''The Last Word'' is a 2017 American

comedy-drama film Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

directed by

Mark Pellington Mark Pellington (born March 17, 1962) is an American film director, writer, and producer. Life and career Pellington was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Bill Pellington, an All-Pro linebacker who played football with the Baltimore Colts ...

, from a screenplay by Stuart Ross Fink. It stars

Amanda Seyfried Amanda Michelle Seyfried ( ; born December 3, 1985) is an American actress. Born and raised in Allentown, Pennsylvania, she began modeling at age 11 and ventured into acting at 15, with recurring roles as Lucy Montgomery on the CBS soap opera ...

and

Shirley MacLaine Shirley MacLaine (born Shirley MacLean Beaty, April 24, 1934) is an American actress, author, and former dancer. Known for her portrayals of quirky, strong-willed and eccentric women, MacLaine has received numerous accolades over her seven-dec ...

. ''The Last Word'' premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2017. It was released on March 3, 2017, by

Bleecker Street Bleecker Street is an east–west street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is most famous today as a Greenwich Village nightclub district. The street connects a neighborhood today popular for music venues and comedy, but which ...

Synopsis

A retired businesswoman wants to control everything around her, knowing that she only has a little time left before an imminent death due to a medical condition. She decides to craft her own obituary, so she hires a young obituary writer to work with her to ensure her life story is told her way. The businesswoman tries to expand the horizons of her life, and adopts a young kid for mentoring and lands herself a job as a disc jockey. She grows close with the young writer and influences her life.

Cast

as Harriett Lauler *

as Anne Sherman * AnnJewel Lee Dixon as Brenda *

Anne Heche Anne Celeste Heche ( ; May 25, 1969August 11, 2022) was an American actress, known for her roles in a variety of genres in film, television, and theater, receiving numerous accolades, including a National Board of Review Award and multiple Emmy ...

as Elizabeth * Tom Everett Scott as Ronald Odom *

Thomas Sadoski Thomas Christian Sadoski (born July 1, 1976) is an American stage, film, and television actor. He is best known for his roles as Don Keefer in the HBO series '' The Newsroom'' and as Matt Short in the sitcom television series ''Life in Pieces''. ...

as Robin Sands *

Joel Murray Joel Murray (born April 17, 1963) is an American comedy actor. He is well known for his roles in the television series '' Mad Men'', ''Grand'', '' Love & War'', ''Dharma & Greg'', '' Still Standing'', and '' Shameless''. He has also appeared in ...

as Joe Mueller *

Adina Porter Adina Elizabeth Porter is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Lettie Mae Thornton on the HBO fantasy horror series ''True Blood'' (2008–2014), Kendra James on the HBO drama series '' The Newsroom'' (2012–2014), and Indra ...

as Bree Wilson *

Philip Baker Hall Philip Baker Hall (September 10, 1931 – June 12, 2022) was an American character actor. Hall is known for his collaborations with Paul Thomas Anderson, including '' Hard Eight'' (1996), '' Boogie Nights'' (1997) and ''Magnolia'' (1999). He al ...

as Edward * Sarah Baker as Zoe *

Steven Culp Steven Bradford Culp (born December 3, 1955) is an American actor. Culp appeared in films '' Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday'' (1993), ''James and the Giant Peach'' (1996), ''The Emperor's Club'' (2002), and most notably in the 2000 politica ...

as Sam Serman *

Basil Hoffman Basil Harry Hoffman (January 18, 1938 – September 17, 2021) was an American actor with a film and television career spanning five decades, mostly in supporting roles. He starred in films with many award-winning directors, including Alan Pakul ...

as Christopher George *

Todd Louiso Todd Louiso (born January 27, 1970) is an American film actor and film director best known for his role as timid record store clerk Dick in '' High Fidelity'', opposite Jack Black and John Cusack. Career Louiso directed his first film in 2002, ...

as Dr. Morgan

Production

In September 2015, it was announced that

and

would star in the film, with

directing from a screenplay by Stuart Ross Fink, while Myriad Pictures would handle sales and finance the film. In February 2016,

, and Tom Everett Scott joined the cast of the film. Nathan Matthew David composed the film's score.

Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as ...

began on February 3, 2016. and concluded on March 11, 2016.

Release

In November 2015,

acquired U.S distribution rights to the film. The film had its world premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2017. It was released on March 3, 2017. On its first weekend, the film grossed $35,000 from four theaters in New York and Los Angeles.

Critical reception

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

, the film has an approval of 40% based on 95 reviews, with an average rating of 4.9/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "''The Last Word'' proves Shirley MacLaine remains a wonderfully magnetic screen presence -- and deserving of a far better vehicle for her considerable talents." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, the film has a score of 40 out of 100, based on 21 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Last Word, The 2017 films American comedy-drama films American independent films 2017 independent films Bleecker Street films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films