The film adaptation of The Last of Us was eagerly awaited. Not only are we dealing with the first series blockbuster in 2023. The story of Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel (Pedro Pascal) goes back to one of the best video games return. Can a cinematic adaptation add anything to the original? The Last of Us, the series, provides an unequivocal answer: yes.
Although The Last of Us is acclaimed by fans largely for its closeness to the original, the strongest element of the series has nothing to do with the games. The real stroke of genius from The Last of Us are the short sequences that precede the previous episodes and send shivers down our spines with minimal means.
The Last of Us series takes us to the origin of the Cordyceps pandemic
Two episodes of The Last of Us have already been released. Both feature a prologue set well before the events of the main story.
Episode 1: Before we 2003 the Outbreak of a devastating pandemic experience, we dive into the year 1968 and witness a talk show in which two scientists discuss the possibility of such a pandemic using the example of the Cordyceps fungus.
You can watch the trailer for The Last of Us here:
The Last of Us – S01 Trailer 2 (German Subtitles) HD
Not a virus, but a fungus is supposed to execute mankind – incredulous laughter from the audience. Only when the scientific execution follows does the mood change. The cozy TV evening turns into a uncomfortable mind gamewhich walks a fine line: nobody expects it to happen, but the narrative of the circumstances is as plausible as it is frightening.
Episode 2: 35 years later, there is no doubt about the danger when Dr. Ratna (Christine Hakim) encounters a Cordyceps mutation in a lab in Jakarta and leaves the room shaking. She has been studying the fungus for decades. Now theirs are coming true worst fears. The only advice she can give the government: drop bombs on the entire city.
The Last of Us found a way to be even more hopeless than the games
The fact that The Last of Us is not a feel-good series should be clear to anyone who has even briefly dealt with the games. In the foreground is the struggle for survival in a world in which mutant monsters lurk and people in general are not to be trusted. The queasy feeling that the introductory sequences of the first two episodes leave behind creates a new level of abdominal pain.
HBO
The Last of Us
Where many similar horror stories avoid the scientific foundation of their premise, The Last of Us specifically names it origin of all evil and plays with our expectation. In a video game where atmosphere is its greatest asset, opening the film with an explanation of the threat seems downright fatal. In just three minutes, The Last of Us could completely demystify itself.
In fact, the prologues are the most compelling argument for the series so far. They bring undreamt-of nuances into the story, spread new impulses and make things possible clever side entries, before we get to the core with Ellie and Joel. Above all, however, they screw on the relationship of tragedy, both for fans and for everyone who finds themselves in the post-apocalypse of The Last of Us for the first time in the course of the series.
Facts are scarier than the monsters in the dark in The Last of Us
Craig Mazin, who is the creative mind behind the series along with The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann, flexes his screenwriting muscles in the opening scenes. Already in the mini-series Chernobyl he has impressively proved that he can follow the course of catastrophes careful observations much more nerve-wracking than pure moments of shock.
HBO
The Last of Us
The calm and formality is amazing: in both prologues, scientists bring the news of the end of the world. They choose their words so convincingly and wisely that sometimes a sense of security arises – there is someone with expertise who can be trusted. But despite all the knowledge that the experts bring with them, they cannot save us. They announce the end.
if dr Ratna, in the opening episode of the second episode, talks about having to bomb the whole city in order to even stand a chance, initially gives the impression of excessive exaggeration. First the urgency with which she followed her instructions regardless of collateral damage repeatedly, and the fear in her eyes, creates an uneasiness not seen in The Last of Us.
The world of The Last of Us now seems even bigger – and everything is even more hopeless
The stroke of genius continues: Mazin and Druckmann use the prologues to inform us about the (past) time. Later, in 2023, we wander the streets with Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel (Pedro Pascal). Ancient world ruins. A huge crater raises the question of whether this is one of the bomb impacts. With one inconspicuous sentence, The Last of Us creates a goose bumps moment that goes way back.
HBO
The Last of Us
What about Dr. What Ratna could not have imagined is nothing more than a shrug for Joel. The most drastic action mankind could take in 2003 is two decades later than memorial for their powerlessness. As well as we think we know the world of The Last of Us, Mazin and Druckman secretly push us off a cliff we didn’t even know we were standing on.
In the games, the hopelessness of The Last of Us results from the experiences we have with Ellie and Joel on their journey through devastated America. Only gradually do we realize how lost this world really is. The series gives the story a larger framework at the beginning and fuels it hopelessness with factswhich only allow the way into the abyss.
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