The Last Cruise

As someone who worked in retirement home for the elderly with dementia (that was hit hard) at the time these events happened and indeed the rest of this pandemic that yes, is still happening, I really wanted to see this one. I wanted to see what it was like for them on that ship and compare it to my own experience. So maybe I have some bias but I will admit, the documentary wasn't as ominous and clean cut as the trailer, it was an "ok" documentary. But considering what little footage they had to work with, I suppose it was a serviceable enough job.

There is a lot of politics surrounding this virus so hopefully people will keep that out of their reviews, I know I will.

Unfortunately a lot of it is filmed on phones so that may bug some people as I see it bug people in reviews for other documentaries. But like I said considering what little footage they probably had to work with, I'd say it was well enough put together. It was odd for me to watch personally, I myself witnessed the senior community I worked at turn into a ghost town/prison, I remember having to continue working and wondering everyday if I was going to get it, whether I was safe or if I was going to give it to someone else. So the way they portray the ghost ship was chilling, to me at least, from my opinion it was shown accurately.

Classism definitely reared its heads in this documentary. I do though wish they focused less on the passengers and more on the crew, I feel they showed more of the passengers and I found it sad they didn't put more focus on the injustice and anxiety of the crew, which they did touch on, but certainly not enough. At least I got to go home at the end of 16 hour shift, these poor people had to work in cramped conditions with little to no protection or understanding of what was happening. Again, they did touch on it, but more emphasis could have been put on those poor people, who got to watch rich Americans leave while they worked their fingers to the bone to keep those passengers alive.

I understand the passengers were bored and frustrated, but I found some of them incredible pretentious, ungrateful, and downright rude, and I did not have the sympathy for them in the way I think the documentary wanted me to. Dementia patients I worked for in the senior home complained less than these people. Its almost as if these people thought the same level of pre-Covid service they were promised would continue in a situation like this, I only really felt emotional for one of the passengers and his wife. But the rest of the portions of the passenger segments left me uninterested and kind of insulted as someone who worked during these hard time in one of the most dangerous places.

All in all it was a slightly above middle of the road documentary, not amazing but told the story the best they could with what little they had.

When I started this I was definitely very interested in the topic and the situation. It just seemed like a doc of halfway developed arcs and never told a full story. I feel like there were so many missed opportunities to learn more about the backstory of the guests that were featured, the crewmembers, the families at home, comparing what was going on on the ship to what was going on in other places, etc. And also - my goodness - what happened to these people? What was it like when they got home? Who are the people that died? Who got sick after the flight? There was so much either left on the table or on the cutting floor. I think this documentary could've been so great and just wasn't developed enough.

"The Last Cruise" (2021 release; 40 min.) is a documentary about the infamous cruise ship the Diamond Princess, which left the port of Yokohama, Japan on January 20, 2020 (the very day that the WHO officially declared the coronavirus a pandemic), and it wasn't long before a first passenger tested positive, and then another and then another...

Couple of comments: this is the second documentary written-produced-directed by up-and-coming Hannah Olson, who debuted with last year's excellent "Baby God" documentary. Here she retells what one could term "the voyage of the doomed", as the gigantic cruise ship (housing 3000+ guests and staff) becomes an international pariah and immediate symbol for the devastation brought by an unknown and highly contagious new virus. Olson introduces us to two US couples as well as 2 staff (a dishwasher from Indonesia, a pastry chef from I believe India), and we follow their ups (a few) and down (a lot). It makes for fascinating viewing, to be honest. Predictably the footage is mostly derived from the smart phones of the guests and staff. While there are no winners here of course, I felt particularly bad for the staff, who literally go begging in international TV news outlets, begging for their rescue. The footage of the staff cramped together in close quarters, knowing full well that the virus is spreading, is just sickening. Another can't miss moment is that the US guests are watching US TV coverage and you can hear how Trump and his band of jokers keep claiming that "we've got it completely under control". Wow, just wow. What an utter and complete incompetent fool. If I have any complaint about this documentary, it is that at just 40 min. The documentary flashes by in no time, and it seems to me there was plenty of room for additional footage and coverage.

"The Last Cruise" premiered last month at SXSW to immediate buzz, and just recently started showing on HBO. It is now available on HBO On Demand (where I caught it), Amazon Instant Video and other streaming services. If you have any interest in how the world was dealing with COVID-19 in its earliest days, I'd readily suggest you check this out, and draw your own conclusion.

This documentary totally missed the mark. It had a real opportunity to show the early days of COVID from the perspective of people truly affected by illness and fear... and while some of the disparity of the haves vs have-nots was on display, it was done in such a way that I think the filmmakers wanted us to feel sorry for the passengers. Granted, I may have done, had they not showcased mostly ignorant, rude, self-absorbed westerners who we know proved during 2020 that they don't care about anyone but themselves. "Who cares if my stylist dies from a virus, I want a haircut!" (You know, THOSE people.)

Also, as an aside - if you suffer from motion sickness, the first first cell phone footage in this documentary may trigger you.

I'm sorry but if you don't know what the virus does or if it can even kill, and these idiots quarantine the passengers and not the crew.

These people have no humanity, they were treated like disposable just to cather to the passenger.

Sickening.