The Last Kiss (Full Screen Edition)

The Last Kiss (Full Screen Edition)

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Editorial Reviews

"The Last Kiss" is a hip romantic comedy about life, love, infidelity, forgiveness, marriage, friendship… and coming to grips with turning 30.

A remake of the Italian film L'Ultimo Bacio, The Last Kiss was largely ignored in theaters despite its Gen-X themes and appeal of star Zach Braff (Scrubs), who last made a splash in theaters with his similar twentysomething angst film Garden State. A drama about midlife crises (mostly for people approaching 30, that is), director Tony Goldwyn (A Walk on the Moon) has assembled a top-notch cast, but there's not enough likeability in the characters to care. Architect Michael (Zach Braff) is a commitmentphobe who wanders into a flirtation with coed Kim (Rachel Bilson) because he's gun-shy about settling down with his perfect girlfriend Jenna (Jacinda Barrett), who's expecting his child. His fellow pals face their own romantic crossroads; one (Michael Weston) desires to settle down with a woman who doesn't love him back; another (Eric Christian Olsen) can't find someone who just wants a meaningless fling like him; and the third (Casey Affleck), ponders leaving his weary wife who's constantly berating his shortcomings as a father. Most depressing is Jenna's mother (Blythe Danner), who's tired of feeling neglected by her stoic husband (Tom Wilkinson). Danner and Wilkinson are compelling as longtime marrieds who've lost their spark, but Braff's character is wholly unlikeable, even aside from his indiscretions. The bright spot is Bilson, in her first movie role, utterly adorable as the sexy college student who's got more parts vulnerability and sass than any stuck in the Other Woman role. There's some fine acting in The Last Kiss, but not enough character development to care about anything they're going through.

The DVD includes a commentary featuring cast members Braff, Barrett, Olsen, Bilson, and director Goldwyn, who all mainly hoot during Olsen's sex scenes and ogle Bilson's seductive dancing. Braff and Goldwyn also imitate Bilson's high-pitched speedchatter throughout, while Barrett educates the cast on the similarities between "the dingo ate my baby" and the O.J. Simpson case (don't ask). It's all the more entertaining compared to a separate commentary track with just Goldwyn and Braff, who mostly drones about the music he picked for the film (Remy Zero, Snow Patrol, Aimee Mann) and raves about the minimalist score, done by singer Michael Penn. And oh, they ogle Bilson's dancing in this one too. -- Ellen A. Kim

Customer Reviews

Real life

Reviewed by Leif A. Ostgard, 2010-02-21

I am not going to write a review of this movie...I will just say their is a point in this movie when Zack Braff's character is let off the hook by his fiance' for what he did when she caught him lying about where he spent his night...he only kissed a girl...at the time she caught him, he admitted everything...lying...the kiss...etc...and at the time he was being honest. Prior to her forgiveness (the night she caught him) a huge fight happens and Braff left in a huff returning to the other woman and they got it on. She oblivious to the later encounter forgives him for the initial stuff he told her because thats all she knew about...and it seems all is well, she clearly give him a pass for what she knows. She is back to herself...she asks him if when he told her what happened he was being honest...and truth be told he was...at the time..because at the time thats all that happened...so he clearly is in the clear and scott-free...there is a pause...as I watched this I gasped thinking..."don't do it"...he then tells her the rest and she flips out on him, kicking him out and he ends up sleeping on the porch. I laugh at movies, I get pissed when movies insult me like I don't have a brain, but rarely has a movie every caught me up like that for that one monent you really felt like you were in that situation shaken your head like you are about to witness a car wreck. Thats powerful, thats a great scene. The movie is real life, and not real life like a Kevin Smith movie were its not really like that...in Smith's movies fat losers win over girls that would never give them the time of day and people talk too much about stuff that they normally would never care about, not as much dialouge as a Quinton movie thats just insane. This is of course right before Smith rushes an ending to the movie that seems like he put no thought into it and the payoff he build for you never arrives. The Last Kiss is real life, in movie, its not grandious, it sucks and people mistakes. Very thought provoking. MAkes you wonder what kind of jerk you really are.

Coming of age in America...

Reviewed by e. verrillo, 2010-02-12

It looks like 29 is the new 14. The four hapless almost-30s of this film are so mired in early adolescence it's a wonder they don't have acne: Michael (Zach Broff) feels his life is over because he's about to become a father; Kenny, the bartender, can't endure any relationship more complex than a one-night stand; Chris (Casey Affleck) walks out on his family because his wife is constantly finding fault with him (so, what else is new?); and Izzy (Michael Weston) just can't seem to get over his high school girlfriend. In short, they're putzes.

And if the guys are all putzes, the gals are completely meshuggah. Anna (Blythe Danner), whose daughter is pregnant with Michael the Putz's baby, stares into a mirror every night and complains that her husband doesn't gaze at her as if "he had to have her." (After 30 years, what's to have?) She drinks too much, is jealous of her daughter, has had an affair with Harold Ramis and is completely off her rocker. (Only a nut would give up Tom Wilkinson.)

Kim (Rachel Bilson), is a dippy college student who thinks Michael is a "great guy" and wants to sleep with him. So, what's so great about Michael? He lies to his girlfriend, deceives Kim, manipulates his friends, and has no chin. Kim throws underwear at her roommate and probably listens to System of a Down. She's obviously a couple sandwiches short of a picnic.

Chris's wife never stops yelling at him, because she's stuck with a screaming baby all day. Chris walks out, she apologizes, Chris comes back, she yells, Chris leaves again and on his way out she hands him the baby and says "see you Monday." Nuts, nuts, nuts. (I mean, what sort of woman would hand over her infant to a man who was LEAVING her??? Keep the kid, lady!!!)

The only sane character was Izzy (Michael Weston), who bursts into his ex-girlfriend's bedroom, punches out the guy she's in bed with, says he loves her, punches the guy again and then takes off for Tierra del Fuego in an RV. (That's definitely not crazy. I've done it myself.)

If you come away from this film with the impression that you've just watched a slice of life, then you are right. People really do follow the advice they read in magazines, they really do say insipid things like "I'll try harder" to their mortally wounded spouses, they are irrational, unreasonable and they can't handle the normal responsibilities of adulthood. That much is true, and the actors did a very good job of convincing me of their fallibility. The only problem is that this slice of life featured unsympathetic, two-dimensional characters I didn't enjoy watching and wouldn't want to know (except for the guy with the RV) doing incomprehensible things (except for the guy with the RV), for reasons that were unfathomable (except for ....)

mixed reviews...

Reviewed by B. Linn, 2010-01-17

There are a lot of mixed reviews about this movie. Some say it demonizes men; some say it makes all women look like shrews. Some say that if you don't 'get it' you're just too young, while others say you're just too old. I think the main problem with this movie is that people watch movies to be entertained. If I wanted to experience 'real life' I would read a newspaper or watch the news. (Don't even get me started on reality tv). People can take this movie and twist it into whatever they want it to mean for them, but in the end it's just a depressing story with badly developed characters. Watch it if you want to feel bad about life...

A little too much for immature reviewers

Reviewed by Foothills Fred, 2009-08-02

What are you, 10-years-old? Just because the characters are "all being jerks to each other," (as one reviewer stated) which clearly bothers you, is no reason to down-rate the movie. That's the point of the movie. If they weren't doing that, there would be no story. That's like not wanting to see a movie because the star gets killed or the hero doesn't meet with your standards of behavior. The worth of a movie is, (over)simply stated, if the story, actors, and other elements of a movie were good. You must have hated Romeo and Juliett because the lovers were rash enough to commit suicide. Similarly, "West Side Story." You must have to limit your movies to those that begin with "once upon a time," and end with "and they lived happily ever after." I was amazed that in so many reviews that I skimmed, many of Braff's fans didn't want him to portray a character that had serious flaws. It happens at times kiddies, that's life. If you want sugar and spice and everything nice, stick to kids' movies.

Great!

Reviewed by J. Jackson, 2009-07-06

Was in great condition when I received it and it was in excellent care. Couldnt have been any better.