The Last Screening (2011)
A chilling French horror-drama about a reclusive projectionist whose devotion to a dying cinema conceals a terrifying secret life.
The Last Screening - Movie Information
- Original Title: Dernière séance
- Release Year: 2011
- Directed by: Laurent Achard
- Type: Movie
- Genres: Horror, Drama
- Runtime: 1h 21m
- Original Language: French
- Spoken Languages: French
- Release Date (Theatrical): August 9, 2011 (Switzerland - 12)
- Alternative Titles: Last Screening (US)
- Production Companies: Les films du Worso, Canal+
- Production Countries: France
The Last Screening - Plot
Sylvain, a young man, devotes his life to small, local movie theater destined to be shut down. He lives in the theater's basement and is the theater programer, projectionist, and ticket seller. Each night, after the last screening, he leaves the building to carry out a ritual killing.
The Last Screening - Cast & Crew
Director(s)
- Laurent Achard
Main Cast
- Pascal Cervo
- Karole Rocher
- Brigitte Sy
- Nicolas Pignon
- Mireille Roussel
- Noël Simsolo
- Charlotte Van Kemmel
- Austin Morel
- Corinne Lamborot
- Francine Blasquez
Producers
- Sylvie Pialat
The Last Screening - FAQs
What is The Last Screening about?
The Last Screening follows Sylvain, a withdrawn young man who dedicates himself entirely to a small local cinema on the verge of closure. Living in its basement and working as projectionist, programmer, and ticket seller, he leads a double life — committing ritual murders after each night's final show.
Who directed The Last Screening?
The Last Screening was directed by Laurent Achard, a French filmmaker known for his unsettling, atmospheric approach to genre cinema. The film showcases his ability to blend psychological tension with a deeply melancholic portrait of isolation and obsession.
Is The Last Screening based on a true story?
The Last Screening is not directly based on a specific true story. However, the film draws on the archetype of the serial killer as a social outcast, and its setting in a dying provincial cinema gives it a culturally grounded, eerily plausible atmosphere rooted in real anxieties about isolation and obsolescence.
Who plays the lead role in The Last Screening?
Pascal Cervo plays Sylvain, the disturbed young projectionist at the heart of the film. The supporting cast includes Karole Rocher as his mother, Brigitte Sy as a taxi driver, Nicolas Pignon as the cinema's owner, and Charlotte Van Kemmel as Manon.
What genre is The Last Screening?
The Last Screening is a French horror-drama. It blends the psychological tension and dread of the horror genre with a slow-burn dramatic portrait of loneliness and compulsion, placing it firmly within the tradition of European arthouse genre cinema.
What is the significance of the cinema setting in The Last Screening?
The dying cinema in The Last Screening functions as more than a backdrop — it mirrors Sylvain's own psychological decay and disconnection from the world. The theater becomes a sanctuary and a prison simultaneously, with the ritual of film projection intertwined with his compulsion to kill, blurring fantasy and violence.
When was The Last Screening released?
The Last Screening was first released on August 9, 2011, at a festival screening in Switzerland. The film is a French production distributed under its original title Dernière séance, and was also released in the US market under the alternative title Last Screening.
How long is The Last Screening?
The Last Screening has a runtime of 81 minutes. Its compact length suits the film's tightly wound, claustrophobic atmosphere, allowing Laurent Achard to sustain a mood of creeping dread without overstaying its welcome or diluting the psychological intensity of the narrative.
More About The Last Screening
Explore further details, credits, and data for The Last Screening on these authoritative databases.