The Last Word (2017)

I smiled, laughed, danced, cried, got some lessons for life and felt inspired. What more could I ask for? Shirley MacLaine is gorgeous as ever, Amanda Seyfried is cute as ever, the young lady (sorry I don't remember that name atm) is the topping. Good acting, good script and the music/soundtrack is outstanding. I felt extremly good entertained. If you love Shirley MacLaine like I do, this is a must. I can absolutely recommend it.

Thought the script and direction REALLY uneven. Mildly interesting for first 15 minutes or so, then I was jazzed that MacLaine rallied and decided to do something. ***SPOILERS*** Best part of the movie was the reporter's evolution from defensive, abandoned little girl to outward/forward-looking woman (indeed I cried at the end, moved by the fact that MacLaine, bitch or not, challenged the young woman to stop pitying herself and get on with it, LIVE, take risks). I liked how the male characters (ex-hubby and ex-employee) regarded MacLaine, with kindness and understanding (indeed, there were many perceptive, compassionate, thoughtful men in the story- the owner of the radio station, the newspaper editor, Anne's father too). I love Philip Baker Hall and he shone as usual in a small role as MacLaine's ex-husband.I read scads of reviews after watching and pretty much agree with them ALL, good and bad (so rarely the case)! Yes, the young black actress, AnnJewel Lee Dixon, had personality galore, a star in the making, but her character was stereotypical, paper-thin and undeveloped. Yes, though I ADORE Shirley MacLaine (since I saw her in The Apartment years ago), I thought she phoned it in, playing the same character as in Steel Magnolias, Terms of Endearment, etc. Many plot points were predictable and ridiculous- the road trip, the dip in the river, the singing and dancing around- PLEASE. Others were preposterous- Shirley becoming a DJ? The vandalism of her former company with no apparent repercussions later? The use of the F-word didn't matter to me one way or the other, but it was inconsistent that MacLaine should discourage its use then act like it's no big deal when used later.I liked the message that we can learn something from difficult people. Harriet wasn't a nice, sympathetic person; she had high standards and expected others to do their best, as she'd always done- and challenged them to do so. She was unnecessarily rude, though, to most. I thought Amanda Seyfried was TERRIFIC. In less able hands that problematic character could have been a hot mess. Indeed, I would say that the film succeeding a much as it does is thanks to her. As a Trekkie I was delighted to see Dr. Phlox from Star Trek Enterprise (John Billingsley) playing the vicar at the funeral.Overall I thought The Last Word, despite its flaws, was meaningful, interesting, and worth watching. Provocative, thought-provoking, about the kind of person you opt to be throughout life and into old age, and what your legacy will be. And while I wasn't tremendously affected during the course of the film, I WAS absorbed, and for me the ending was the payoff- it packed a powerful emotional wallop I won't forget it any time soon.

This is just the kind of film that my grandparents would enjoy EXCEPT for the language. I should have counted the number of f-bombs.Shirley MacLaine and Amanda Seyfriend were both great and the story was touching and funny. If not for the language I would recommend this much more. It's a shame.

An elderly business woman hires a young newspaper woman to write her obituary on her terms. Her forthright personality has left her with few friends in life and poor family relations, she is forced to change her ways belatedly to try and leave a better legacy.Firstly, it does have to be admitted that this film is extremely predictable and it's not very difficult more or less working out the plot-line from the word go. As far as the story goes, there aren't any surprises to be found here it has to be said. But, despite this over-familiarity, the film still works and that is a testament to the acting, primarily from Shirley MacLaine who puts in a strong, spiky performance which I would not be at all surprised if it garnered an Oscar nomination next year. She is loads of fun to watch and is supported well by Amanda Seyfried as the young journalist and AnneJewel Lee Dixon as the little kid she takes a shine to. It's essentially a comedy-drama and mixes the dramatics with the humour pretty well. It also has to be said that it isn't so common to have a movie focus on the latter years of the elderly, which it has to be commended for doing. So, there is that more unusual angle interwoven into the otherwise highly standard plot structure. Essentially, over familiarity aside, this is a very entertaining movie which has a great Shirley MacLaine performance topping it off.