Last Survivors, directed by Drew Mylrea, is a blurry tale about a father and son living in the woods who believe they give nature more than it takes. Anyone who trespasses on their self-created territory is treated as an outsider, and father Troy (Stephen Moyer) doesn't hesitate to shoot them to protect his 25-year-old son Jake (Drew Van Acker).
Cinematographer Julian Amaru Estrada captured scenic footage that showcases the serenity and wilderness of Butte, Montana, where Last Survivors was filmed. The narrative mainly shows the two lives coming into conflict when the son meets and falls in love with a third person, a woman living in a shack. Love not only kindles a kind of warmth in Jake's heart, but also gives him a sensitivity that makes him question the lies of his father, who has forced Jake to live in no man's land since childhood. Why do Troy and Jake live away from human civilization? let's find out
Plot summary
Troy Belstair took his son Jake "Jakey" to the woods near Chicago on December 11, 2002 and lied to him about World War III in which his mother was killed. Ever since, Jakey has lived in a log cabin in the wilderness, following his atheist father's directives and beliefs. Tory taught Jakey the importance of man's primitive roots, where they used to hunt for food rather than using packaged, processed foods, which is why they relied heavily on animals and also maintained a shed to preserve food, spices, and medicines.
Although Jakey obeys all of his father's orders, he hides a secret tin box from him in which he keeps his books, magazines, and a picture of a woman that is printed in the magazine that Jakey loves. Jakey enjoys reading books and in all his conversations he constantly refers to the adventures of the Swiss Robinson family, believing that one day he too will find his island and start a family with someone.
Living in a self-created territory, Jakey and Troy believe they are one of the last few surviving and some people who call them misfits want to hurt them and steal their food or territory. So whenever a person invades their land, without a second thought, Troy shoots and kills them. "Last Survivors" begins with a person named Jeff Williams trespassing on their territory and Troy getting hurt dealing with the outsider.
Troy's wound became infected and the antibacterial drugs he had were too old to cure him. Unable to leave his territory to bring medicine, he asks Jakey to come out with an SHTF book that includes a map showing the location of the medicine. Jakey has never left the territory, and while Troy is in pain, he's not sure his son is ready to deal with the outsiders. With this belief, however, he lets Jakey go on a one-man mission.
Outside of the territory, Jakey discovers a woman, Henrietta (Alicia Silverstone), living all alone in a cabin in search of some respite from her family and city life. Jakey falls in love with Henrietta and decides not to kill her. He steals the medicine and leaves, but when his father asks about the woman, Jakey lies to him about killing her. Later, Jakey steals the canned meat and hides it in order to return to Henrietta's cabin and meet her again. Jakey's infatuation with a woman sets off a chain of events in which he lies with his father, and Henrietta becomes Jakey's connection to the outside world, where she tells him about the things his father has been lying about all along. But why?
Big spoilers ahead
The end of the last survivors explained
When Henrietta reported Jake's intrusion into her cabin to police, the officer dug up information about Troy and Jakey and revealed to Henrietta that on December 11, 2002, Troy had kidnapped his son from the home and attempted to murder a woman named Miss Chandrey, who was was probably Jakey's mother.
Whenever Jake dreamed of that night, he would often see a man's face knocking on the car window. Initially, Jake believed that the man in his dreams was asking his father for help after the outbreak of WW3, but by the end of Last Survivors, Jake understood the meaning of this dream. The man knocked on the car window and asked Troy to leave Jake, who lived in the man's house with his mother and was likely her new partner. For some reason Troy may have lost custody of Jake and in order to get his son back he attacked his wife and tried to kill her. Troy was showing signs of insanity, but despite this he was obsessed with his son, and in order to convince Jake to live with him in the wilderness, Troy fabricated the story of WW3 and the human madness that destroyed the world that created it produced the last survivors of humanity.
Troy felt the same fear of losing his son when Jake, looking for a sense of belonging to start his own family, fell in love with Henrietta. The father didn't want Jake to form a human connection out of love or compassion. He was scared that Jake would leave him and start a new life, and Troy wasn't ready for the breakup. He locked Jake in the storage room and left his territory to kill Henrietta. But before his father could harm Henrietta, Jake intervened and pushed his father from the window in Henrietta's cabin.
At this point, Troy fell on a sharp metal resulting in severe blood loss, and when Jake confronted his father, Troy eventually revealed that everything he did was for love, proving the theory that Troy kidnapped and lied to his son had to keep him Jakey with him. At the end of Last Survivors, Troy gives Jake his gun and begs him to end the misery once and for all.
Before Troy died, he gave Jake a key that opened a box he left Jake to only open after his death. Inside the box, Jake found an address he hoped belonged to his mother, Miss Chandrey. Without further ado, Jake visited the location and knocked on the door before the film blacked out.
Jake didn't believe in luck, but it was surmised that it was luck that brought Jeff Williams to their "no man's land" and inflicted an injury on Troy that forced him to send Jake out into the outside world. Jake and Henrietta were destined to meet; However, they should not stay together.
Henrietta, like Troy, developed a hatred for the city's lifestyle and civilization. She left her husband and children to stay in the forest all alone, looking for something, but she didn't know what. Her husband encouraged her to find a job or pursue a hobby, but Henrietta could not find meaning or balance in her life. She needed experience, and interacting with Jake obviously became that experience. Jake's story gave her hope. A hope that there is still good in the world and that our lives are more about what part of humanity we accept.
Last Survivors is a 2022 drama thriller film directed by Drew Mylrea.
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