‘Das Letzte Land’ opens on two men on the run, as they encounter an old abandoned spaceship in the desert. In the last minute they escape their pursuers into space and set off in search of a new home. More and more, however, they are drawn into fundamentally different directions. While Adem discovers the ship's past, Novak is increasingly drawn into the spell of a hypnotic signal.
The film shows Adem, a prisoner having just escaped, as he familiarises himself with a spaceship in the middle of nowhere. Hot in pursuit is Novak, a guard from the prison. The two meet at the spaceship, and after deeming it flight-worthy, decide to set off to find a better home.
Both men are keen to leave behind the desolate planet they were both seemingly trapped on to seek out a new home. As Novak fixes up the ship to ensure a safe journey, Adem explores the ship and the previous crews log.
As both men become more familiar with their surroundings and ease into the situation they are in, Adem and Novak have to set course for a destination. Based on his findings, Adem wishes to travel to the previous crews’ origin, believing it to be Earth, whilst Novak dismisses that assumption as foolish, stating that ‘that’s not a place you can go to’ and ‘it’s a tale that you tell small children before bedtime’. Novak suggests the two travel towards a signal that the previous crew had picked up on, wishing to delve deeper into space, to find a new destination.
As Novak persists, the two head towards the signal, finding the planet the signal is emanating from. The two land, and Novak goes to explore, leaving Adem behind, even though Adem begs him not to go, as he is inexperienced in operating and flying the spacecraft. As Adem waits, Novak is shown wandering the desolate and harsh planet, ultimately getting lost and not returning to the ship. Eventually Adem decides to take off, as he sets course for one of the two coordinates he had found in the ship, hoping to reach a safe and welcoming environment.
At the heart of the film are its two characters – Adem and Novak. Adem is a young and seemingly naïve man, whose inquisitive nature tells us about his desire, namely to reach a familiar and welcoming place to call home. His exploration of the ship and the previous crews’ logbook lead him to believe that the ship they are travelling in originated from earth. As the story develops, his confrontation with Novak reveals that wherever the two had previously resided, enough time has passed for the inhabitants of that planet to believe that ‘Earth’ is a mythical and fictitious place, told of as a story rather than anything based in reality.
Novak, as opposed to Adem, represents a different perspective on space exploration and his ultimate goals. Novak is determined to delve deeper into space, to seek out a new place to settle, leaving everything else behind.
The story is a continuous conflict between the two men, as one wants to rediscover the previous crews homeland believing it to be a safe and comfortable space, whilst the other believes that they shouldn’t rely on what the other crew chose to leave behind, stating that they should keep going forward, discover the unknown and make their own way into the depths of space.
Even though the film is set in space, as the two men fight over where to travel, the story is relatable as it represents the conflict within many of us, namely whether to explore the unknown and go to an unfamiliar place to establish yourself or if it is better to go towards that which may be familiar and holds a promise of being a safe place.
‘Das Letzte Land’ shows us the struggle of the two men as they fail to come to an agreement, and as Novak gets his way, and we are shown the pair travelling to a mysterious and ultimately uninviting planet. After Novak gets his wish however, he is subjected to the harsh environment of the destination, signifying that his pursuit to explore the unknown was fruitless and a failed attempt at finding a new home. The film does not however disparage towards exploration and striving towards something new as such, rather commenting on the mindless and blind ambition of seeking out something new whilst ignoring the external factors deeming that pursuit untenable.
The story closes with Adem, as he has to make a decision of where to go to next. We now know that he is in search of Earth and has to make a decision between two coordinates, even though neither could be what he is looking for. The conclusion of the film presents a dark yet hopeful outlook, as Adem is alone, inexperienced and going towards an unknown destination. Somehow the film manages to end on an inspiring note, as Adem sets off, we are left in the dark not knowing if he reaches any destination, only wanting to hope that he gets to a safe place to call home.
‘Das Letzte Land’ was made on a shoe-string budget, written, directed and produced by Marcel Barion. The film is visually impressive, relying on practical rather than computer generate imagery, creating a lasting and visually striking effect. The bulk of the film is set in the rundown and claustrophobic setting of the spacecraft, creating a gritty and unwelcoming feeling, adding to the urgency of the two men trying to find a new and better home.
Baron has excelled in delivering an engaging story by presenting its main characters as diametrically opposing sides of an argument, yet representing two deep seeded urges in all people, - one to feel safe in a familiar ans welcoming environment, and the other – to move forward, to keep exploring and to discover new and previously unknown places.
Torben Föllmer plays Adem, the young man wanting to find a place to call home. Föllmer portrays the younger part of the duo and has imbued his character with a naïve yet inquisitive quality, allowing us to follow his investigation through the ship with a true sense of excitement. Adem is also shown to have a persistent urge to travel to a place that he can call home, which Föllmer delivers without exaggerating the characters mannerisms, rather delivering the final scenes with the character in a calm and calculated manner.
Milan Pešl plays Novak, a quick and straight-forward man, clear in his goals to get off of their prison planet and to find a new and better place to settle. In opposition to Föllmer, Pešl delivers a somewhat unlikeable character, as Novak is played to represent blind ambition and a senseless drive towards a bad decision. Pešl is great in delivering a character that can be seen as having rationalised his own goals and will stop at nothing to achieve them. Together, Pešl and Föllmer anchor ‘Das Letzte Land’ and instil the vast emptiness of space with life through their opposing views, drives and hopes.
‘Das Letzte Land’ is an intense and engaging tale that explores both space and the dichotomy of the human will to explore even though they may be drawn to what is familiar. Intense and terrifying at times, the film manages to create a suspenseful journey that is worth going on as ‘Das Letzte Land’ remains intriguing and entertaining until its final moments.
Score: 4/4
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