The Last Supper, co-written, produced, and directed by Aaron Holly and Cathy Wang is an elegantly concise and deeply felt story of a dying man's quest for dignity.
When told he isn't much longer for this world, homeless Michael decides he will dine at least once at the fancy restaurant that is his view from the sidewalk where he resides. Towards this end, he takes up his battered violin again and plays a piece he had composed with a friend a long time ago.
His impassioned playing mesmerizes passers-by,and his violin case becomes the receptacle for the coins and bills that are tokens of their appreciation. Even as his physical condition worsens, he realizes he has earned enough to pay for a meal at the fine restaurant. With money in his pocket and a tweed jacket newly purchased from the thrift store, Michael diffidently walks into the restaurant to fulfill his final wish: to dine in style and experience one memorable evening.
A wish that seems so simple almost doesn't come to fruition: the world of the well-heeled can be callous and casually intolerant of those who are not part of it. How Michael's dream comes true forms the crux of the tale.
Michael's story engages the viewer with an economy of dialogue and a palette of somber hues and lengthening shadows, complemented by an atmospheric musical score. Yet this effort from first time filmmakers Aaron Holly and Cathy Wang is bracingly free from maudlin' sentimentality and Jon Jacobs imbues Michael with a grizzled dignity. Brion Rose and Dan Spector offer sterling support as a kindly doctor and the chilly owner of the restaurant whose encounter with Michael marks them indelibly.
When told he isn't much longer for this world, homeless Michael decides he will dine at least once at the fancy restaurant that is his view from the sidewalk where he resides. Towards this end, he takes up his battered violin again and plays a piece he had composed with a friend a long time ago.
His impassioned playing mesmerizes passers-by,and his violin case becomes the receptacle for the coins and bills that are tokens of their appreciation. Even as his physical condition worsens, he realizes he has earned enough to pay for a meal at the fine restaurant. With money in his pocket and a tweed jacket newly purchased from the thrift store, Michael diffidently walks into the restaurant to fulfill his final wish: to dine in style and experience one memorable evening.
A wish that seems so simple almost doesn't come to fruition: the world of the well-heeled can be callous and casually intolerant of those who are not part of it. How Michael's dream comes true forms the crux of the tale.
Michael's story engages the viewer with an economy of dialogue and a palette of somber hues and lengthening shadows, complemented by an atmospheric musical score. Yet this effort from first time filmmakers Aaron Holly and Cathy Wang is bracingly free from maudlin' sentimentality and Jon Jacobs imbues Michael with a grizzled dignity. Brion Rose and Dan Spector offer sterling support as a kindly doctor and the chilly owner of the restaurant whose encounter with Michael marks them indelibly.