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Last Resort

Play trailer Poster for Last Resort Released Aug 22, 2000 1h 13m Romance Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
94% Tomatometer 72 Reviews 85% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Tanya (Dina Korzun), young and naive, leaves Moscow with her street-wise 10-year-old son to meet her English fiancé. But after he fails to turn up at the airport, Tanya and her son find themselves virtually imprisoned in a deserted seaside resort where all refugees are forced to live. They have no passports, no money, and no rights.
Last Resort

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Critics are raving about Last Resort, saying it's a convincing, touching tale. Particularly impressive is the lack of script during the film's shoot.

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Critics Reviews

View All (72) Critics Reviews
Peter Rainer New York Magazine/Vulture One of the few films to get at the ways in which single mothers and their sons alternate being authority figures. Sep 26, 2002 Full Review George Perry BBC.com A remarkably thoughtful and disturbing work. Rated: 4/5 Apr 16, 2001 Full Review Eric Harrison Houston Chronicle Dramatically low-key, Last Resort is beautifully acted, with striking realism. Mar 30, 2001 Full Review Susan Sontag Artforum A superb British filmmaker, Pawlikowski is equally gifted in fiction (like this film, about the plight in bleakest England of a young Russian émigré and her son) and in documentary. May 2, 2024 Full Review Farah Cheded A Good Movie To Watch Pawlikowski uses realism to highlight the crushing bureaucracy, dehumanizing conditions, and threats of exploitation that come with being an asylum seeker, but remarkably, bleakness isn’t the overriding tone. Rated: 8/10 Sep 8, 2023 Full Review Michael Dequina TheMovieReport.com The intimate, unadorned performances add a realistic immediacy to entire piece. Rated: 3/4 Feb 11, 2009 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (42) audience reviews
jordan m This was an odd viewing experience. They seemed to be making an unambiguous political statement with their criticism of the UK's handling of immigrants and asylum seekers, implying that more compassion and haste should be provided to them. This would surely make it a solid leftist narrative, and yet the main character is shown to be so thoroughly disgusted and morally appalled by one of the mildest forms of sex work that a huge part of the plot hinges on her inability to earn an income while turning her nose up at it, a decision that she never appears to regret. What we're left with is a completely flat character arc of a girl taking a one-way trip to another country with no prospects beyond relying on a guy, then absolutely floundering while she waited on another guy to come along. I am sure Pawel's other movies are better than this. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member I have not seen it however I plan to. I love Paddy Considine's work. He can do just about everything. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Stay For One More Night. Last Resort Pawlikowski has a certain theme in his films. Never changing and yet always inspiring in its new dimension that it is confined in, Pawel Pawlikowski; the co-writer and director, manages to whisper a love story in every tale of his. Back dropping the entire romance in a political satire, he jolts down each moment into an antic that it can thrive upon. Speaking fluently at the brisk of almost seventy five minutes, he has a lot of ground to cover, in this one short sprint. The brooded figures analyzed in here has a mature levity in them, in a way that isn't humorous, but fascinating and expressive about their behavior. Tanya our host of this temporary stay in a new world played beautifully by Dina Korzun, who is surprisingly far better whilst being goofy and silly around her companions, rather than sulking alone in a room. She gazes her child and the film somehow seems complete in its entirety. The fear goes away, along with all the threats and troubles, the chemistry crafted by her is enough to speak for all of them. But personally, I feel for Alfie (Paddy Considine), he is the real backbone of the film and our protagonist, he is supporting without any questions or any trade, he is so good a character, that he seems superficial, sort of a fragment of Korzun's imagination. And her kid too has something to fill in, something to say, and that very character proves Pawlikowski's attempt of completing the circle, the script, to its full. Although, the theme explored are often dark in his films, there is a sweet innocence in its deeds that doesn't let go of your hand. Last Resort is neither the first nor last, it is a vital, memorable one that can't be replaced. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review nefasto r Honesty and simplicity, that's all this movie needs to be good. Love stories are hidden everywhere and it's always nicer when we find them out of Hollywood. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Pawlikowski's narrative feature debut potently relates the struggles of those in a Purgatory resulting from the shortcomings of themselves and others. Lenczewski's cinematography, symbolic and personal, foreshadows the powerful imagery that would captivate the world in Ida (2014). I may not personally agree with the story's resolution, but I respect its construction. 01/03/2018 Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/24/23 Full Review Audience Member Last Resort is about Tanya, a young Russian woman, who travels to England with her son. On arrival, she is abandoned by her boyfriend, forced into political asylum and shipped off to a grim, seaside town where she must wait for her application to be processed, which can take up to 18 months. In a way it's a film about survival, as Tanya must quickly attempt to adapt and survive in a foreign country where she has little to no cultural knowledge. She's a very sympathetic character, whose a very emotional being--often blaming her relationship failures on her will and desire to feel loved. The setting is really perfect for capturing this trapped feeling, as the town feels more like a prison than a small seaside town. It's a film that examines how love is about sacrifice and selflessness just as much as anything else. The relationship which forms between Tanya and Paddy Considine's character is handled delicately as Tanya's character is much more resilient due to her past, while not knowing what the future holds for her and her son. This is a quietly effective film that touches on the tough decisions which must be made and it's realistic and heartfelt. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Last Resort

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Movie Info

Synopsis Tanya (Dina Korzun), young and naive, leaves Moscow with her street-wise 10-year-old son to meet her English fiancé. But after he fails to turn up at the airport, Tanya and her son find themselves virtually imprisoned in a deserted seaside resort where all refugees are forced to live. They have no passports, no money, and no rights.
Director
Paul Pavlikovsky
Producer
Ruth Caleb
Screenwriter
Rowan Joffe, Paul Pavlikovsky
Distributor
Shooting Gallery
Production Co
BBC
Genre
Romance
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 22, 2000, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Jul 22, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA)
$114.7K
Runtime
1h 13m
Sound Mix
Dolby