Last Orders

Graham Swift's brilliant novel serves as the basis of this film, adapted and directed by Fred Schipisi, who gathered some of the best English talent to give life to the characters of the novel in a satisfying film that will... Full review

It's funny to read the reviews of those who haven't understood this perfectly balanced film - but then it is clever and subtle and, apart from being sad and touching is extremely funny.I've seldom seen characters, situations, attitudes and emotions... Full review

In London, in a pub, the friends Vic Tucker (Tom Courtney), owner of a funerary agency, the former boxer Lenny (David Hemmings) and the gambler Ray Johnson (Bob Hoskins) gathers with Vince Dodds (Ray Winstone), the owner of a `showroom',... Full review

A group of pub-buddies in London carry out the will and last testament wishes of one of their dear drinking buddies.Its a pilgrimage of sorts to places they hadn't seen for years,taking them into past recesses of their minds they hadn't... Full review

This is a wonderfully warm and human film, perhaps a "guy's movie" as opposed to the many "girls' movies." How can you miss with such a great cast? Helen Mirren. Bob Hoskins. Michael Caine. They do a wonderful job on... Full review

Upon reaching a certain age, especially when a proper catalyst is provided, one may become wont to consider and reflect upon the life one has lived-- to take stock, as it were. And, without question, the death of a long-time,... Full review

This is acting of the very highest order by a British dream cast. The pace is leisurely, the tone sad, the journey well worth taking. Why no Oscar nominations? This is so un-Hollywood, it's a balm for adults who want... Full review

You know, when I saw this film, there were maybe seven people in the huge theatre at Loews Outer Circle DC. It was kind of disconcerting. I mean, who could blame people -- the film got no billboards or even... Full review

It would be hard to imagine a finer troupe of actors than those assembled for the very believable "Last Orders." An ensemble that meshes so well that I was drawn into the screen barely conscious of their real identities and... Full review

Last orders is a very simple movie. It is based upon one of cinema's simplest genres: The Road Movie. It is about simple people who lead simple lives wherein very little happens very often. But behind this simplicity lies the... Full review

It's a most welcome return for Schepisi and a dear, dear little film. Based on the book by Graham Swift, Last Orders follows three childhood friends as they travel to the seaside to dump the ashes of their dearly departed friend Jack (Michael Caine). ... Full Review

With a cast of British heavyweights and Fred Schepisi , a writer-director capable of capturing the subtlety of everyday emotion, Last Orders is an ambitious, heartfelt work that distills 50 years of history into a stately two hours. Better still, these are no-nonsense people, so while Schepisi's film is warmhearted, he manages to sidestep sentimentality. ... Full Review

His film of Graham Swift's lovely novel "Last Orders," the story of four men taking the ashes of a friend to their final resting place, is funny in the way that makes you ache with sadness (the way Chekhov is funny), profound without ever being self-important, warm without ever succumbing to sentimentality. ... Full Review

Fred Schepisi's screen adaptation of Graham Swift's Booker prize-winning novel, Last Orders, is a poignant and gentle film exploring the lives of four friends thrown together for one last journey. Although the jumps in time flit backwards and forwards constantly, it's a wonderfully smooth transition with great editing, and the film plays out like a conversation in which memories are recollected and relived. ... Full Review

Last Orders is most enjoyable if you have at least a glimmer of knowledge about the Englishness it portrays so accurately. But its the subtlety of the editing that makes the film feel so well crafted, as Schepisi moves us back and forth in time to dramatically recreate snapshots from the past that haunt the close knit group. ... Full Review

Four London pals go to Margate to scatter a mates ashes, their journey disrupted by flashbacks and flashbacks within flashbacks to show how their relationships were formed, threatened and deepened over the years. ... Full Article

With a cast that features some of England's best acting talent, it seems unlikely if not impossible that "Last Orders" could have gone completely awry. ... Full Article

At the beginning of Last Orders , three old friends gather at a pub in South London to pay homage to one of their own, recently deceased and set on the baras ashes in an urn. ... Full Article

hen Jack Dodd (Michael Caine) passes away, a group of friends tend to his ashes and their claustrophobic car trip across a pub-ridden landscape opens a floodgate of memories. ... Full Article

Plot Ray, Vic, Larry and Vince drive to Margate to scatter the ashes of their friend, Jack, from the end of the pier. As the trip goes on, the men think back to the past and the things that bind... ... Full Article