Last Breath

Never one to shy away from difficult subject matter, at the age of 91 the great filmmaker Costa-Gavras (Z; State of Siege; Missing) has made a film contemplating mortality. As you might expect, it’s not a breathless action movie or a thriller. Rather, it’s a gentle philosophical inquiry taking place largely in and around the wards of a palliative care unit. Fabrice (Denis Podalydes) is a popular French intellectual, and he’s invited to talk to the staff and the patients by his new friend Augustin (Kad Merad), who heads up the facility. These conversations grant him a new outlook when he needs it the most. It’s a worthy swan song from an old master.

A truly marvelous film, reflective and profoundly moving.

Stephanie Bunbury, Deadline Hollywood

A lesson in humanity from a master of cinema.

Fernando Bernal, Cinemania

Last Breath is a devastating viewing, but also a film infused with hope. The final denouement is both shocking and heartwarming. This is therapeutic cinema at its finest.

Victor Fraga, DMovies