One moment everything is fine – the next, everyone on Earth is dead.  Well, not everyone.  There are a few survivors.  As this is a post-apocalyptic film, we have some of the familiar stereotypes represented – the strong woman, the airhead, the woman in distress, the apathetic male, the self-centered guy, the rash young buck and the take-charge, serious guy.  It makes for a well-rounded group of people, but seems pretty standard when dealing with a scenario of this kind.  As they all gather together, there is really only one goal in mind – to survive.  But it might be easier said than done as they must face killer robots and their human slaves, distinguishable by their lack of eyes.  With the birth of Lorna’s child, that goal is essential, now more than ever.

There is nothing new in this film that has not been seen before or since, but it was well put together and kept you interested throughout.  Willard Parker takes the lead as Jeff who seems to have the best head on his shoulders with some solid ideas about what to do and when to do it.  Peggy, played by Virginia Field, as the female lead was a bit more interesting as she did not play into the familiar tropes of women coming into contact with the unknown as they were often shown to do in films of this genre.  When confronted by danger, she held her ground and did not run off screaming and was frankly, nice to see a woman of a different temperament pictured and one who did not play into the familiar tropes.

The key to any good end-of-the-world storyline is of course, the setting.  Much like the Last Man on Earth and other similar-themed movies, an abandoned city or town is perfect.  The emptiness of a once thriving metropolis and the quiet that pervades throughout the film because of it is enough to unnerve the staunchest person.  Human beings are not solitary animals and the loss of contact is enough to drive anyone slowly mad.  On the other hand it also happens to raise the level of paranoia, as anyone who is alive is instantly fearful of others as possible antagonists.   It is like a catch-22 for those in a movie such as this, as the need for human contact can almost be a person’s undoing.

There were few special effects needed, the robots being the main exception and in some respects, they resemble an early version of the Cybermen.  While a big budget is not needed for films of any variety to tell a good story, what they do need are a good script and good actors to make that tale believable.  The Earth Dies Screaming has both.

4.5 out of 5