The first feature-length project from the Copenhagen-based team of David Bourke and Andre Moulin, shot in 18 days on a micro-budget of around 10,000 DKK (roughly $1500), LAST EXIT is a fairly satisfying exercise in pessimism that takes standard low-budget crime-movie conventions and twists them into a grim, metaphysical tale of doom.

The doomed individual in question is Nigel (Morten Vogelius), a scruffy two-bit crook on the lam in Denmark after a drug deal gone bad. Lazy, boozed-up and jobless, Nigel is stagnating in a squalid flat, in a joyless marriage to junkie Maria (Suzanne Vega lookalike Jette Philipsen), whose only semblance of happiness comes from a needle. Add to this a massive mob debt, and Nigel's future seems grim... until an acquaintance hooks him up with small-time mob boss The President (Peter Ottesen). Seeing the opportunity to clear his debts and start his life anew, Nigel becomes an errand boy for the violent, bald-headed thug and his sneering henchmen - who first show their colors by removing an eyeball from a transgressor with a spoon.

Despite botching a fairly simple first job, Nigel eventually falls into the gangster's good graces. He is soon rewarded with the attentions of the Prez's favorite prostitute, Tanya (Gry Bay), a sultry, pot-smoking sex-kitten with more than a few screws loose - no sooner does Nigel buy her an ice cream than the pair are doing the Big Nasty. Tanya's love of the green stuff sends Nigel to Christiana, Copenhagen's hippie district, where he's exposed to the metaphysical theories of Jimmy (Nicholas Sherry), a small-time dealer with a remarkable grasp of Quantum Mechanics. Emboldened by the prospect of big money and more smoky bedroom romps with Tanya, Nigel grows even more distant from his wife, unaware that she is now pregnant with his child.

All pretty standard postmodern film noir elements, sure. But around an hour into the proceedings, the filmmakers discard most of those clichés in order to speed up our protagonist's downward spiral toward ultimate doom - and begin the final act with a twist so absurdly shocking that it's bound to provoke outbursts of laughter... and conclude with a final punchline that's so droll it almost negates the setup.

Putting aside the fact that LAST EXIT is gloomier than playing a Morrisey album at your dog's funeral, it's undoubtedly one of the slickest films ever shot in a couple of weeks for less than $2000. Aided by an effective film-look, the DV production captures the seedy, neon-lit underbelly of nocturnal Copenhagen with a cold, gritty realism, aided by a soundtrack of horny, urgent club tunes that up the sleaze factor. Not that the budget limitations aren't readily apparent: Nigel's scenes with Jimmy are so badly lit that they often play out in near-total darkness, and the dialogue wasn't exactly recorded on the best equipment (some of the President's angrier outbursts nearly blow out the audio). These are factors that tend to haunt many a SOV project.

Still, Bourke & Moulin's skills shine through, and although their collective style is not quite groundbreaking, they do demonstrate a strong visual sensibility through sparing use of flash cuts, split-screen and eerie projected lighting. I only wish they hadn't fixated quite so strongly on the color red. I mean, EVERYTHING is tinted red or reddish-orange in this movie; even the poster art. After 98 minutes, I felt like Kramer after a night under the Kenny Rogers sign.

The plot is nothing new, but serves as an effective framework for a study in cosmic nihilism in the vein of Gaspar Noe's IRREVERSIBLE (which it also resembles visually). Much like the characters in that film, Nigel seems compelled to make the wrong choice in every situation - wrong for him, and for those around him - directed by forces beyond his control. Jimmy explains that even Nigel's miserable life is a vital component of the universal machine, as long as he does his part to "keep the flow in balance." Although he does have a role, it isn't a positive one - and it appears he doesn't really have much say in the outcome regardless. If you relish this kind of grim determinism in your entertainment, there's a good time to be had in LAST EXIT. However, I also recommend following up with an hour of your favorite childhood cartoons.

Editor's Note: Extras on the recent Heretic Films DVD release include a feature length commentary with Director David Noel Bourke and actors Morten Vogelius and Peter Ottesen along with behind-the-scenes footage (15-minutes), some deleted/extended scenes and the films' trailer.

Visit Heretic Films