Wow! Such a good movie.

Truly Dreadful Film

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

The people in this movie are clueless narcissists, very well portrayed. I know people like this, limousine liberals, and this is perfectly spot on. And then the portrayal of their humanity gradually shining through the fog of pretension infects every character and makes for a great movie experience. Patricia Clarkson is once again fabulous in a lead role, and the others play off of her nicely. The pretty scenery doesn't hurt, and the director makes full use of the stunning light show that the California/Nevada mountains provides. I question some of the devices that went nowhere, like the screenplay and the Indian museum. They are not used as devices so much as character filler, most of which is not necessary for our understanding of the characters, but which also doesn't get too much in the way.I have liked Mays in other things she's done, but I thought she was a bit miscast for the role she was asked to play. I thought the story could have done more with the Nora-Sean couple other than just fill up the house and provide background. Overall though, I really liked the way this movie was put together. It does a very good job of showing how insular this world can be and how people who want for nothing will manufacture their own problems just by calling them problems. Misery rises to the level of comfort. All this without veering off into melodrama. Highly recommended.

Drab, boring, pointless, and ever so long (and it's only 93 minutes). Did they not give Patricia Richardson a script before the shoot? This is a movie about a family and some friends gathering together over a holiday weekend at the family "cabin" in Lake Tahoe. There seems, however, to be no plot--or if there is one, it is disjointed, lumbering, and completely inane. Dialogue doesn't appear to be prepared in advance and is s...l...o...w. Character interactions have no focus. There are no cohesive conversations -- every word begets conflict. If they are trying to irritate us into oblivion, then this movie is a success. Otherwise, it is anything but.

Last Weekend is a poignant and moving meditation of family, loss, and change. Patricia Clarkson leads a magnificent ensemble with her raw performance. She is a brilliant actress, but gets far too few leading roles. Here, she is the heart of the film as a mother confronting the passage of time, and the rest of the cast match her nuanced intensity brilliantly, with especially great turns by up-and-comers Zachary Booth, Joseph Cross, and Devon Graye. The film's directors maintain a tone of quiet longing throughout, and the film is beautiful to look at (Lake Tahoe has never looked better), but look beneath its shimmering surface and you will find a compassionate look at the difficult bonds of family. Stunning.

I apologize for this review but this movie left me flat. "Last Weekend" is about a Labor Day weekend with a rich family at their Tahoe summer home. There's mom, dad, two grown sons, their significant others, and perhaps three more house guests thrown in. They're all staying in the fabulous family home on the shore of pristine Lake Tahoe. The movie's a slice of life from this wealthy family's songbook. Like most families, there's a familial core slathered with dysfunction. There are always things that family members don't like about their parents and siblings. I just had a hard time finding a single sympathetic character in the entire ensemble, which is a shame because this is a cast of very capable actors. I just didn't find the story to be up to their abilities.If you want to know whether rich people have the same problems as everyone else, this movie's answer is "no." They show little appreciation for the spectacular lake, the surroundings, each other, or the impressive summer home. I couldn't find anything to engage my interest or my sympathy. This movie reduced me to simple observer. At the end of the film, I don't think any of the characters were significantly changed. Perhaps that's what happens in real life, but it's not what I look for in a movie.We saw this movie through the San Jose Camera Cinema Club. It was the last film of the club's 2013/2014 season. We look forward to the next one.