4/5 Gloom and doom
  by Aquinas (celestial heights, UK)

Returning to this movie 20 years after last watching it, I was struck by its utter gloominess. You might say given the premise of the movie that mankind (apart from some aussies) has been wiped out and the remainder will likewise be wiped out by the coming cloud of radiation pre-destines the movie to be grim. But I wonder did it necessarily have to be so. I think the most off-putting aspect of the story is the fact that the survivors en masse, faciliated by the Aussie Government, decide to kill themselves by taking tablets (presumably some sort of poison). No opposition to this is noted in the film, which is surprising, as one would expect a large number of people to have opposed what is suicide. Not addressing this issue made the film appear unrealistic. Even now 40 years on, euthanasia is greeted with horror by many. Gregory Peck, the captain of the US sub, is his usual gentlemanly self in the movie whilst the Eva Gardner characther is difficult to feel for. The decision by the US guys to head back to the US in their sub to die at home does not make sense:would they not have died of radiation poisoning before they even reached the US? I have given the film 4 stars because notwithstanding the unremitting gloom, the film resonates and evokes a different time when people were fairly obsessed with thoughts of mutually assured destruction and thus the film documents important aspects of social history.

3/5 Pure camp
  by Sue C. (High desert, CA USA)
The acting is old school and the movie in it's day was, a had to see. It was made just before the cold war ended and is an insight into the archaic thought process that helped make our country miss a beat with the rest of the world. If you are over 50 ,and a conservative, bye it and put in your worship pile. if you are over 50 and a liberal have a good laugh and resell it. if you are under 50 you had better buy it for self defense from the conservatives and the liberals.

4/5 If only we could act with such dignity...
  by Alan Starr (Lawrence, MA)
1959 Cold War film about the end of humanity, based on the classic novel from Neal Shute. Starring Gregory Peck, Fred Astaire and Ava Gardner, this is a nice character study of how people will handle their impending doom - face it square on with acceptance? ignore it completely? drown yourself in alchohol to forget what's coming? All this is represented, and more. It makes me wonder both how I would react. And more interestingly, how today's society would react in comparison to the Australians of 1959. Sadly, I don't think we would quite so stiff-upper-lip as the residents in this movie.

4/5 On The Beach
  by L. Burnette (Seattle WA USA)
I really was moved by the book, even though the writng is not the best.
(I haven't seen the film yet). But I do have one major complaint. The baby in the story is continually referred to as "it"! Once in a while the author adds a "she" but it is not much of a help. Know anyone who calls their child "it'?

5/5 Mandatory viewing for the population of the Earth
  by D. B. Tabor
Everyone on the planet should see this movie just to see how fragile the human race is and how serious nuclear weapons are. In it's day, it was a very scary movie, but I'm afraid that this classic may not get the attention of the young people of the world ... not enough visual effects or action. The message portrayed by true academy class actors and actresses is timeless ... the underlying basis, by an Australian scientist, is accurate. Watch it now since the world you save is yours.