The Noah

Shot in 1968 and completed in 1974, but rarely seen, Daniel Bourla's experimental feature is a disturbing journey into the hopelessly frayed mind of a lost soul. In the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust, an American soldier named Noah (played by gravelly-voiced character actor Robert Strauss) lands his raft on the beach of an isolated island. Although he discovers signs of life (a shack full of communist posters and a Rita Hayworth pinup), he meets no living person…but one day a voice calls his name, spurring Noah into action. “If you play ball with me, I'll play ball with you, and we'll both get along fine,” says Noah, who gives the voice the name of Friday in the tradition of Defoe's classic novel. Thus begins Noah's slow but steady descent into madness in this harrowing psychological drama in which terror comes from within (Noah's tormentors are entirely invisible, and are voiced by, among others, Geoffrey Holder and Sally Kirkland). Strauss' performance is an astonishing tour de force, resonating brilliantly between sheer lunatic bravado and soul-damaged fear. An amazing and original lost classic worthy of discovery, this is highly recommended. (P. Hall)