn't hear anything about this movie. I've been recommended to watch it after I've mentioned I liked #Alive (2020). I thought I'll give it a try. I didn't watch the trailer, nor did I read up on this movie.
The The Night Eats the World movie is about a guy trapped in a building during a zombie apocalypse.
The story is good and engaging. The pacing and logic is consistent. There's a slight character arc. I didn't find major logical problems.
The cinematography is good. The sets are believable. It's not very interesting visually, as the story happens in one place.
I like the main character, we get to know him well enough to care about his fate. The rest of the characters don't really get much background, but that's probably enough. Their portrayal by the actors was believable.
The music (David Gubitsch) is not very noticable, but it fits the story.
The Night Eats the World is an interesting survival horror drama, I think fans of the genre will enjoy it.
My experience
I was satisfied with The Night Eats the World (2018).
Rating: Good (2+ out of 3 points). The Night Eats the World is a well-made film.
Enjoyment: Good (2+ out of 3 points). The Night Eats the World is interesting, I liked it.
Rewatchability: It depends. I think it's mostly the surprise of the story that makes you feel interested. But if you feel the character or the theme engaging (like I did), it might be worth watching it multiple times.
Chance of watching it again: There's a chance. I liked it enough that I might watch it in the right circumstances.
Chance of watching a sequel: High. I'd sure watch it.
La nuit a dévoré le monde / The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
image © Haut et Court
Will you enjoy this?
If you like zombie movies, you might like The Night Eats the World.
If you like action horror movies (28 Days Later, Train to Busan), you might like the film, although there are not many action scenes or scary scenes in the The Night Eats the World movie.
If you can get through the first half hour of the movie still interested, the rest of the story will be similar.
If you enjoyed the Alone (2020), you might be interested in this story, as I consider The Night Eats the World a better take on the story.
If you hate subtitles, the The Night Eats the World movie is already dubbed in English.
If you prefer visuals over story, this movie is okay, although you should prepare that it's mostly the story that drives this movie.
If you hate zombie movies, you shouldn't watch The Night Eats the World.
Do you need to read the original novel to enjoy this?
I think there's enough explanation in the movie to understand what's going on.
Watching for plot points
If you are interested in zombie stories, or stories about loneliness, I think it's worth watching the The Night Eats the World movie for the plot points.
Should you watch this on your own screen at home, or is it worth going to the cinema?
As the movie plays in enclosed spaces, and we see lots of close-ups, I think it would be a similar experience.
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La nuit a dévoré le monde / The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
image © Haut et Court
Review with spoilers - The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
I really liked the The Night Eats the World movie. After watching the very similar Alone (2020) yesterday, it was really refreshing to see a lot better take on the same premise.
The film really conveys the feeling of being confined and alone. He looks more and more malnourished and unwell. He acts irrationally, desperate to find company even if it's the company of zombies.
Cover
The cover of the movie is okay, it doesn't say much, but it doesn't spoil the movie.
The trailer
The trailer is good. It probably makes it look more action-oriented than it is, but it's okay.
Promise of the first scene
While the guy sleeps, we hear screams and loud noises. If I didn't know that this is a zombie film, I'd assume, the party turned into a party-brawl, or there was a break-in after the party. With my previous knowledge, I suppose the guy will wake up to find lots of zombies everywhere.
Execution: Indeed there were zombies everywhere. I consider the promise fulfilled.
Plot summary / Synopsis
In Paris, a guy (Anders Danielsen Lie as Sam) visits his ex-girlfriend, to take back his childhood tapes, the girl accidentally took when she moved to her new home. There's a party going on there, so she asks him to wait for her in a quiet room. The guy locks the door to find some peace, then falls asleep while waiting.
When he wakes up, the place is demolished, and there are blood stains everywhere. When he tries to step out of the flat, he is attacked by badly wounded, ferocious people. It looks like it's the same as far as he can see from the windows. After a gunshot from suicide tears a hole into the floor, he breaks the floor to get to the flat below to get the gun and search for supplies. After he had seen that the savages ran out to attack a family on the street, he dares to get out of the flat, closes the gate to the house, and gets the keys from the caretaker's office. He searches the flats in the house. He closes off the places where he finds infected.
To pass the time, he listens to his childhood tapes. He shoots the zombies on the streets with the paintball gun he'd found. He records music he composes with household instruments. He makes a makeshift funeral for the dead in the house. He does workout to keep him in good shape. He talks with the zombie (Denis Lavant as Alfred) he trapped in the lift. He collects rainwater on the rooftop. He has nightmares about being eaten alive by zombies.
He sees a cat outside, so he leaves the house to lure that in, but he is attacked by zombies, so he retreats to the house. The cat just stands near the zombies, so he gets angry and shoots at the cat. He realises that a zombie bit him, so he tries to treat himself, and prepares to kill himself if he'd start to turn. Much to his suprise, he seems to be healthy.
One day he finds that the zombies are gone from the streets. He lures them back by playing loud music.
One night he wakes up to some noise, and accidentally shoots a woman (Golshifteh Farahani as Sarah), who got into his house, with bird shot ammunition. He tries to treat her, but as he's not a doctor, he just makes the wound worse by pulling out the shots.
Luckily, she still survives. She tells him that she met other survivors. He finally decides to kill the zombies he had trapped in their homes, to get access to their food. When he tries to convince the girl to stay here, he finally has realisation that he just imagined being with the girl, and her dead body is the bed he put her in, after he shot her. Ha makes a funeral to her. To punish himself, he burns his childhood tapes.
He lures the zombie from the lift to his former home, and locks him there. The burning of the tapes starts the fire alarm, making the zombies more determined to get in, and they break the gates of the house. After he is almost overwhelmed, luckily the smoke distracts their senses enough that he is able to get to the rooftop, and uses a grappling hook to jump to the neighbouring building.
The setting
Contemporary alternate / fantasy Earth.
There's an infection, turning people into zombies.
No help arrives for a very long time (several monthes), so it's most likely a global occurence.
La nuit a dévoré le monde / The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
image © Haut et Court
The zombies
They are fast zombies. They are drawn to noises. Otherwise they just stand in place, waiting for something to activate them.
The zombies don't decompose, they seem to be just fine even after monthes, unlike the dead people, who do decompose.
They don't make any sound, they don't growl or howl.
Cats (and probably other animals) don't attract them.
Getting bitten or scratched by them doesn't automatically mean turning into a zombie.
If you put something on their head that blocks their sight, they'll have to rely their hearing. Thick smoke hides people good enough that the zombies won't notice them.
The message of the story
I'm not sure there's one.
The structure of the story
The scenes of the The Night Eats the World film are played in sequence, following the same storyline.
There is a single viewpoint character, Sam.
It has the usual arc of the dramatic structure - introduction, action, resolution.
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Things I liked
- It was nice to see that the guy tried to clean up the place.
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How does it compare to the other works of the creators?
I haven't seen any works of the writer / director (Dominique Rocher). But now I'm interested.
I also haven't seen any movies from the other writers (Guillaume Lemans, Jérémie Guez).
How does it compare to the original source?
I didn't read the original novel from Martin Page, so I can't tell.
How does it compare to other adaptations of the same story?
The movies Alone (2020), and #Saraitda / #Alive (2020) feel to me like adaptations of the same premise, if not the same story. #Alive is just as good, but it has comedic elements. Alone plays it straight, but it's a weaker story.
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La nuit a dévoré le monde / The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
image © Haut et Court
Analysis of the story - The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
I mostly liked the story, I didn't find problems that would have prevented me from enjoying The Night Eats the World.
Problematic elements
Title: In this movie, there's no indication why did they choose the title "The Night Eats the World". It's probably explained in the novel, but not in the movie.
Unconcerned protagonist: The guy seems very calm and unconcerned about the whole situation. He just waits patiently.
- When he finds out there are murderous zombies on the stairs, he doesn't search the home to make sure there are none of them inside.
- When he finds it out there's a zombie apocalypse going on, he doesn't turn on the TV, goes on the internet, or even call someone on the phone.
Shoot near the ear: When he accidentally shoots, his hearing on that side is probably gone, as he just burst his eardrums.
Strange timing: The girl goes to the home of the guy, right at the time it's surrounded by zombies. She knew the guy was there. Why did she choose to get in at this time? Did she fight her way to get into the house? If she did, why didn't she alert the guy that she's coming inside?
Unanswered questions
- What's up with the rest of the world?
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Possibilities of improvement
- Add voice-over that the guy found out that there's no electricity and phone reception, that's why he didn't try to reach others.
- Probably cut the shooting near the ear.
- Give some indication at the end whether there are other survivors, or if he's the last one.
How it could have been better?
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Behind the scenes
Thoughts about the reviews of others
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La nuit a dévoré le monde / The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
image © Haut et Court
Uses for the film - The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
Plot
- There's a zombie apocalypse, caused by a rage virus.
- There are people who barricade themselves in their homes during a catastrophe.
Scenes
- Most later scenes are good for indicating the actions of a man being deprived of company for a long time.
Scenario ideas - Role-playing game scenario ideas
Scenario ideas - Wargame scenario ideas
- The chase: There's a moving objective (creature, magical construct, runaway robot) that must be captured, during a creature (zombies, aliens, killer robots) infestation. The creatures won't mind the moving objective, it can even go through them. The moving objective moves randomly. The winner is the one that captures the objective, and then able to leave with more than half of their units alive. It's a small victory if they capture the objective, but they are unable to retrieve more half of their units. It's a defeat if the force loses more than half of their units.
- Harder version: The moving objective moves away from the closest player model.
Miniatures - 1/50-1/60 (28-32mm scale)
Civilians: Human-sized (S3) modern (advanced) human female / male civilian. Find a model!
Zombies: Human-sized (S3) modern (advanced) human female / male civilian zombies, without weapons. Some are fast moving. Find a model!
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Similar stories - The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
Novels
Martin Page (as Pit Agarman): La nuit a dévoré le monde (The Night Eats the World) (2012): The novel this movie is based on.
Movies
#Saraitda / #Alive (2020): People are trapped in their homes (due to the horde of zombies) during an epidemic (rage zombies). It's similar to The Night Eats the World, but it's more light-hearted and action-oriented.
Alone (2020): Another movie, based on the same script. Worse than The Night Eats the World.
Containment (2015): A group of people get stuck in a house (due to quarantine enforced by the police) during a epidemic (deadly infection).
Quarantine (2008): A group of people get stuck in a house (due to quarantine enforced by the police) during a epidemic (zombies due to a stolen virus). A remake of REC (2007). Probably worse than The Night Eats the World, as far as I remember.
Rammbock / Berlin Undead (2010): A group of people get stuck in a house (due to the horde of zombies) during an epidemic (rage zombies). It has a similar plot to The Night Eats the World, but it's more light-hearted.
REC (2007): A group of people get stuck in a house (due to quarantine enforced by the police) during an epidemic (zombies due to supernatural reasons). Probably worse than The Night Eats the World, as far as I remember.
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Frequently asked questions - The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
Is the The Night Eats the World movie be available with English audio dub?
Yes, The Night Eats the World is available with English audio dub.
Is the The Night Eats the World film based on a book or comics?
Yes, The Night Eats the World is based on the novel of same title, by Martin Page (as Pit Agarman).
Is the The Night Eats the World film a remake or reboot?
No, the The Night Eats the World film is neither a remake nor a reboot.
Is there a post credit scene in The Night Eats the World? Does The Night Eats the World have end credit scenes?
No, there's no post credit scene in The Night Eats the World.
Where can I see The Night Eats the World? Where can I watch The Night Eats the World online? Is The Night Eats the World available on Netflix? Is The Night Eats the World on Amazon?
As of 2021.11.26, The Night Eats the World is available on Amazon Prime Video, and Google Play. It's probably available on Peacock and Vudu.
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Resources - The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
Official
Haut et Court: The nights eats the world: Official article.
Information
IMDB: La nuit a dévoré le monde (2018): Database article.
WikiPedia: The Night Eats the World: Database article.
Letterboxd: The Night Eats the World 2018: Database article.
Rotten Tomatoes: The Night Eats the World (2018): Database article.
Creation
: Concept art article.¤
Reviews with no spoilers - The Night Eats the World film (2018)
: Review video about the The Night Eats the World film with no spoilers.¤
Reviews with spoilers - The Night Eats the World film (2018)
: Review article of the The Night Eats the World movie, with spoilers. Includes a very detailed plot summary.¤
Analysis - The Night Eats the World movie (2018)
: Analysis video, explaining the finale of The Night Eats the World.¤
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Buying the product - The Night Eats the World, movie (2018)
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Have you seen the The Night Eats the World film? How do you like the movie? Would you recommend it to others? Do you know reviews or resources you'd like to add? What further thoughts do you have about it? Tell your opinion in the comments!
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