I can go dark. I don't mind sadness. But, give me a reason . The metier of this film is the towering performance of Rhys Ifans as the poet Dylan Thomas. It would not be out of step to call it the entire film. The rest just window dressing. It's not that the performances are bad, it just that this movie wallows in its own obscurity. We have no reason to care about our characters, let alone it's protagonist. It's attempts at humor, it's attempt at being abstract and art house fall away. We're left with a depressing jumble of sound bytes. To it's credit, much of the monochrome photography is excellent, and gives it a period elegance. Perhaps, if you're a Thomas expert, this will already speak to you; but, if you want to know the man, this is not the place to start.
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sgmi-5357920 November 2022
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celt0072 June 2021The point of this film to me was to show an alcoholic at his worst . Leaving Las Vegas was much better at doing this .
Dylan Thomas per this movie was a mean drunk arrogant and a raging self distructive alcoholic.
Apparently he wrote some nice words people liked to listen to him read off .
I don't see him being a genius more than just having talent .
The Carlos character I suppose was his ideal self who was the voice in his head the superego .
Anyhow nicely filmed acting is great but this movie is too dark and boring to give it any entertainment points or points for story/writing .
These so called tortured souls no longer apealing in the age of marathons runners , big tech , and the current age we live in .
Depresssing bore . -
klairi_kavvada19 May 2018This movie is pure cinematographic magic.
In 1 hour and 41 minutes, Bernstein manages to reveal the multifaceted Dylan, a rather Herculean feat in and of itself!
A talented poet with rock star status who was self destructive, alcoholic, depressive, a great romantic, a bohemian, an intellectual and a true charmer. With the strength of his words he could easily charm his female audience.
Watching the movie gives the audience an insight to the director's mind; a genius, perfectionist , with self doubt, handsome and a healthy dose of humour. As a genuine master of light and "mise en scène", the movie exudes emotion that is supported by a stellar script.
The absence of colour instantly immerses the audience in the captivating world of Thomas and his depression in the 50's. A number of occasional well placed splashes of colour are very refreshing and mark the moments of happiness and true love as Thomas would like to include in his life. There are a number of theatrical and poetic elements throughout the story.
Bernstein masterfully balances the stellar performances of the six main protagonists.
An instant classic worth of multiple academy awards, it should be used as reference for film, art and psychology schools! -
l-dlessmann3 July 2020I'm a big fan of John Malkovich, love Tony Hale although I've only seen him in comedy and thought Rhys Ifans was legendary in Notting Hill so I was fascinated by the casting of Last Call but I thought that being about a revered poet it might lean towards arthousey pretentiousness especially as I knew it was partly shot in black and white. However, I found this film to be surprising and extraordinary in every way and I loved it. The script is written by the director Steven Bernstein and is beautifully poetic without being annoyingly abstract, it's also expertly directed but unique, it doesn't come together like a typical Hollywood movie, it feels unusual, and the mix of colour/black and white I interpreted as the alcoholic deliriums Thomas often inhabits lacking the colour and clarity of his more sober, vivid moments. The performances by the entire cast including Romola Garai and Zosia Mamet are outstanding; it's a pithy piece full of complicated characters all fighting to survive in Thomas's fragile narcissistic web and requires a lot of acting talent which the cast possessed in spades. Thomas at first glance is a stereotypical flawed genius but Bernstein's words and Ifans' portrayal is so complete, so somehow full of humanity whilst also being clearly monstrous that I was totally enthralled. I have some experience of loving someone who was a slave to the drink and I felt Last Call showed the desperate pain of a rabid alcoholic without making him or those who love him into victims. Last Call is about the life of one man and I'm sure Thomas would have loved it not because it is flattering but because it is art at its best; truthful and moving and really in all its aspects an homage to great film-making.
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jwalke-9617021 April 2017An effective piece of writing. It's not an easy film to understand at first, but if you comment to it, it'll make sense and you'll leave feeling satisfied.
I I had the pleasure of watching an early screening of Dominion. At first, it was difficult for me to understand where the film was leading me to. I'm often able to either predict or confirm the events that happen in the story as I'm watching them. However, in this film, there seemed to be no linear pattern I could follow. This quickly changed when I began interpreting this story being told through a dreamlike lens, in which the narrator (in this case our protagonist, Dylan Thomas) is opening his mind and his heart, so that we can directly feel and understand his humanity, while at the same time, showing us his perspective from a state of drunkenness where we see him as an unreliable narrator, and therefore, have to challenge him and what he perceives while making our own conclusions about what truly happened.
The troubling thing about the way in which Steven Bernstein has depicted this man is that we are never led to sympathize with him. That being said, it's important to recognize that this film does an excellent job of showing the complexity in Thomas' story, the great fear an artist has of his own art, and the golden cage of hell within which an addiction can trap you. Again, this film is artistic in every sense of the word, an experience that made me leave the theater having to make sense of what I had just seen, but important, because it underscores the fears and traumas we experience from the things that are supposedly fulfilling and good for us; our friends, our family, and our work.
One other note is that after the screening, Bernstein offered a Q&A discussion with fellow producer Richard Gladstein. While our discussion was first based on the content of the film, its interpretations, the impact it made on individual audience members, and the challenges of making a film ahead of its time, perhaps the most crucial point Bernstein made about art is that it surrounds itself with risk. Specifically, Bernstein confessed that this film which he loves is also the source of great worry; he worries about how people will receive the film, what his future in filmmaking looks like, how universal the story is and if it truly is relatable. I mention this because it represents an important authenticity by the filmmaker, and symbolizes an important relationship between the artist, his artwork, his subject, and his audience, necessary in order to make a powerful film. Truly, one of the most authentic films I have seen in a long time. Go watch it. -
When it comes to films based in history, Dominion is a rare gem in a sea of monotony. This dynamic film captures Dylan Thomas in a way that made it feel the viewer is actually looking in on the life of the tortured poet. The black and white cinematography invokes a feeling of being inserted into the time period, and thus the viewer becomes a part of the story and creates an interesting new perspective. This stylistic cinematography works hand in hand with the poetic-ism of the script to bring us a snapshot of the poet Dylan Thomas' life. Dominion is a film that will captivate audiences with its unique dynamic and harsh realism of the story line. Furthermore, the cast's portrayal of the characters brings a sense of realism to the viewer, and keeps them wanting more.
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unthinkableak28 May 2018My relationship with this movie is very special. Mr Bernstein visited the island of Corfu on May 2018 in order to visit the university I graduated from, Ionian University. The island was so charming that he decided to premiere his las feature film not in Athans but in Corfu. Everbody was very happy to watch the movie on the island. Then, my dear professor sent me an e-mail and told me that the movie needed to be subtitled immediately. So we decided to accept the challenge. We did the subtiling in 3 days without sleeping, eating and having to go to work every afternoon. I loved the movie so much that I could not resist. First of all, the script was magnificent. It was a pleasure to translate a high quality script that had so many intertextual references which you have to spot. All in all, the movie had its own symmetry and geometry. A movie speaking about life with all its all the joys and sorrows. A poet filled with a lust for life being exploited by everybody, all the social institutions, trying to take advantage of him, to make him feel mad and guilty because he can to bear the weight of such a cruel world. So he writes about life in a poetic way incessantly in order to find excitement.
I was staring through the cage of those meticulous ink strokes - at an absolute beauty.- Amadeus (1984)
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I had the privilege and pleasure of attending a screening of this film and I wish that I could award it more than ten (out of ten) stars. Intelligent, insightful, impactful. Complex, compelling. Sensational, stupendous, spectacular. An exceptional concept, exceptionally done. The ovations and accolades this film received at the Rio, Savannah and Arizona film festivals is an indicia of that which is to come for this award worthy work. The writing - the production - the direction - the acting - all tremendous. Steven Bernstein did what the very best do: he positioned everyone involved with this film to be the very best they could be - he positioned everyone for success - he made everyone with whom he worked better than they might otherwise have been.
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AdamDriveHome5 December 2020The cast is immaculate, with Rhys Ifans delivering an absolute knockout, Oscar worthy performance as Dylan Thomas, and the rest of the ensemble follows suit. I really enjoyed the way this film at times felt like an intimate stage play, then danced back into feeling like a large budget arthouse film all within moments. The scene with Malkovich over the surgical table was just phenomenal. A true classic in the genre.
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After I watched Last Call I was driving around my hometown and in my mind I played again and again scenes from Last Call, I heard the passion and tragic beauty of his words, and the escalating accompanying notes and I could feel the same gripping emotions. The battles we all face. The knot in my stomach that made me want to burst into tears was coming back all over again as I could understand the universal tragedy and agony of being alive on this planet, of being an awake soul. Just like his poetry. If that is not a great film, I don't know what is...
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tanya-147814 December 2020I loved it. True theater, amazing cinematography, beautiful language and an unforgettable portrayal by Rhys Ifans of Dylan Thomas.
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DawnFields30 June 2021I've seen this film several times now and it touches me more deeply every time. The 'language' of this film is deep and impressive. Sometimes a film just comes together. The right cast, the right crew, the right music, the right filmmaker. Do yourself a favor and watch it more than once for maximum impact.
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tlrboulder25 June 2021Director Steven Bernstein took a lot of risks. Many films about artists are corny or pretentious. Poets are even harder subjects. With the brilliant Dylan Thomas, there's also a trunk full of cliches. But Bernstein, who also scripted the film, and his amazing cast instead deliver a shattering and moving portrait of the Welsh poet, one that honors his language and heart while never shying away from his faults. Rhys Ifans perfectly incarnates the brillant and troubled Welsh poet, joined by a stellar cast including John Malkovich and Zosia Mamet. You learn a lot about Thomas - the beauty of his language and his mind, as well as the ugly side of his life outside of his craft and sullen art. Caitlin Thomas (Romola Garai) receives her due, with a complex and richly written role that grants her agency and independence. The cinematography, nearly all in luscious black and white, beautifully enriches the emotional life of the film. Last Call is an art film in every sense and a gift for lovers of poetry and fine cinema.
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leahsettipane11 December 2020This movie is filled with amazing actors, and is written and filmed in the most artistic manner.
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lizbenrey29 June 2021This film is mesmerizing. Brilliant director, extraordinary acting, beautifully shot and written, impressive score.
Poetical, emotive, honest and passionate. Genuinely a work of art! -
dkieras5 December 2020Enjoyed this film about Dylan, fine acting and artsy type colorization! Subject matter may not be for everyone but everyone can also learn something from this film about any addictions you may have . Even our so called heros and mentors suffer just like us, but we need not succumb to them , there is always a choice. Worth a watch!
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I approached this one with trepidation. The biopics of poets more often than not sink in self-satisfied navel gazing.
Not this one.
Every scene somehow rings true. Rhys Ifans is a revelation as Thomas.
Ideal late night whiskey movie.