Introduction
This work gives an analysis of a small part of the film Nibiru 2032-The End of the World. The work has four parts; the first part is a summary of the storyline of the film; the second part is an analysis of important signs used in the film and their effectiveness in the meaning of the whole film. The third part is a reflection on the target audience, the film’s production and reception context.
The production team of this film effectively created an entertaining, yet horrifying film from the recent scientific debate about a meteor, Nibiru, which is slowly moving towards the Earth. Scientists project that this meteor will hit the Earth in the year 2032. The preparedness of the human race for such disasters is what the film mainly questions.
The Storyline
This scene captures images that show the possible state of affairs in case of a meteor hitting the world. This film begins by showing the image of the meteor moving towards the Earth. It then shows a news anchor announcing the news of this meteor to the people. He says, “Citizens of the world, I bring you news that will be difficult to comprehend”. The director prevents the news anchor from giving details of this news.
The news anchor, thus, shifts focus to the city where people unexpectedly see strange things falling from the sky. The falling objects are magma-like substances from the meteor. Everything comes to a stand-still. Cars do not move, and people raise their heads to the sky to see the falling objects. The meteor hits the Earth, bringing down buildings in the cities. People run for their lives, but the magma-like substances drop all over making it impossible to find a place to hide.
The hot materials drop like bombshells. They fall in the sea, displacing water towards the land. The displaced water, together with the hot materials, sweeps everything on the ground. The materials bring buildings and every erect thing, including the Statue of Liberty in New York, to the ground.
The displaced water goes up to the mountains, covering them everywhere. The hot material also flows and burns everything to ashes. The hot magma and the water destroy everything leaving the Earth bare and lifeless.
Analysis of important signs used in the film
This film talks about the end of the world as the title suggests. The world ends because of a sudden collision between the Earth and a meteor, Nibiru. The meteor produces hot substances that burn down everything on earth, leaving it lifeless.
The writer of the film applies scientific knowledge. He reminds his audience that things that science teachers teach in schools are not just for learning purposes, but can also happen in real life. He uses the on-going scientific discussion about the possibility of planet X, Nibiru, hitting the earth in the year 2032. Meteors are celestial objects that human beings usually hear about, but never imagine them causing harm.
The writer of this film suggests that human beings need to prepare for disaster, rather than just engaging in merry making and assuming that things will always be okay. The director, on the other hand, uses sub-titles that ask the audience where they will be at the time the world will be ending.
The director creates a foreboding when he uses solemn soundtracks in the background. The solemn sound intertwines with a bombing sound hinting to viewers that something bad will happen soon. This foreboding, in turn, creates suspense in the audience. It prepares the audience for serious scenes that follow. The foreboding intensifies when the news anchor does not finish his presentation. The director allows him to announce that he has bad news, but does not allow him give details of the news.
The director’s use of sub-titles helps the audience to engage their imagination. The subtitles ask viewers to imagine that they have only three hours to live. They further ask the audience to imagine what they could do, and the closures they could seek.
The questions asked by the sub-titles are rhetorical and do not need answers. Rhetorical questions serve the purpose of aiding the viewers’ imagination. Other sub-titles are in the form of television headlines. One of the headlines seen on the television screen declares that there is a meteor headed towards the Earth. This sub-title helps viewers to know that the cause of the end of the world is a meteor that hits the Earth.
Reflecting on the Audience, Production and Reception Context
The film is a commercial film but does not appeal to everybody. It only appeals to adults and learned members of the audience. This is because the theme it handles is too difficult for children and adults who are illiterate to understand. Children will either not see sense in this film, or may be too terrified to watch it.
Their little scientific knowledge may also make them think that this film is baseless. This is the same problem the illiterate audience will face. Religious people, on the other hand, will not want to watch it because they will see this as trying to compete with God in determining the end of the world.
The first two categories of people may not know the meaning of a meteor. They may also be unaware of the scientific fact that there are other planets and bodies around the Earth. This film, therefore, does not target children, illiterate people and religious people. The film can, however, be used by parents and teachers in teaching their children about the solar system.
The production of this film is one of the best. The film required a lot of scientific knowledge during its production. It creates a pictorial presentation of knowledge that has always been theoretical. The production team went to the extent of giving pictures of what look like the real Earth and other heavenly bodies.
The sound tracks that accompany these images fit the scenes appropriately. All the sounds used in the film from the beginning to the end are solemn. It is, therefore, possible to understand what the film is about even with minimal human sounds as it is in the film. The sounds communicate the gravity of the catastrophe to the audience without the need for verbal explanation.
When this film first appeared in 2012, it led to a lot of controversies. Some critics argued that this film had no basis because Nibiru existed only in the myths of Mesopotamians, but has no scientific backing. Other scholars, however, argued that Nibiru had indeed appeared and even caused the Earth to tilt.