The last word 2008

‘The Last Word'(2008), starring my mate Winnie and one Wes Bentley (of ‘American Beauty’ fame), I read the description on IMDb.com, it went a little something, actually, exactly like this:

«A man (Bentley) who makes his living composing other people’s suicide notes enters into a romance with the sister (Ryder) of a recent client.» Hmmmm, I thought!

I added it to my favourites so that I could go back and watch should the mood take me, anyway it did, I’ve just watched it, and now I’m writing this.

Bentley plays Evan… I must say that this was the first thing i’ve enjoyed seeing Wes Bentley in since ‘American Beauty’. Probably because his character in this movie is pretty much an older Ricky Fitz! Evan is a loner, poetically deep, interesting and intriguing… Had an abusive father… Yadda-yadda-yadda.

Evan writes suicide notes (hence the title: ‘The Last Word’) for clients who’ve contacted him through his website. One of Evan’s current clients is a guy called Abel, played by ‘Everyone Love’s Raymond’s Ray Romano.

I’ve never seen Ray Romano play any other character before and I really enjoyed his performance in this film. Abel’s friendship with Evan grows during Evan’s developing relationship with Ryder’s character Charlotte.

I never knew this movie existed before this weekend, and everything in it is subtle and yet achieves maximum impact.’The Last Word’ is unpredictable, funny, honest and sad. Well it’s not very sad per say, considering it’s main theme is death! But for a piece which walks hand in hand with suicide it is actually quite light, yet not at all offensive or disrespectful. It follows Evan’s story and it has a happy ending. It’s the type of film that I don’t plan to watch again, but probably will do, and probably more than once.

In my opinion this movie is a wee gem. It’s strangely beautiful, a bit like that carrier bag blowing in the wind! I recommend it.

I even feel a need to make a shout out to the guy who wrote and directed this movie, his name is Geoffrey Haley. He has two writing credits to his name, one short film and this one being his only feature film. His greatest plethora of work takes place within the camera and electrical department; if you check out his film credentials on IMDb, he has over 80 for camera and electrical, steadicam operations being his apparent forte. You will no doubt recognise a lot of the films Haley has worked on, one of which was ‘American Beauty’…

Swings and roundabouts folks. Swings and roundabouts.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Last Word
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Geoffrey Haley
Written by	Geoffrey Haley
Produced by	David Hillary Alexandra Milchan Timothy Wayne Peternel Bonnie Timmermann Jack Utsick
Starring	Winona Ryder Wes Bentley Ray Romano
Music by	John Swihart
Production companies	Deviant Films Dreamz
Distributed by	Image Entertainment
Release dates	January 19, 2008 (Sundance) April 21, 2009 (United States)
Country	United States
Language	English

The Last Word is an offbeat romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Geoffrey Haley.^[1] It stars Winona Ryder and Wes Bentley. It had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2008^[2] and was released on DVD on April 21, 2009.^[3]

Plot[edit]

Evan Merck, an odd but gifted poet, makes his living writing suicide notes for the soon-to-be departed. At the funeral for a client, he meets Charlotte, the free-spirited sister of the deceased. When Charlotte asks how Evan knew her brother, he lies and says he was an old college friend. Evan’s evasiveness only sparks Charlotte’s curiosity and she romantically pursues him. Evans finds himself falling for her but cannot bring himself to reveal his true profession. Meanwhile, Evan must deal with Abel, a sarcastic new client and music composer whose career has been reduced to making jingles for phone messages.

Cast[edit]

Critical reception[edit]

Reviews criticized the romantic subplot and the film’s underdeveloped characters.^[1][4] James Greensberg of the Associated Press commented «the film pushes the eccentric without creating believable characters».^[5] Writing for DVD Talk, David Cornelius wrote, «Surely there’s something fascinating boiling below Evan’s quiet surface, right? Surely he has a rich backstory that has led him to this career. And surely his time spent with Abel will lead to quirky, intelligent discussions on life and death and art. Surely we will be treated to deep thoughts on solitude in the big city, the defeat of one’s dreams, dealing with mental illness, finding happiness hidden in the corners of life. But no.»^[3]

Amanda Mae Meyncke of Film.com noted that while the film «wins overall points for originality» and «there are some moments of dark comedy…it’s hard to find sympathy with a character who insists on helping people end their lives. The film’s ending may come as a surprise to some, a sickly sweet nothing that leaves you feeling empty.»^[4]

Though reviews were mixed, multiple critics singled out Romano’s performance,^[4][6][7][8] with Cornelius saying «It’s [Abel], not Charlotte, that really brightens Evan’s life, providing friendship when both had none. When focused on these two, The Last Word becomes a sly dark comedy that works.»^[3]

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• The Last Word at IMDb
• The Last Word at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Last Word at AllMovie

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