The Last (2019)

The Last: Directed by Jeff Lipsky. With Rebecca Schull, Jill Durso, AJ Cedeno, Reed Birney. The survivors of four generations of a Jewish family are rocked to their core when the family’s 92-year-old matriarch makes a stunning confession.

“This is quite an original film, actually a film of ideas. A lot of talking goes on, seemingly as a vehicle both to deliver information and then to discuss it and share views. The topics are mainly religion, specifically Judaism, Catholicism, and belief (or not) in god. Another topic is death, including euthanasia, and another is the Holocaust.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eUnfortunately, during lengthy soliloquies, nothing much happens other than the camera focusing on the face of whomever is either talking or listening. The best of these u0026quot;speechesu0026quot; was the longest one, by the character Claire, the great grandmother who turns out to be a Nazi. Actually, one thing I found fascinating was how as she narrated her story to her great grandchildren (who are young adults), and to me, the viewer, she was transformed. From an intelligent and somewhat artsy grandmotherly type, she became a German Nazi who even after seventy years embodies the hideous character of the Nazi mentality. The other characters having to deal with their feelings caused by the duplicity of Claire, along with the implications of her going from being a Jew to a Christian (and Nazi!) becomes the theme of the film.”