The Last Woman on Earth (1960)
“They fought for the ultimate prize.”
Streamed free from the Internet Archive · no signup, no cost — this film is in the public domain.
Synopsis
Harold Gern, a hard-charging New York businessman dodging legal trouble, vacations in Puerto Rico with his wife Evelyn and his lawyer Martin Joyce. During a scuba dive, the three surface to find the air has briefly become unbreathable and everyone around them has died — apparently the only survivors of a sudden global catastrophe. Discovering that the jungle's foliage still gives off breathable oxygen, they set about surviving, but the two men's rivalry over the last woman on Earth escalates into a deadly love triangle.
Cast
About the Director
Roger Corman — Roger Corman, the "King of the B's," produced and directed this as part of a "Puerto Rico trilogy," shooting it back-to-back with 'Creature from the Haunted Sea' and 'Battle of Blood Island' to maximize the trip. Its screenwriter was a young Robert Towne — later the Oscar-winning writer of 'Chinatown' — who finished the script on location and was pressed into acting when a cast member failed to arrive.
Why It’s Free: The Public-Domain Story
'The Last Woman on Earth' is in the public domain because its copyright was never renewed under the registration-and-renewal rules then in force. As a result it has circulated freely for decades across budget DVD labels and the Internet Archive.
Behind the Scenes
Corman released the film in October 1960 through his own outfit, Filmgroup, as a double feature with 'The Little Shop of Horrors.' Shot on location in Puerto Rico, it runs a brisk 71 minutes with a score by Ronald Stein. Most surviving prints are black-and-white 16mm copies struck for television, though a faded color print survives and was later restored for a release featuring on-camera introductions by Corman.
Did You Know?
- Screenwriter Robert Towne, who went on to win an Academy Award for 'Chinatown,' acted in the film himself under the pseudonym "Edward Wain" after a cast member failed to show.
- The entire film features just three credited actors.
- It was one of three Corman features shot back-to-back in Puerto Rico to stretch a single location trip.
- Its original release paired it with the now-classic 'The Little Shop of Horrors.'
Reception & Legacy
A modest, talky entry in the post-apocalyptic genre, the film is remembered today less for its drama than for its connection to two future Hollywood titans, Corman and Towne. It endures as a public-domain staple, of interest chiefly to Corman completists and students of low-budget science fiction.
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