The Last Movie

Dispirited at the current state of Canadian cinema, veteran Toronto director Bruce Pittman simply made one of his own. Titled the Last Movie it is a top rated film noir filled with suspense and some laughs courtesy of our flagging film industry, And the wonder is Pittman shot it mainly in his Riverdale home using nonunion crew and players. The effect is mesmerizing, a triumph of cinematography and scripting, beautifully photographed and edited so very precisely. It is compulsively watchable and is playing this week at Toronto's Royal cinema along College Street. This is what film making is all about. I give it **** 1/2 stars and I'm deeply grateful for the experience. It shows me Canadian films are not dead and buried but alive and vibrant.

I was knocked out by the power of it, by the surprising way it builds and the turn it takes once Elizabeth Seitz comes on the scene. She is a fabulous actress and she completely captivated me.

I was reminded of The Black Swan, which exploits mental illness for its revulsion factor, Darren Aronofsky's forte. The Last Movie is not exploitative, but rather points a critical finger at the professional creative community who can easily push fragile creative minds over the edge. I know this happens. When Elizabeth says, "...or too much too late" we know things aren't going well.  Bruce Pittman's performance as Nick Crawley the director of the remake, adds a comic layer. All his puffy-cheeked sighs and 'Oh-boys' and bad dreams give us a peek at the ordinariness of creative work. The producer's appearances via Skype are true-to-life and specific, so we don't just see the cliché money-man ruining the precious creative vision. I love the whole discussion of female actors' beauty vs talent. And all the juicy details about movie-making, like wardrobe and lighting tests – I eat that stuff up. I found Nick's wish to make high art while doing a low-budget commercial remake of a so-so foreign film acquired for virtually no money pretty rich. This feeling works perfectly with the fact that Elizabeth is pushed towards her edge in a fairly irresponsible way by this ambitious and cynical director. The scene where Nick records his thoughts on his career is really strong. It seeds that awful flashlight-under-the-chin hallucination of Nick's face, as seen in the trailer.  I like all the sort of multimedia editing and the cutting-in of the documentary-in-the-making with all the echoes and computer screen treatments that a young documentarian would use. The way Pittman has mixed together the stylish noir photography of the Russian movie, the very current special-features doc look, and the straight realism of Elizabeth's story makes for a richly layered film that left me with lots to think about. It's one of those movies, like Shutter Island, that when you watch it the second time, it's like watching a whole different film.

I thought it was a beautifully crafted movie, a terrific genre film. I loved the overt use of "film noir" techniques. A lovely sense of style, lighting and camera angles. I loved the homage to some of the classics. It made us all feel smart.

I saw "The Artist" a few days later and they use film noir elements as the protagonist slides into depression but I think "The Last Movie" did a better job. I was totally convinced by the "Russian film" portions. It did an amazing job with locations. Nataliya Alyexeyenko's face and eyes were totally beguiling. The camera loves her. Elizabeth Gondek is not quite as compelling but she grows on you and is believable. It's very exciting when the two of them come together.

My only criticism is that the film did seem long, both overall film and pacing within scenes, especially later scenes. It is not bad in the first half of the film as it establishes style but then it just feels too slow as we approach the climax. In spite of this, I think it was a brilliant effort and a very entertaining film. Congratulations to the filmmakers. Keith Ross Leckie

The opening half of the last movie traces the efforts of an independent

filmmaker to do a remake of a Russian thriller. It seamlessly combines healthy doses

of the original Russian film with both a documentary of the making of the film and the private tribulations the director goes through to make the film.

The last half involves the casting of a new actress to play the femme fatale in the

New film. Here is where the film becomes a psychological thriller in the tradition

of Polanski's Repulsion.

Hats off to a film that tries to be a little different from the current fare.

The Last Movie is one of those rare films that gets into the heads of actors. The character of Elizabeth, who is about to play the part of a femme fatale in a remake of a Russian noir thriller, is played beautifully by Elizabeth Gondek. To play the part she must get inside the head of a murderess and apply her own life to the part. It is done with great subtlety and the results are a curious madness that kept me fascinated. The overall writing and direction by Bruce Pittman is beautifully crafted and kept me guessing with all its twists and turns. The recreation of the original Russian noir film is totally convincing. Nataliya Alyexeyenko as Nastya captures the spirit of Lana Turner in The Postman Always Rings Twice and Barbara Stanwyck in Double Indemnity. The lighting and camera work by Rick Wincenty perfectly recreates those fabulous films of the 40's, smooth and flawless. The Last Movie is a very different kind of thriller with the visions of classic noir blended with a modern story. Hope to see more from Bruce Pittman.