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16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Neal Cassady's Errant and Optimistic Youth., January 19, 2004
"The Last Time I Committed Suicide" was adapted for the screen by director Stephen Kay from a letter written by Beat icon Neal Cassady to his friend, author Jack Kerouac. In this letter, Cassady recounted his youthful adventures in Denver in 1945-1946. During this time, Cassady supported himself working the graveyard shift for a tire company and spent his days chasing women, "borrowing" cars, and hanging out at the pool hall with an older deadbeat acquaintance named Harry. The film's sights and sounds often mimic Cassady's frenetic personality. His skirt-chasing and petty mischief are set to the sounds of bebop, and the film's cinematography sometimes exhibits a hyperactive nervousness. "The Last Time I Committed Suicide" doesn't seem to have a point...or even a focus. It is simply a dramatization of the events of Neal Cassady's life when he was 18-19 years old. He was no more or less aimless than than he was to become, although he did not yet consider aimlessness to be a vocation in itself. Actor Thomas Jane does a nice job as Cassady, although he appears too old for the part. Keanu Reeves put on some weight for his role, and he is convincing as Neal's vaguely creepy and frequently drunk pool hall buddy Harry. Adrien Brody and Gretchen Mol also contribute interesting supporting performances. This is not a bad movie. But the audience's reaction to this film is going to depend entirely upon their attitude toward -and knowledge of- the real Neal Cassady. "The Last Time I Committed Suicide" is simply a slice of his life. There is no attempt to place Cassady's experiences in any larger context, concrete or abstract. So the film doesn't have general appeal. You either find Cassady interesting or you don't. So I'm recommending "The Last Time I Committed Suicide" to fans of Neal Cassady and students of Beat culture. I doubt that anyone else will have much patience for it.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Light Shone Down Upon This Movie, March 1, 1999
They said Seinfeld was a show about nothing, and the mainstream reviewers of this movie give this movie a bum rap! Well folks this is it, loud and clear from the heart. This movie bring light to a generation exploring the few things left in this world untarnished, and the curious natural flow which resides in every human. Neal Cassady was more than an influence and a friend to Kerouac. He was an influence on the every person on that Merry Prankster bus careening down the highway to mystical destinations. He was an influence spanning generations, and will remain that in those to come. In this film, Cassady (Thomas Jane) is pouring heart and expirience out to Jack in letter flash-backs, reliving an episode to an friend while revitalising his spirit. Yes it's true that this was all written in one sitting by Cassady on Dec. 17, 1950 during a benzedrine trip. The free spirit doing what it takes to get by, and as a young heart not knowing, though thinking what is best for himself. A tradgedy of sorts, though self-inflicted through earlier decisions. This movie, as with the original letter, is constant benzedrine flash, movie as the Beats did, in a scatter of emotions and crazy sites. Nothing like something that can get a spark glowing in the restless empty soul searching for release.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I LOVE this movie!!, October 9, 2002
I have always been a big fan of the beat generation, pretty much ever since I could read. Unfortunately, Neal Cassady never got to publish a novel. But he is famous for his long letters to Jack Kerouac. This film is based on a 30-something page letter to Jack from Neal. (A copy of the letter can be found in the "Beat Reader" edited by Ann Charters). Thomas Jane does an excellent job capturing the essence of Cassady. I consider him one of the greatest overlooked actors today. (See him also as Mickey Mantle in "61*") Claire Forlani is also excellent, also overlooked. Keanu Reeves also does well, in his post-Bill-and-Ted, pre-Matrix days. See this movie, because in the immortal words of Neal himself, "Time is now and now is all we have!"
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