Last Word, The

Aroview: Quirky black comedy centered on a man who makes a living writing suicide notes for the depressed, and has his life is turned upside down when he begins to date the sister of one of the recently deceased.

The suicide angle is awkwardly handled here, and one is left wondering whether we should be laughing or crying (or perhaps both?) at the depressive 'clients', one of whom is Ray Romano in an almost confronting 'serious' role. Bentley, too, contributes to all the glumness with an ice cold performance evoking his star turn in AMERICAN BEAUTY, leaving Ryder to bring the spirit to the oddly bleak affair, which she does with warmth and finesse.