After the Dark (The Philosophers)

After The Dark (formerly known as The Philosophers) is a science fiction psychological thriller film written and directed by John Huddles. This is Huddles’ third feature film and stars Sophie Lowe, Rhys Wakefield, Bonnie Wright, James D'Arcy, Daryl Sabara, Freddie Stroma, Cinta Laura and Katie Findlay. The film premiered in competition at Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival on July 7, 2013. The film also premiered at Fantasy Filmfest on 21 August 2013. The film was released on February 7, 2014, in United States, and also will be released in Indonesia, on June 12, 2014.

Production began for film on May 2011 and during the press conference for the film director John Huddles said that "multiculturalism was a major theme in the movie, which revolves around a challenge to reboot humanity in the event of a nuclear apocalypse." He also added that in the film “There will be students from Turkey, Iran, Australia, Africa, Canada, United States and London.”

Filming began on 25 June 2011 in Indonesia and continued over seven weeks in different parts of the country including Belitung Island, Sumatra, Bromo in East Java and at the Prambanan temple in Central Java region, finally ending on 18 August 2011 in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Plot

Mr. Zimit (James D'Arcy), a philosophy teacher at an international school inJakarta, has been challenging his class of twenty with thought exercises to prepare them for their futures out in the world. On the last day of school, he holds a final exercise in which he posits an oncoming atomic apocalypse. There is a bunker ready to shelter them for a year, but it only has supplies for ten people. Zimit asks his students to decide who of them should be allowed into the shelter. The top student in the class, Petra (Sophie Lowe), initially refuses to participate, but Zimit threatens to lower James' academic score if she doesn't. Zimit distributes cards to the students, starting with Petra's boyfriend, James (Rhys Wakefield), followed by Petra herself, and then the rest of the class. 

The cards contain a detail about their characters in the exercise: James is an organic farmer and Petra is an engineer. The students defend their right to enter the shelter based on the info on their cards, and votes are given after discussion. Students with skills judged useful for survival are allowed in, such as James and Petra, while those who don't are refused, such as Beatrice (Maia Mitchell), a fashion designer. Zimit is part of the exercise but his skills are hidden. At first the students agree to let him in, but Zimit executes the students who have been rejected, citing that it is more humane than letting them die by radiation. The remaining students race into the bunker and lock the glass door behind them before the explosion. Outside, Zimit holds up a card saying that only he has the exit code. After living out the year in the bunker, the survivors discover that the exit code is necessary. All attempts of breaking out of the bunker are futile, and after the food runs out they commit group suicide.

They decide to try the exercise again, this time with the apocalypse being the explosion of a volcano. The cards given earlier are revealed to contain a secondary detail, and these change the votes, e.g. Georgina (Bonnie Wright), who was allowed in earlier because of her status as a surgeon, now has possibly contracted the Ebola virus and is rejected. Petra and James are still voted in despite James' additional character detail of being gay. Zimit and the chosen students enter the bunker, and agree to start procreating immediately. Various heterosexual pairs get together, but as James is gay in this exercise, Petra has to sleep with Zimit. After ten weeks there are no pregnancies, and Zimit argues that they need to change partners. Bonnie (Katie Findlay), a soldier with eidetic memory, protests this, and Zimit threatens her with a gun. Jack (Freddie Stroma) attacks Zimit, stabbing him with a pencil. Zimit staggers to the bunker's doors, opening them and killing everyone.

James questions Zimit's motives for this exercise, asking why he seems intent on punishing them. After checking the box with the cards, James discovers that his and Petra's were fixed, though Zimit refuses to explain his reasons.

The exercise is carried out a third time on an island where bombs are about to fall. Petra asks if everyone will trust her to choose who gets to enter the bunker, and they agree. She picks people who are a potential risk or have non-technical skills, including the opera singer and poet, which angers Zimit. Petra refuses to enter the bunker, asking for the keys to the boats so everyone else can try to escape the blast. Chips (Daryl Sabara), who is inside the bunker, pretends to offer the keys but switches places with her, pushing her inside as the door closes. Zimit is refused entry to the bunker as his exit code is no longer necessary—Bonnie remembers it from the previous iteration. Petra continues the thought exercise, explaining that with such people in the bunker the one year was enjoyable and filled with creativity. When it's time for them to leave, they discover that the bombs never fell. Zimit narrates that now they will die, as none of them have the technical skills to survive, but Petra counters that they will live the rest of their short lives well, and will welcome death when it arrives. Zimit arrives at the beach, having survived in a cave for the past year, and threatens to shoot James, but the rest of the survivors stand in front of him.

Back in class, Zimit is discomfited by the latest exercise. At the end of the session, everyone leaves except Petra, who confronts Zimit and accuses him of trying to use the exercise to punish her and James. Zimit has been having an affair with Petra, and is offended that she is with James, who he considers beneath her. Petra argues that intelligence isn't all that matters. The film ends with Zimit alone in the school, going through the motions.

Reception

After the Dark premiered in competition at the Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival on 7 July 2013 and received positive reviews. On review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, the film currently has a 77% rating, with an average score of 5.8/10, based on 13 reviews.

In the reviews from the festival, out now gave the film four out of six stars and said that "The Philosophers had a brilliant approach, with which one could not only construct a versatile, but also a hugely exciting film." Severin Auer of Groarr.ch – Filmmagazin gave it a mixed review by saying that "Although The Philosophers has a strong start, the clear weaknesses which the film has to fight can already be found towards the middle part. On the one hand, there are some—though successful—laughs, but these hurt the established seriousness of the mood and accumulate disturbingly towards the end—and the film doesn't want to be a comedy, actually. The film wants to surprise but soon turns out to be sailing known water, which is the opposite it originally intended." He further added that "Nevertheless, the film is in its approach somehow refreshing and well worth seeing. Initially exciting, amusing later."

Upon its theatrical release, Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter gave the film a positive review and said that "This ambitious teen-oriented fantasy is like taking a university philosophy course in "The Twilight Zone." Sherilyn Connelly in her review for The Village Voice said that "[The film is] a shaggy dog story, but an intriguing and frequently beautiful one" and singularly praised Wright, who played the supporting role in the film by saying that "the picture fumbles the ending, sliding into a Gravity-esque soapy backstory while suggesting that supporting actress Bonnie Wright might have been a stronger female lead."

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Source: Wikipedia