Last time we were talking about the minions of Satan. Relax. This time it’s nothing quite so grand. It’s just the end of the world, and with current feelings of some people (televised evangelists and other religious leaders) “How can I profit from this”.
Some of the most interesting stories of the end-times are The Book of Revelation and, to give polytheistic religions some representation, the age of Ragnarok. The basic idea is that, for a set amount of time, evil gets the upper hand and most things with a pulse are going to die horrible, mostly agonizing deaths. Doesn’t that sound so dull and straightforward? Well at least in terms Ragnarok even the gods die and the world, for a time, gets completely submerged in water. That makes things a little more interesting, wouldn’t you say? I would go into everything but to catalogue every single end-time myth of different cultures would be enough material for a book.
So, where does the end of the world come into play in entertainment? There are the religious myths, some of which are incredibly entertaining because they come across sounding like drug trips. There are an abundant number of books, movies and games that bring up the end of times.
In terms of books, there are numerous examples just within the realms of Clive Barker’s beautifully deranged mind. The Damnation Game made vague references mixing Judeo-Christian and Norse myth, with the event solely known as “the deluge.”
The game Clive Barker’s Jericho brings up “The First-Born” who is said to have to be freed from his bindings to wreak havoc on the land, and breed death within humanity. For those who don’t know, “The First-Born” is in regards to the first-born son of Adam and Eve who was born so corrupted and deformed Adam and Eve essentially left him for dead. Again, for those of you who don’t know there is further speculation within groups of religious scholars that Adam and Eve had three sons.
There are also the Left Behind novel/movie series. Don’t take what I’m about to say the wrong way. Religion is a great thing. However, this series puts entirely too much belief in The Book of Revelation. Sure it is Christian fiction, so you’d expect it to adhere to Christian end-time myth. However, when you take metaphor literally, you can be lead down some ugly roads. Yes I know, these books and movies aren’t horror, but then again it is religious fiction. Religion can be more frightening than the best horror out there.
Alone in the Dark, the film, is an interesting take on the Lakota end-time prophecy. The basic idea is that the world is in balance between light and dark. However, in the end-time prophecy, darkness will swallow the earth and chaos will ensue. In terms of the movie though, the tribe is the Abkani.
The Omen trilogy is based off of Christian end-time myth as well. The Omen trilogy details the birth and rise to power of the Anti-Christ. You’re probably thinking “enough with The Book of Revelation” but if Christians scare filmmakers enough that multiple horror movies are made regarding Christian beliefs, shouldn’t that tell you something?
The Prophecy is also a horror movie that features different angels trying to hasten the Judeo-Christian end-times. Christopher Walken as a fallen angel is just hilarious. Viggo Mortensen as Lucifer is also an interesting choice that works.
Constantine sucked, but yet again, the film was based off of Christian end-time myth. The world goes to Hell and almost doesn’t make it back. This film was also one long anti-smoking ad. It threw in more than just Christian ideology by referencing some Jewish and polytheistic beliefs and icons. Either way, it was still sticking to Christianity for the most part.
These are just some of the numerous examples of the end of the world being brought up in horror entertainment. There are also the zombie films that keep bringing up biblical quotes, concepts and ideas. Yes, most of them are based off of Christian myth and metaphor. However, most of what was brought up was American-made modern horror. If you look at horror movies from other cultures, you get a feel for the other cultures’ takes on the horror film and the end of the world. As stated earlier that if you fully delve into the apocalyptic visions, there’s enough material to write a book, and it still could be covered in a more thorough light.
If you want to wander the ruins of the earth with me through conversation as a fellow wraith, you can e-mail me at jon.gronli@gmail.com.