Last Straw

Last Straw'ss story is not entirely unique, there is a simple setup of a home invasion movie but instead of a normal house it's a Diner. Also the movie introduces a few things that I didn't expect but that weren't entirely unpredictable. The main character is flawed and it's a little bit hard to root for her but since she is making it through a very tough time in her life you get where her anger is coming from. But that doesn't explain her extremely stupid decisions throughout the movie. There were multiple scenes where she did something so dumb that a part of me just wanted to see her being killed. I don't mind when characters don't always make the most logical decisions since they are not sitting in front of a screen watching the movie, but instead are in a life threatening situation. But in this case it was really hard to root for her because of her constant stupidity. On the other hand there are also characters that just act unreasonable. This made it really hard to really concentrate on what was going on in the movie and therefore that effectively harmed the enjoyment of watching. Speaking of, I mostly enjoyed the movie and I was rarely bored which is nice. On a technical level the movie was also pretty solid and the acting was mostly pretty decent . However the final result is not to overwhelming and like I said at times you just want to slap some of the characters to come to their senses. [5,5/10]

This was better than most "horror/slasher/thriller" movies that have been released in the last few years. Sure it's not perfect and there are plot holes everywhere but I think that's meant to be deliberate considering who the protagonists are (backwoods americans).

There are some decent twist and turns and the story is easy enough to follow if you pay attention and use your brain.

The main actress, Jessica Belkin, carries the movie with her performance and I thought suited the character nicely. The other actors all put in decent performances.

I think the other reviewers here are expecting some big hollywood production with the same boring storyline and cgi. It's a good movie and goes for a good length of time.

Last Straw is pretty straight forward with no twists or turns as it's predictable. In fact I was able to predict what was to happen before it occurred. The movie is pretty realistic with it's violence and kill scenes. The problem I had with this film was that the story line was pretty linear throughout without much substance. I was looking and hoping for more but then sadly dissapointed. The movie kind of has a Strangers film vibe toward the beginning but then that quickly fades away when we learn who the major players are. Last Straw still manages to get more right then wrong in it's 90 minute run time. Last Straw gets a solid 6 stars out of 10 from me.

As far as crime-horror-thrillers go...this isn't half bad.

Though, it's quite cliche.

The whole story takes place in, and around, a diner, run by a man and his daughter, in a small town, where oppourtunities aren't exactly omnipresent.

So, when a series of events leads to one of the employees getting fired...things get a little out of control.

Which is to say, an understatement.

As one thing leads to another...and violence ensues.

The whole thing is entertaining enough, but it's certainly not without it's faults.

Because, on top of ruining the mystery far too early...the "twist" is ridiculously implausible.

And kind of ruins the whole last bit of the film.

The film then ends on a note that- while it does make sense- really forces you to dig deep in order to grasp the meaning.

Which I feel flies over most viewers heads.

As it seems, almost randomly, thrown in as the conclusion.

That being said, it's not a horrible film.

Even if you don't "get" the ending...you can still be entertained by the violence-laden journey, in a mindless sort of way.

But it's definitely not great, either.

As, like I mentioned above, I think clarity will elude most viewers.

4 out of 10.

What starts out as a 'siege' thriller develops into something rather original in its dissection into small midwestern lives of bored teenagers with nothing to do, ampted up on meds for bio polar and depression , smoking crack for release, and with limited funds; it also works as a pertinent tale of pranking gone wrong . Something young people should see and learn from!

It may bore those looking for gore and masked intruders looking to settle scores but that would be derivative , what it proposes is how these bored teenagers act- ok it ain't Rivers Edge but it's sharp and different.

The chilly photography and sparse soundtrack work well and whilst the title Last Straw works the (?) original title 'The Late Shift' works better.