Last Ball

So many independent films would be great, if only the acting were better. Or the script tighter. Or if it was lighter, or heavier. Last Ball somehow brings it all together.

The acting is notably good; the emotion of so many scenes lingers with you long after the credits roll. It's beautiful to look at. It's well-directed, well-written. And most notable of all: it's a well-rounded story that is character driven and funny. It does not pander, but it sure does make you laugh.

It's so rare to get the whole deal in one film, but there it is. Last Ball delivers.

I saw Last Ball at the Director's View Film Festival a couple of weeks ago, where it justifiably won the grand prize for best film. This movie is really good. I so rarely see films where everything comes together perfectly, but it really did in this one. It was subtle, powerful, and funny. The nasty comments posted by "CorrGirl1027" don't ring true at all; she sounds like a disgruntled local actress who didn't get cast in the film, or she saw some other movie. "Last Ball" is fantastic, and I hope it gets distributed someday soon, since it's ten times better than most of the "indie" movies I've seen.

I saw this at the Anchorage Film Festival years ago and loved it. The director told us it was loosely based on his own life growing up in Hastings-on-Hudson. I've never been there but the movie made it an appealing destination for future travels. Last Ball was solid with great characters. There are lots of those "nameless/faceless" actors in it that you've seen in so many movies but never caught their name. Leo Fitzpatrick (Kids) is great as the sidekick. Anyone who grew up privileged in small town America can definitely relate to it. There are characters we have all "known" from our rebellious teen years... the over-demanding father, the motherly bartender, a concerned sheriff, the goof ball friend you can't quite shake and maybe don't want to. I have checked for it on DVD but doubt it will ever be available. It's a treat and if you're able to see it at a festival then do it. I would love to see it again.

I loved this film about a young man at an emotional crossroads after graduating from High School. The performances by all the actors were great and I thought the love story was so true, and so gentle. The setting was beautifully filmed in the Hudson river valley, with New York City just down river. This is what is a real independent film should be. You just have to watch carefully and listen well, because there is a lot of subtle, sweet moments.

"Last Ball" is a beautifully told story about a guy struggling with life in a small town after most of his friends have moved away to more exciting places. A passionate affair with a married woman initially appears as a way out of affliction but turns out to be a dead end.

I found the film moving in an un-sniveling way. Main character Jim conveys a kind of ease that is limited to those who have no great expectations. Jim is no caricature of misery. The supposed hopelessness of his situation is contrasted by the beauties of the "little things" in life and by the intensity of his actions. Ultimately, the "dead end" is just another beginning.

The film is as colorful and as complex, as funny and as sad as life really is. It tells a story worthy of being listened to. Most of us would not only want to see and listen, but to embrace.