Last Call

I found Last Call: The Final Chapter of F. Scott Fitzgerald at one of the local video stores and watched it last night. I loved Neve Campbell, and I now think Jeremy Irons stands alone in playing odd (sometimes very odd) characters. This performance should be set alongside his better known ones in Reversal of Fortune, Dead Ringers, Damage, etc. As for his American accent--well, let's just draw the curtain of charity before that scene, if only because his natural speaking voice is so cool.

Last Call isn't a great movie. It's about an alcoholic trying to write a novel, so the opportunities for visual fireworks are limited. That's probably why writer/director Henry Bromell added some scenes with Zelda Fitzgerald (Sissy Spacek) as an apparition haunting Scott in his more deranged moments. The ghost story angle didn't work for me, but there are several worthy scenes with Campbell and Irons--tender, awkward, frequently funny. Watching Scott apologize to Frances after his drunken misbehavior is especially rich.

When I say I loved Neve Campbell, I mean I admired her performance, felt deeply for her character, and developed a rare crush on her by the time the movie was over.