The World, the Flesh and the Devil (1959)

• Year: 1959
• Released: 01 May 1959
• Country: United States
• Adwords: 1 nomination
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053454/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_world_the_flesh_and_the_devil
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: English, French
• MPA Rating: Approved
• Genre: Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi
• Runtime: 95 min
• Writer: M.P. Shiel, Ferdinand Reyher, Ranald MacDougall
• Director: Ranald MacDougall
• Cast: Harry Belafonte, Inger Stevens, Mel Ferrer
• Keywords: new york city, black and white, jealousy, post-apocalyptic future, racism,

6.8/10

The World, the Flesh and the Devil Storyline

“Millions Flee from Cities. End of the World!” From a Manhattan skyscraper, Ralph Burton (Harry Belafonte) surveys the emptiness announced by that chilling newspaper headline. Nuclear doomsday has come. Ralph is sure he is the last person alive. Then a woman (Inger Stevens) appears and the two form a cautious friendship that’s threatened when a third survivor (Mel Ferrer) arrives. Unlike other post-apocalyptic thrillers, there are no external monsters to battle here. Instead, the monsters — fear, intolerance, jealousy — lurk inside the all-too-human human beings. And heightening the intensity of writer/director Ranald MacDougall’s suspenseful and unsettling movie are stunning vistas of an unpopulated New York: vast, empty and soulless.

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The World, the Flesh and the Devil Movie Reviews

What Kind Of Culture Will They Establish?

Harry Belafonte is a coal miner trapped in a cave-in. He hears the drilling of the rescue crew which abruptly stops. Belafonte claws his own way to the surface and finds everything abandoned. I mean really abandoned. An Armageddon has occurred when some nation decided to forego the bomb and all that destruction and just use the radioactive byproducts. It gets out of control and wipes out everybody.

Well, almost everybody. Harry hot wires a car and travels to New York City in search of life in the largest population center. After a while he finds it in Inger Stevens. It looks like another Adam and Eve ready to begin again when Mel Ferrer also shows up. By that time Belafonte has established some kind of contact with some unknown foreign survivors somewhere in the post apocalypse world?

Of course with two men, two races, and only one woman, things start to look like business as usual for mankind. I was reminded of Neil Patrick Harris’s line from Starship Troopers about how we’re in it for the species. Will all three of them and anyone else they contact decide we’re in it for the species in The World, the Flesh and the Devil?

Director Ranald McDougall got three good performances out of his small cast. The World, The Flesh And The Devil does ask some thought provoking questions as to whether man is capable of screwing up once again. What kind of culture will they establish and will a Supreme Creator/Deity need to intervene?

racial politics at the end of the world

Ralph Burton (Harry Belafonte) is inspecting an underground mine when a cave-in traps him. He manages to escape after a few days only to find the world empty of people. Everybody has died from an atomic poisoning. He travels to New York City where he seems to be the last man on Earth. He works to reconnect power to a building. He meets 21 year old Sarah Crandall (Inger Stevens). Somehow, race is still an issue which is only elevated by the arrival of Benson Thacker (Mel Ferrer).

It’s fascinating to see racial politics to play out this way. I don’t like Ralph getting angry while cutting her hair. There is a better way to portray the sexual tension. The other issue is that Benson should be more ruthless. Let’s just say that the ending could be edgy or it could be a call for peace. The filmmaker may be trying to do something socially conscious but stumbled upon more than they could handle. I want it to be more dramatic and more real. It’s always great to have the empty big city streets. It does lead to another problem. They need to call it something other than atomic poisoning. Radiation was something new back in the day and the terminology can be excused.

Is it coming true?

Despite the obvious mistakes, “The World, the Flesh and the Devil” is still a movie that you should see. Unlike most of the post-apocalyptic movies, this one features no supernatural threats. The only threats are the three survivors. Coal mine inspector Ralph Burton (Harry Belafonte), lone woman Sarah Crandall (Inger Stevens) and sailor Ben Thacker (Mel Ferrer) converge and try to coexist, but tension is bound to arise. Not surprisingly, Burton’s skin color becomes an issue.

Many movies have dealt with the potential of a nuclear holocaust. Donald Trump’s ascension to power makes it even more likely. In fact, the day before the election, Harry Belafonte wrote an article in The New York Times titled “What Do We Have to Lose? Everything”. Now that looks likely. It’s good to know that Belafonte will be one of the people fighting for justice every step of the way.

As for the other cast members, I know that Mel Ferrer was married to Audrey Hepburn at the time. Inger Stevens was one of the numerous blonde bombshells on the screen (unfortunately, she died of a drug overdose at 35). Meanwhile, producer George Englund was married to Cloris Leachman at the time and later directed the Marlon Brando movie “The Ugly American”.

Anyway, I recommend the movie.