10 Post-Apocalyptic Films That Prove Mankind Is Doomed
9. Delicatessen (1991)
This was the first feature film for writer and director, Jean Pierre Jeunet who would go on to create the whimsical and heartfelt Amelie (as well the ugly rotter that was Alien: Resurrection). Still, no two Jeunet films are alike and this comedy-horror feast is his furthest departure from reality. The story is set in a ram-shackle apartment building in France, seemingly after a nuclear catastrophe. Food is in scarce supply, so to make a bit of extra money, the buildings butcher invites travellers into their block under the promise of employment where he proceeds to go all Sweeney Todd by murdering them and selling the corpse-meat cheaply to the other tenants. The protagonist is a loveable clown who falls head-over-heels for the butchers daughter. Chaos ensues, involving the uprising of a group of subterranean vegetarian rebels. The sepia filter infuses everything in the film with a dusty, sweaty quality and in its action-laden moments this rises to a sticky claustrophobia through close-up shots of beady eyes and shucking knives. Its weird, its certainly whacky and finally leaves you with a clinical depression for mankinds long-term future.