Final

I always knew Dennis could act. He just never had material this good. There is no action in this film, about 80% of the film is in one room. But this is a well written, that is well acted. It's not easy to see where this film is going. I can recommend it enough to some who liked a film like My Dinner with Andre'. Not that there is any similarity in story, but if you can enjoy a film that's strongly driven by the writing and acting, you'll like this film. And if you can't do that don't watch this, I don't want you writing a bad review if you don't like it, and possibly turning someone

off.

I was a bit apprehensive to watch this, even though Dennis Leary and Hope Davis are in this, both of whom are great actors. Also, I've never been a huge Hope Davis fan, she tends to play unsympathetic characters a little too well (Secret Lives of Dentist and About Schmidt) and the idea of Leary in a serious role puzzled me, but I gave it the benefit of the doubt, probably because it was Leary in a serious role, which is an intriguing idea. I took a gamble, despite the ultra-cheap look, and I am very happy that I did watch it.

The ultra-low budget is exactly why this film is not for everyone, it is solely driven by dialogue. it is very clearly a low-budget film, chances are that either Davis and Leary did it without a paycheck or they spent their whole budget to get them. If that idea is off-putting to you, steer clear. Even though the budget is next to nothing, and you can tell, the script is beyond great and the acting is absolutely perfect, especially the interplay by Davis and Leary, which is the heart of the film.

It is hard to talk about the film without giving anything away, so I will say nothing about the actual plot. Only that it develops slowly and is purely dialogue driven, much like a play, but it is not a stagey film. The film is almost a mystery, you just don't know where it is going to take it and it keeps you guessing. Yet, it is also very much a romance and on an intellectual level, sci-fi as well, but only in the most cerebral sense. There are no laser fights, outerspace/intergalactic travel, space ships, or aliens, and it reveals itself very slowly.

There is very little action, most of everything happens in one room, though there are a number of "flashback" scenes which take place out of the room. I have seen low-budget films that were overly ambitious in their execution for their budget("Lo" or even "Ink" comes to mind), and suffer a bit for it, "Final" does not have those problems, in fact, were it to be hampered down with a bigger budget, I get the feeling it would have actually encumbered the production and possibly hurt the end result.

The only downside is it makes it less likely to appeal to anyone who doesn't like offbeat films that are not at all mainstream, even though the story is as good as any well-made big budget film, the cheap look does not help it in the ratings department I am certain, I think that is probably the primary reason why it is not rated higher, and I think given this film cost a good deal more than "Primer", yet has a somewhat cheaper look, doesn't help it either.

The acting, story, characters, and writing is all very well done, the quality of the look, which is a result of sloppy post production, does hurt this film, though the cinematography and sound is competent, and does it's job. The music is ver playful and a lot of fun, and certainly adds a lot to this movie, it is one of my favorite aspects of the film. It is easy to say that if you enjoyed movies such as "Primer" or "Ink" which do pretty well with their tiny budget, or you are just tired of films that have no story or substance, this is a movie that is well-worth a watch, if that is not you, please do us a favor and do not watch or rate this film.

God Bless ~Amy

... but better - thanks to great character acting from Davis and Leary. However, the movie is just too long for what it delivers: a 2 hour, 2 person talk-fest in which nothing really happens.

This story involves a man who wakes up in a psychiatric ward / hospital and thinks it's the future and that he's going to be given a (final) lethal injection. The entire movie is basically about his interaction with his doctor in the patient room and hospital yard.

The only saving grace of this movie is the strong acting performances by both Leary and Davis. Leary is very dynamic and energetic (it's actually very impressive) and Davis does outstanding counterplay as his restrained, even-toned psychiatrist.

This makes them interesting to watch - to listen to. The memory flashbacks also help break up the dialog.

However, almost NOTHING happens in this movie - it's huge talk-fest and the story could have been shrunk to 30 or 40 minutes max. If it weren't for the quality of acting (which induced me to think the movie may get better), I would have quit watching early on. In the final analysis, I also realized that I didn't even get anything out of the great performances beyond recognizing the skill of actors.

If you're a Denis Leary or Hope Davis fan, you'll probably enjoy watching them act. For the average movie-goer, see something else.

Although Denis Leary, the male lead, and Jim Gaffigan, who plays a prominent supporting role, are best known as professional comedians, make no mistake. This is a fine, science fiction drama.

The movie is driven by the dialog and the slowly unfolding plot of a great screenplay. There are essentially no special effects other than the flashbacks, and they are really more a product of good editing. The story is compelling and captivating, pulling you along as the larger plot points are revealed.

I'm sure this movie made no real box office, but it is absolutely worth the rental. Leary is shockingly good in this movie and proves that he has the acting chops of an Oscar winner. Davis' performance is solid, but very demure. One could argue that she had a supporting role instead of the female lead. Although Gaffigan has a lot of screen-time, he does not have much dialog. Regardless, Gaffigan delivers a stalwart and believable performance.

Okay, it is a not a sci-fi movie in the sense of laser gun battles or travelling through time warps, or anything like that. In fact, you almost have to be told that it is science-fiction, it plays out more like a subtle love story, but mostly like a psychological drama. Another interesting thing about this movie is that it is a slow movie, but it absolutely grabs your attention.

Denis Leary turned in a great performance, such natural speech, and without his usual foul-mouth on top of that too! Him and Hope Davis convince you that there was a bond that developed between them, and under any other circumstances this bond could've led to a quiet comfortable life together. There is a scene at the end which is touching, it almost reminds you of an elderly couple who know their life together is coming to an end and are saying their final goodbyes to each other.