Two billion years in the future, humanity finds itself on the verge of extinction. Narrated by Tilda Swinton, a stunning feature debut and final cinematic testament from the late composer and musician Jóhann Jóhannsson (whose recent film work included ARRIVAL and MANDY), LAST AND FIRST MEN premiered posthumously at the 2020 Berlinale and conjures a world of surreal and phantasmagorical monuments, once intended as symbols of unity and brotherhood, now abandoned beacons beaming their message into the wilderness.
Read a Director’s Statement by Jóhann Jóhannsson
“Taking cues from Chris Marker’s still photographed La Jetée, Jóhannsson’s film marries cinematographer’s Sturla Brandth Grøvlen carefully composed geometrical, 16mm monochrome compositions, Jóhannsson’s eerie electronica, and Tilda Swinton’s voiceover from two billion years in the future…. An extraordinary, engrossing and strangely moving piece of cinema.” —Tara Brady, Irish Times “A dark room, atmospheric sound, and a big screen are entirely vital. This experience is one of rare, absolute immersion… It’s a tragedy that this will be Jóhannsson’s only directorial work, being so illustrative of a phenomenal artist. Nevertheless — what a final word this is.” —Jack King, The Playlist
