LAST TIME, THE: DVD

SYNOPSIS:
Jamie (Brendan Fraser) may have been the No 1 salesman in Ohio, but he can't make a sale in his New York job. Head of the division John Whitman (Daniel Stern) gives the company's best salesman Ted (Michael Keaton) the task of showing Jamie the ropes. Ted is rude and obnoxious and only tolerated by his team because he is responsible for 70% of the division's sales. Ted quickly makes his negative assessment of Jamie, before making the move on his fiancée Belisa (Amber Valletta). Company sales reach an all-time low and Jamie is feeling the pressure. Belisa wants to postpone their wedding and is secretly spending more and more time with Ted.

Review by Louise Keller:
Finding the all-important Achilles heel is the central focus of The Last Time, a routine office drama with a love triangle that unexpectedly turns into a biting character study. In one of the best roles he has played for years, Michael Keaton is a stand-out as the successful but foul-mouthed, ace salesman who doesn't chase money as much as builds clients. The crux of the film lies in the relationship between Keaton's Ted and Brendan Fraser's naïve, gung ho new Ohio recruit Jamie.

When Jamie arrives in New York, he is perpetually happy. After all, he has a new job, a new home, his art classes and marriage around the corner. 'There's no limit to the problems a woman is going to bring to your life,' Ted tells Jamie when he meets Jamie's fiancée Belisa (Amber Valletta). Their one-night stand becomes an affair and soon, Ted is spending less and less time in the office. Jamie seems unable to make anything of the leads Ted gives him, and the lack of sales is threatening the existence of the division itself.

Valletta is convincing as she gets to know what makes Ted tick. 'Do we pay for our sins now or later,' is the question posed, in a reference to the book about Dorian Gray, which Ted had previously taught in his former profession as literature teacher. Everyone begins to behave out of character; Jamie becomes violent and aggressive, Ted is happy and calm.

The story's final twist comes at the very end; it is a cutting and bleak moment when we realise where the story has been heading. This is an intriguing drama with excellent characterisations that is far from predictable.

Published November 29, 2007