The Last Supper (1995) - 76%
It’s 1909 in Austria, and you meet a young artist named Adolf. Even though he has done nothing wrong yet - hasn’t formed any Reichs, hasn’t killed anyone - would you kill him? What if it’s nothing quite so bad as Hitler, but perhaps this person is just a bigot; just somebody with abhorrant views based on hatred and fear. If you knew the world would be a better place without them, would you kill this person? This is the moral quandry, and its impact on a quintet of post-graduate liberals, underpinning this absolute gem of a black comedy. For a fairly obscure film there’s a decent cast, including a pre-megastardom Cameron Diaz, Jason Alexander, Hellboy’s Ron Perlman, and, ok so not an all-star cast as such but if you’re the type who needs a familiar face then you might spot one or two.
There is an appealing sense of unease and quirky abandon with this film. Although I suppose that’s sympotamic, not to say indicative, of black comedies as a genre; and comedies rarely get much blacker than The Last Supper. The moral quandry outlined earlier is of course anything but clear cut; and if you’re willing to kill to prevent genocide, then what about homicide, about assault, about prejudice? What are you morally allowed to do when somebody simply disagrees with your views? The lines are very blurry, and once you’re in, what will it take to stop?
Good dialogue throughout, and although not directorially flawless there are some very distinct and effective interstitials, which create a sense of aural disquietude (I can be such a pretentious wanker sometimes).
Also, Courtney B. Vance is one cold motherfucker.
76%
