Last Night

Last Nightwas released in 2010 and directed by Massy Tadjedin. At the time I wanted to see it but by the time I got around to it, it was not showing in theaters anymore. Finally I rented the DVD and spent about one and a half hours watching Keira Knightley, Guillaume Canet (Joyeux Noël) , Sam Worthington and Eva Mendes.

Jo (Knightley) and Michael (Worthington) have been married for a few years and after one party Jo gets jealous about Michael’s sexy work colleague Laura (Mendes). The following day, Michael goes away on a business trip with Laura, while Laura finds herself embarked on a long night out with ex-boyfriend Alex (Canet), who’s just showed up in New York.

We follow the two “couples” on this long night, simultaneously. Will they, or will they not succumb to the attraction? Storyline is pretty simple, but asks some important questions about relationships, faithfulness, what makes / breaks a couple, etc…

First things first, the selection of city, music, settings and actor (with a small reserve on Worthington, whom I found expressionless and boring) is excellent. However, I found the pace slow, and I only made it to the end because the film is quite short. At some point it became tiresome to alternate between the two different settings.

The main couple deals with their respective temptations and we are left wondering who actually cheated: is pure physical attraction (Laura / Michael) better or worse than a true connection of the souls (Joanna / Alex)? There is the question of giving in to the attraction or not, being able to resist it or not – in the end, even though he has the “bad guy” role, Michael is actually more true to himself than Joanna, who tempts fate many times during that night (one might call it "playing with fire"), even teasing Alex to a point of what I’d call cruelty.

Truman: Do you think you'll tell your husband about tonight?

Joanna: I don't know, tonight's not over yet.

Joanna: What I wouldn't have given to have tired of you.

It is also about the key to a successful, lasting, relationship: Alex and Joanna only had brief moments together in the past, and did not get the chance to get into the usual couples routine, getting tired of each other, arguing, having to make efforts to make the relationship work. In the movie, they seem to regret it, or feel they did not have enough time. Personally I was rooting for Alex (Canet, pure eye candy, seriously, he was so hot in this film) because of the clear chemistry and passion, but I’d bet without hesitation that, a few years down the road, they’d end up exactly where Jo and Michael are after a few years together. The end of the movie leaves many questions unanswered and we can’t help but wonder what happens next. As in real life, probably nothing? Each one knows something happened, but they’ll continue as if nothing happened and go on? Likely. But the film ends, with no warning, many questions unanswered and up to the viewer to draw his / her own conclusions. I am not sure whether this is brilliant or crazy.