‘The Last Front’ Review: An Engrossing Old-School World War I Melodrama of Brave Civilians and Despicable Invaders
variety.comDennis Harvey Film Critic The only confusing thing about “The Last Front” is its title. Set at the outbreak of World War I, this fictive tale of invading German forces wreaking havoc in the Belgian countryside depicts just one arena for violence in a conflict that would drag on for another four years.
Otherwise, Julien Hayet-Kerknawi’s debut feature is a sturdy, engrossing drama conveyed in a somewhat retro mode. While the director and co-writer has shared that he “wanted to stay away from the traditional black-and-white good guys versus bad guys trope” with this film, Hayet-Kerknawi’s actually made a movie so driven by those exact moral divisions that it recalls the propaganda-heavy entertainments churned out by studios during both World Wars.
Such narrative dynamics can play corny or crude. But “The Last Front,” in limited release from Enigma on Friday, is deftly handled, eking considerable force from its familiar faceoff between besieged civilians, led by Iain Glen’s reluctant-leader farmer, and Joe Anderson, as a truly detestable officer in the Kaiser’s army.
This English-language production may not be among the most memorable period war films in recent years, but its straightforward, sometimes brutal progress and assured craftsmanship will more than satisfy audiences looking for something other than simple combat spectacle.
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