The plot to "Five" is very, very, very familiar. Due to the nuclear age and natural fears of annihilation, Hollywood made a ton of apocalyptic films where a very, very small group of survivors somehow survived. Just off the top of my head, I can think of many films like "The World, The Flesh and The Devil", "The Last Woman on Earth", "The Last Man on Earth", "Robot Monster" and "Omega Man"--and I know there are many more. So, seeing "Five" sure gives me a big sense of déjà vu---so it's certainly not original--though I'll admit that it did come relatively early among these films.
So, if there are so many films like this one, and I assume you DON'T want to see them all, is "Five" one you should bother with or should you see some of the others instead? Well, my vote would be on the latter for one HUGE reason. "Five" is among the talkiest of all these movies. So often, nothing really happens and the people just talk and talk and talk. And so it never is exciting or weird like "Omega Man" or as profound as "The World The Flesh and The Devil" because, although there could be a good biracial sexual aspect to the film, it never occurs. The black man in "Five" is so nice that any sexual tension between him and the only woman (who is white) doesn't exist--though there is a one-dimensional racist among them. In fact, this guy is SO one-dimensional that he really seemed more like a plot device than anything else. "Five" is not a terrible film but it's just not all that good. My advice is watch it if you have nothing better to do or just hold out and find another similar film that is a bit better--such as "Omega Man" and "The World The Flesh and The Devil". But do NOT watch "Robot Monster" unless you are a serious glutton for punishment or are a confirmed masochist!
Always the one to look for mistakes, I noticed that some of the skeletons of dead people used in the film were clearly lab specimens--complete with springs holding the bones in the hand together! This is not an uncommon mistake and I've seen much worse examples in other films.
So, if there are so many films like this one, and I assume you DON'T want to see them all, is "Five" one you should bother with or should you see some of the others instead? Well, my vote would be on the latter for one HUGE reason. "Five" is among the talkiest of all these movies. So often, nothing really happens and the people just talk and talk and talk. And so it never is exciting or weird like "Omega Man" or as profound as "The World The Flesh and The Devil" because, although there could be a good biracial sexual aspect to the film, it never occurs. The black man in "Five" is so nice that any sexual tension between him and the only woman (who is white) doesn't exist--though there is a one-dimensional racist among them. In fact, this guy is SO one-dimensional that he really seemed more like a plot device than anything else. "Five" is not a terrible film but it's just not all that good. My advice is watch it if you have nothing better to do or just hold out and find another similar film that is a bit better--such as "Omega Man" and "The World The Flesh and The Devil". But do NOT watch "Robot Monster" unless you are a serious glutton for punishment or are a confirmed masochist!
Always the one to look for mistakes, I noticed that some of the skeletons of dead people used in the film were clearly lab specimens--complete with springs holding the bones in the hand together! This is not an uncommon mistake and I've seen much worse examples in other films.