Movies about plagues and pandemics with a few survivors used to be a lot of fun to watch in the “reel” world until a real pandemic hit over a year ago. Okay, they are still fun and enjoyable to watch, and taught us how to survive but viewing films like this today does add a new kind of dynamic. The 1964 horror movie The Last Man on Earth is one of dozens of films about with a plague or pandemic that kills nearly the entire world’s population or turning people into bloodthirsty creatures. This film is one of the earliest to have an end of the world due to a deadly virus.

Based on Richard Matheson’s novel I Am Legend, The Last Man on Earth is thought to be the most faithful to his story. Other movies that are based on the novel include The Omega Man (1971) starring Charlton Heston and I Am Legend (2007) with Will Smith.

The Last Man on Earth is a tragic tale about a plague that has taken out the entire population except for one man, Robert Morgan (horror legend Vincent Price, House of Wax, The Tingler), a scientist who is immune to the disease. Everyone else, including his friends and family has turned into vampires which he fights off daily. His life has become routine, dispose of the vampires, and run errands during the day and hide at home at night with garlic placed everywhere so the vampires won’t attack him. He then sees a dog that he purses and finds another human being, Ruth Collins (Franca Bettoia, Desert Warrior), discovering that he is not alone. With the aid of Ruth, he intends to fight a cure for this disease or die trying.

The Last Man on Earth is a favorite of mine, with the always great acting from Vincent Price, the eerie atmosphere, and a sense of doom throughout. I think it’s one of the great black and white films from the sixties. It’s been said before, but this movie was one of several films to inspire Night of the Living Dead.

Previously released by Scream Factory in the second Vincent Price Blu-ray collection, The Last Man on Earth has resurfaced on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. This time around, Kino’s Blu-ray is a standalone release with a limited-edition slipcover using the great poster art. The transfer is the same image used by Scream Factory which I found to be satisfactory with a nice clean black and white image throughout the majority if the picture. There are a few scenes with dust and debris and few areas where the image appears soft but nothing to distract. Black levels are deep with perfect shadow details.  

Kino’s English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track is also fine with dialog being easy to follow and other noises such as screaming and the atmospheric music by Paul Sawtell and Bert Shefter are perfect throughout, without any hissing or drop-offs detected. Nothing in the audio was overly aggressive and tended to be more on the subdued side if anything.

This release has a new audio commentary track by Richard Harland Smith who provides his take on the film along with other information. The only issue I found that this was not a scene-specific commentary which most are. This may or may be a drawback to commentary afficionados. It certainly worth a listen despite that. For those that like commentaries, you may want to keep the Scream Factory release as the Kino Lorber offering does not include the commentary track by film historian David Del Valle and author Derek Botelho.

Other extras include Trailers from Hell with Joe Dante, Richard Matheson Storyteller: The Last Man on Earth, which is the 2005 interview with co-writer Richard Matheson ported over from the Scream Factory release.

Two TV Spots, an alternate ending, an Italian trailer, plus a theatrical trailer round out the extras.

The Last Man on Earth makes for a great late-night watch for those seeking a creepy, suspenseful end of the world black and white horror. This re-release is perfect for those who missed out on the now discontinued Vincent Price II Collection, which is selling online for over $100.00, and for those like me who want a second copy of this film for their collection! Recommended!

The Last Man on Earth

Director- Sidney Salkow

Cast- Vincent Price, Franca Bettoia

Country of Origin- US / Italy

Distributor – Kino Lorber

Number of Discs – 1

Reviewed by – David Steigman

Date-8/10/21