HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''The Last Time I Committed Suicide'' is a 1997 American drama film directed by Stephen T. Kay. Based on a 1950 letter written by
Neal Cassady Neal Leon Cassady (February 8, 1926 – February 4, 1968) was a major figure of the Beat Generation of the 1950s and the psychedelic and counterculture movements of the 1960s. He was prominently featured as himself in the "scroll" (first d ...
to
Jack Kerouac Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Of French-Canadian a ...
, it stars
Thomas Jane Thomas Jane (born Thomas Elliott III; February 22, 1969) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in the films Padamati Sandhya Ragam (1987), ''Boogie Nights'' (1997), ''Deep Blue Sea (1999 film), Deep Blue Sea'' (1999), ''The Punisher ...
as Cassady. The cast also includes
Keanu Reeves Keanu Charles Reeves ( ; born September 2, 1964) is a Canadian actor. Born in Beirut and raised in Toronto, Reeves began acting in theatre productions and in television films before making his feature film debut in '' Youngblood'' (1986). ...
,
Adrien Brody Adrien Nicholas Brody (born April 14, 1973) is an American actor. He received widespread recognition and acclaim after starring as Władysław Szpilman in Roman Polanski's '' The Pianist'' (2002), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Acto ...
,
Gretchen Mol Gretchen Mol (born November 8, 1972) is an American actress and former model. She is known for her role as Gillian Darmody in the HBO series '' Boardwalk Empire'' (2010–2014). She also appeared in the films ''Rounders'' (1998), ''Celebrity'' ...
and Claire Forlani. It received a limited release on June 20, 1997. The action of the letter took place in 1946, when Cassady was 20.


Plot

Told from Neal Cassady's (
Thomas Jane Thomas Jane (born Thomas Elliott III; February 22, 1969) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in the films Padamati Sandhya Ragam (1987), ''Boogie Nights'' (1997), ''Deep Blue Sea (1999 film), Deep Blue Sea'' (1999), ''The Punisher ...
) perspective, in a form of a letter, the film follows his life before and after the suicide attempt by his longtime lover, Joan ( Claire Forlani). Demonstrating Neal's active mind and ever-changing thoughts, the film jumps back and forth between before and after the attempt. The story begins the day of Joan's
suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...
attempt, with Neal sitting in the hall outside Joan's hospital room. The story then jumps to the day before the suicide attempt, where a rain-soaked Neal whisks Joan away from her job. They have an intimate night together. After, she sits on the bed, sad, but Neal keeps professing his love to her. The scene returns to the hospital room, silence between them. Neal is told he has to leave. The story moves ahead, with Ben (
Adrien Brody Adrien Nicholas Brody (born April 14, 1973) is an American actor. He received widespread recognition and acclaim after starring as Władysław Szpilman in Roman Polanski's '' The Pianist'' (2002), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Acto ...
) visiting Neal. He asks Neal if he has been back to the hospital to which Neal replies no. It cuts ahead to Neal wide awake, drinking coffee and eating bread with Ben. In a manic state, Neal tells Ben about the story he wants to write. Neal encounters his friend Harry (
Keanu Reeves Keanu Charles Reeves ( ; born September 2, 1964) is a Canadian actor. Born in Beirut and raised in Toronto, Reeves began acting in theatre productions and in television films before making his feature film debut in '' Youngblood'' (1986). ...
), who suggests the two of them pick up some girls and take them out on a road trip in a stolen car. They all drive out into the country, flying down the roads. Later, at Neal's job at a tire plant, Neal's friend Jerry finds Neal obviously high, and saves him from getting in trouble. Eventually, Neal makes amends with Joan, and decides to settle down with her. On his way to pick up a suit for a job interview, he runs into a drunk Harry, who asks him to come in for a beer. Neal ends up drunk, and Harry convinces him to call Mary (
Gretchen Mol Gretchen Mol (born November 8, 1972) is an American actress and former model. She is known for her role as Gillian Darmody in the HBO series '' Boardwalk Empire'' (2010–2014). She also appeared in the films ''Rounders'' (1998), ''Celebrity'' ...
), his teenaged ex-girlfriend. When Mary sneaks out of her house, her mother calls the police, who arrest Neal just as he is about to leave. He is allowed to make a phone call, but he doesn't know Joan's phone number. When Mary refuses to testify against Neal, the charges are dropped. The police nevertheless hold him on the false premise of suspicion of burglary. After spending two weeks in jail, Neal is released. He goes to Joan's house, but finds it empty; he waits, but eventually it is obvious she isn't coming back. He walks back down the porch, steals a car, and disappears. Neal finishes writing the letter and places it in an envelope. Walking away, he throws the pages of his novel into the air, paper flying and landing everywhere.


Cast

*
Thomas Jane Thomas Jane (born Thomas Elliott III; February 22, 1969) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in the films Padamati Sandhya Ragam (1987), ''Boogie Nights'' (1997), ''Deep Blue Sea (1999 film), Deep Blue Sea'' (1999), ''The Punisher ...
as Neal Cassady * Claire Forlani as Joan *
Adrien Brody Adrien Nicholas Brody (born April 14, 1973) is an American actor. He received widespread recognition and acclaim after starring as Władysław Szpilman in Roman Polanski's '' The Pianist'' (2002), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Acto ...
as Ben *
Keanu Reeves Keanu Charles Reeves ( ; born September 2, 1964) is a Canadian actor. Born in Beirut and raised in Toronto, Reeves began acting in theatre productions and in television films before making his feature film debut in '' Youngblood'' (1986). ...
as Harry *
Gretchen Mol Gretchen Mol (born November 8, 1972) is an American actress and former model. She is known for her role as Gillian Darmody in the HBO series '' Boardwalk Empire'' (2010–2014). She also appeared in the films ''Rounders'' (1998), ''Celebrity'' ...
as Mary


Production

In a June 1997 interview with '' E!'', Keanu Reeves recalled "I knew
Stephen Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...
. He had written this script about Neal Cassady. I told him I dug it. 'I dug it, brother'—one of the most fun things about the piece was calling everybody 'brother.' I love that fraternity. 'Hey, brother.' 'Hey, brother, man.'—and a couple of months down the road, Stephen asked if I was interested in playing Harry." He also revealed he was a fan of Cassady and other
Beat Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery (c ...
writers as a teenager, reflecting that "To me, these writers represented the epic language they used invoking the Greek and Roman gods. That
Bacchus In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...
and
Dionysian The Apollonian and the Dionysian are philosophical and literary concepts represented by a duality between the figures of Apollo and Dionysus from Greek mythology. Its popularization is widely attributed to the work ''The Birth of Tragedy'' by Fri ...
aspect resonated with me, and I used that to try and read my life and break out of myself, search for new sensations--living the moment, staying up late, traveling, experiencing." To better suit the role of Harry, Reeves allowed his weight to balloon out to 200 pounds. However, he had already gained a substantial amount of weight prior to accepting the role; this was due to a back injury he sustained in a game of hockey during the lead up to the filming of 1996's ''
Chain Reaction A chain reaction is a sequence of reactions where a reactive product or by-product causes additional reactions to take place. In a chain reaction, positive feedback leads to a self-amplifying chain of events. Chain reactions are one way that syst ...
''. Reeves appeared at his normal weight in '' Feeling Minnesota''—released in September 1996 between ''Chain Reaction'' (August 1996) and ''The Last Time I Committed Suicide'' (June 1997)—since it was filmed prior to ''Chain Reaction'' and the hockey injury.


Release

After screening at the 1997 edition of the Sundance Festival in
Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
, ''The Last Time I Committed Suicide'' was picked up by indie distributor Roxie Releasing. Their strategy for the film was to give it a platform release. Producer Peter Locke stated in early 1997 that "this is a film that appeals to a select niche and will be review-driven." The film would end up making only $46,362 against a budget of $4 million, following its release on June 20, 1997. It was intended to be released earlier in June, but was pushed to later in the month, as to avoid competition with ''
Con Air ''Con Air'' is a 1997 American action thriller film directed by Simon West and starring Nicolas Cage, John Cusack and John Malkovich. Written by Scott Rosenberg and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, the film centers on a prison break aboard a J ...
'' and '' Speed 2: Cruise Control''. A month prior to the release, director Stephen Kay commented in an interview that "the film was going to be released June 6, the day the potential blockbusters ''Con Air'' and ''Speed 2'' are opening. I said, 'Do it! We'll just run an ad campaign that says, "The movie that Keanu Reeves did instead of ''Speed 2!''"' But the distributors panicked...They decided the big monsters would gobble us up and backed off." Reeves at the time criticized the summer release date. He remarked "I think they've really picked a good time to bring this out--in the summer against '' Batman & Robin''. aughs.Stephen Kay and I both feel it should have come out in the fall, that it's a real fall picture. Know what I mean? It's 50 degrees in New York, you want to go see a picture. ''The Last Time I Committed Suicide'', Neal Cassady...why not?." The film was subsequently released onto home media, and in its true aspect ratio, having originally been matted for theaters during 1997. On September 13, 2005, it was re-released onto DVD by
Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a ...
. The rights to the film are currently held by Multicom Entertainment, who purchased the library of producer Kushner-Locke in 2013. Multicom have since released it to streaming service
Amazon Prime Amazon Prime is a paid subscription service from Amazon which is available in various countries and gives users access to additional services otherwise unavailable or available at a premium to other Amazon customers. Services include same, one- ...
. On July 6, 2021, it will be released to blu-ray for the first time by
MVD Entertainment Group MVD Entertainment Group, (previously Music Video Distributors, Inc.) is an American production company and film distributor based in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, consisting of three main departments MVD Visual, MVD Audio, and MVD Distribution. Th ...
.


Reception

''The Last Time I Committed Suicide'' received mixed to positive reviews upon its release. In a review published on June 20, 1997,
Stephen Holden Stephen Holden (born July 18, 1941) is an American writer, poet, and music and film critic. Biography Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963. He worked as a photo editor, staff writer, and eventually be ...
of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' praised the film's cinematography, writing, "Almost every shot is drenched in rich period detail so acute it has a surreal edge. When Cassady visits an office where one of his girlfriends works as a typist, the place is a hushed dimly lit cathedral to
capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for Profit (economics), profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, pric ...
in which elaborately coiffed secretaries sit in rigid formation behind giant manual typewriters. Later, when Cassady and some friends steal a bright red convertible for a joy ride, the image of the cherry-red car jouncing through a field with snowcapped mountains in the background has the nostalgic tug of a ''
Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely c ...
'' cover illustration." ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' remarked that the film "works well as an evocation of the youthful unrest that would soon find cogent subcultural expression." A critical review came from
CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
's Paul Tatara, who states that the film's style "gives you a major headache." He also criticized Reeves' performance, stating that the actor is "void of talent" and "reciting his lines as if they're non-related words strung together as a memory exercise." Tatara concluded by pointing out that "The degrading treatment of the women in the film is its most offensive element." Kevin Thomas from the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' had a more positive view on Reeves' role in the film, writing that it "leaves you with a feeling of real respect for Reeves for showing up in this modestly budgeted film instead of ''Speed 2''." However, he characterized Thomas Jane's portrayal of Cassady as "not all that distinctive", claiming that "we wouldn't have much reason to be watching this young man if his name weren't Neal Cassady." On a June 28, 1997 episode of ''
Siskel and Ebert Gene Siskel (January 26, 1946 – February 20, 1999) and Roger Ebert (June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013), collectively known as Siskel & Ebert, were American film critics known for their partnership on television lasting from 1975 to Siskel's dea ...
'', ''The Last Time I Committed Suicide'' received a thumbs up from
Gene Siskel Eugene Kal Siskel (January 26, 1946 – February 20, 1999) was an American film critic and journalist for the ''Chicago Tribune''. Along with colleague Roger Ebert, he hosted a series of movie review programs on television from 1975 until his d ...
and a thumbs down from
Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...
. Ebert stated that beat writer
Lawrence Ferlinghetti Lawrence Monsanto Ferlinghetti (March 24, 1919 – February 22, 2021) was an American poet, painter, social activist, and co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers. The author of poetry, translations, fiction, theatre, art criticism, an ...
, still alive, would have laughed at it. Three weeks later, Ferlinghetti responded to the program in a letter, in which he criticized the film for its "clean cut" portrayal of Cassady. In a retrospective review,
Levi Asher Levi Asher (or ''Marc Eliot Stein''; 18 November 1961 in Queens, New York) is a New York-based writer, blogger and web developer responsible for Literary Kicks, one of the earliest popular literary websites and now the oldest continuously-runni ...
of ''
Literary Kicks Literary Kicks is a website that functions as a digital library of poetry and prose, biography and cultural criticism chiefly focused on Beat Generation writers. Founded in 1994 by Levi Asher, the site has since expanded to cover a wider range of ...
'' wrote, "As the world was waiting for
Francis Ford Coppola Francis Ford Coppola (; ; born April 7, 1939) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the major figures of the New Hollywood filmmaking movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Coppola is the recipient of five A ...
to get busy filming his much-hyped and still-unmade version of ''
On the Road ''On the Road'' is a 1957 novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, based on the travels of Kerouac and his friends across the United States. It is considered a defining work of the postwar Beat and Counterculture generations, with its protagonis ...
'', an unknown writer/director named Stephen Kay was quietly working on his own movie about the Neal Cassady legend. The most notable thing about it is probably the slick editing, which makes creative use of black-and-white, color, stop motion, etc., all blended into an easy-going, fast-moving, almost
MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
-like whole. This film will not tax your brain."


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Last Time I Committed Suicide, The 1997 films 1997 directorial debut films 1997 drama films 1997 independent films American independent films American nonlinear narrative films Films set in 1946 Films about suicide Films about the Beat Generation Films scored by Tyler Bates Films shot in Utah The Kushner-Locke Company films 1990s English-language films Films directed by Stephen Kay 1990s American films