The Last Song (2010)

Directed by: Julie Anne Robinson | 107 minutes | drama, family, romance | Actors: Miley Cyrus, Greg Kinnear, Bobby Coleman, Liam Hemsworth, Hallock Beals, Kelly Preston, Nick Lashaway, Carly Chaikin, Kate Vernon, Melissa Ordway, Nick Searcy, Adam Barnett, Michael Jamorski, Carrie Malabre, Lance E. Nichols

Let it be clear: ‘The Last Song’ is nothing more than a star vehicle for teenage singer Miley Cyrus, who apparently thought it was time to take a step towards “serious” after her light-hearted work in ‘Hannah Montana’ and some TV series. acting. Even the script, written by Nicholas Sparks, was written especially for pop sensation Cyrus. Whether anyone should be happy with that, however, is questionable. The unsurprising, tear-jerking story full of clichés is not something the average viewer will be waiting for to begin with and Cyrus does not possess – to say the least – the capacity to rise above the material. Fortunately, after an important change in the story, the second half of the film gains in character and quality, and Greg Kinnear manages to give the film some added value in the role of Ronnie’s father, but unfortunately it is far from enough to make ‘The Last Song’.

The first half of the film turns it all around. It begins with the introduction of the rebellious teenager, clichéd as a sulking girl in a hooded baggy sweater and black nail polish and eyeshadow. She can only claw out at those around her, making her an unattractive, obnoxious individual to everyone she meets… except for hunk Will Blakelee (Liam Hemsworth), who apparently finds her cranky head irresistible and enjoys the insults he throws at him. gets his head thrown. She will thaw over time, of course, but the implausible way they keep bumping into each other, the contrived dialogues, and the walking stereotypes they both form (Will is a misunderstood rich kid who is unhappy in the castle of a house from his narrow-minded parents) always keep the viewer at a distance. It would also help a lot if they both, but especially Cyrus, would possess some more acting talent. Cyrus has very little nuance in her acting, and it’s hard to see her as a character rather than an actress trying to produce an emotion. Admittedly, it’s not always doom and gloom. Sometimes she comes across as warm or endearing and there seems to be some sort of bond between her and another character, but it seems unlikely that she will become a great actress.

That credible bond that sometimes exists is the one between her and Greg Kinnear who plays her father, and with which her character Ronnie experiences an interesting deepening in the second half of the film. That’s the point where the film actually becomes worthwhile and the viewer could also develop a bond with the characters. Infinitely more interesting than the romantic plot is this relationship between father and daughter and when Ronnie also takes a seat behind the piano and music becomes (or turns out to be) a leading motif in the film, the film seems to take off. Just as the film is moving and threatening to reach a beautiful climax, director Robinson (or writer Sparks) overplays her hand with the accumulation of emotional moments and divine intervention. Unfortunate. Instead of taking the viewer along and moving it, it is played too showy. Melodrama would always have been, but it doesn’t matter. At least a well-dosed ending could have provided a fairly dignified ending to the unbalanced film that is ‘The Last Song’. Unfortunately, this also turned out not to be the case.