Last Straw

It’s one great line after another leading to masked massacres in the slasher suspense film Last Straw, written by Taylor Sardoni and directed by Alan Scott Neal. It opens upon a scene of carnage at a retro roadside diner. Blood covers the jukebox and all the chrome, with bodies strewn everywhere. In voiceover, we hear a 911 call, and we see Nancy (Jessica Belkin) lying flat on her back with a knife in her belly in a pool of blood.

We then flashback 12 hours earlier to Nancy out in a field urinating on a pregnancy test. She discusses the results with her bud Tabitha (Tara Raani) while smoking a fat joint before work. She puts on her waitress uniform and starts driving until her car breaks down. Luckily, her co-worker Bobby (Joji Otani-Hansen) happens to be nearby on his bicycle and offers her a lift.

“…opens upon a scene of carnage at a retro roadside diner. Blood covers the jukebox and all the chrome…”

Her father, Edward (Jeremy Sisto), scolds her for being late, as she is now the manager of the diner he owns. He also informs her that she is on the late shift and her only help will be Jake (Taylor Kowalski), who she can’t stand. Some unruly teen boys on mopeds drag some roadkill into the parking lot and cause a ruckus. Nancy does what any good manager would do and tells them to f**k off. They later return, wearing Halloween masks, and sit down, waiting to be served. When Nancy reiterates the part where they f**k off, one very nasty masked customer promises Nancy that he will come back later and it will hurt…

A truly great suspense movie is rare. Last Straw is so rare it’s bloody. Really bloody. So bloody it joins the ranks of thrillers that can keep up with the big skinless dogs of horror. The slasher elements woven into the suspense by director Neal include an understanding that masks are very scary. So are lots of knives and hammers, especially when covered in blood. Guns aren’t so much for p*****s, as they are just unwelcome because blood doesn’t drip off them as nice.