Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
A retired businesswoman – who tries to control everything around her – decides to write her own obituary. A young journalist takes up the task of finding out the truth, and the result is a life-altering friendship.
The Last Word follows a fairly familiar template of the gruff, controlling older person softened by an unlikely friendship with a younger free spirit. Shirley MacLaine brings genuine presence and commitment to her role, and Amanda Seyfried provides capable support, but the film doesn't push either performance into truly exceptional territory. Visually it's functional and unremarkable, shot in a straightforward TV-movie style without distinctive cinematography. The premise of writing one's own obituary as a springboard for life reflection is a reasonably engaging hook but lands in well-trodden 'late-life redemption' territory. The ending resolves predictably but earns some emotional warmth through the chemistry built over the course of the film.