Le dernier invité

"The Last Supper" has a lot going for it. It makes fun of both ultra-right-wingers and of self-righteous left-wingers. Like "The Sixth Sense", it uses the color red to carefully dye the house of the roommates until it appears to be dripping in blood. It shows the corruption of the mind which will inevitably occur as a result of murder, and it displays the old saw about how the road to Hell is paved in good intentions.

Problem? The acting is pretty dry. None of the roommates are remotely likable, and their inevitable comeuppance loses some of its punch as a result. All of the characters, both the executioners and their prey, are excessively one-sided and flat, and no one is making the slightest effort to give any of their characters depth. The result makes the film a bit hard to sit through.

Never let it be said that only the British can do political satire. Here we see five (liberally-minded) housemates start poisoning all those who they believe will cause more harm than good in life.

Hardly a topic for comedy you might think, but then what you get is the blackest of black humour imaginable. However, it's not just darkly comic, but it also poses quite a few questions about morality along the way. You'll find yourself agreeing with both sides' points of view at some stage I'm sure.

Plus, all the performances are equally strong - Cameron Diaz in a most 'un-Cameron Diaz-like' role, but it's Ron Perlman and Bill Paxton who probably steal their respective scenes.

If you're looking for a laugh-a-minute comedy with a feel-good vibe to it, then steer clear. However, if you're after something much nastier which will make you think, while even raising the odd smile, then give this a go.

I just read through 48 comments and I think nobody mentioned "Arsenic and Old Lace," which is an obvious source for the idea of quizzing guests and, as a good deed, giving wine with arsenic to those who'd be better off dead.

Here the story is set against a familiar political divide, and as the murders (and cameos) follow one another, the criteria for getting killed become distressingly looser until the audience becomes impatient for the inevitable retribution.

All this exposition of criteria takes considerable time, and evidently character development needed to be sacrificed. I'm sure that in creating a large group of murderers who all share a house, the creators had something in mind (other than "Friends") and we get the impression of an attempt at characterization but it doesn't jell. The movie would have been better off with just one couple in on the plot; that's all Shakespeare needed for Macbeth.

This is a wicked black political satire of some left-wing intellectuals who decide to strike against right-wing "extremists". It has an excellent cast, especially with Courtney B Vance, Ron Perlman, and Cameron Diaz (who is a real surprise).

It also has a brilliantly witty script, like a 90s Oscar Wilde or George B Shaw with more sharper bite. I thought the setup and the climax were particularly effective, especially at handling complex political questions with an easy-to watch and a very engaging approach(which I have to say IMHO is rare for American movies). A totally professional production all round. This is the way smart independent films should be, and it's a shame not all of them are this clever or perceptive.

Obviously not meant for all tastes, but if you're fairly open-minded and like intelligent dark satire, this is a real treat.

A bunch of liberal grad students (played by then unknown Cameron Diaz, Ron Eldard, Annabeth Gish, Jonathan Penner and Coutney B. Vance) accidentally kill, at dinner in their house, a seriously deranged conservative (Bill Paxton) and bury the body. They figure they did the world a favor and invite ultra conservatives to their house, poison them and bury the bodies in the back yard. Among the victims (in cameos) are Charles Durning, Mark Harmon and Jason Alexander. Nora Dunn plays a policewoman investigating all the disappearances.

DARK dark black comedy but it's well-done. The script is sharp and witty and insults BOTH conservatives and liberals. With the sole exception of Vance (who's horrible) the acting is good and we see hunky Penner with his shirt off and walking around in his underwear. Well-directed too with a good eye to compositions and color. Great music score too. If you examine the plot closely there are loopholes and lapses in logic (like they bury about 10 people in their backyard and the neighbors never notice?) but still this is funny and makes you think. Ignored at the time of its release this made a little splash on VHS and deserves to be rediscovered.