Reading at Matthew's Funeral
Can anybody tell me where the reading the priest gave at the funeral right at the beginning of the movie is from? It started with the words "Know me in strength, not shape"'
shareHi there,
My name is Geoff. I'm the writer / director of "The Last Word." What was your question? Were you interested in knowing where the words from the reading came from? Or where the cemetery is? We shot the scene at a cemetery near Pasadena, California. And the words of the reading, like ALL the suicide notes were just made up by me. None of the "poetry" is any good, as I'm not a poet, but I tried to have some fun it.
Hi Geoff
It's very kind of you to answer my query. I quite enjoyed the movie and in particular I thought the words of that poem read at the funeral at the beginning of the movie were lovely. I thought I copied them down into my "poetry book" but now I can't find it. I think you do have a bit of a talent for writing that sort of thing. Perhaps if things go a bit quiet on the writing/directing side of movies, you could turn your hand to this type of thing. :-)
Seriously, it was a lovely poem. Would you mind sending me the words - just of the first poem read at the funeral? I can give you my private email address if that is easier and it is allowed. Thanks Geoff. I look forward to hearing from you.
Anna - Australia
Hi Anna,
send me your e-mail address to [email protected] and I'll send you a PDF of that whole funeral scene, which has the poem in it. Thanks again for taking an interest in the film.
best,
Geoff
Geoff, are you for real?
If you are, would you care to say why as the screenplay author and the director of the picture you found it proper to make the protagonist abandon his writing? Even despite the facts that a) he was a good writer, even got an award; b) it helped enrich the deaths of the suicides (gave them more image, purpose, & effect on society); c) it helped Evan stabilise and enjoy his life.
The film made the impression of crucifying the protagonist for doing something forbidden ("soulless", insensitive etc.), whereas death has always been a major driving factor and art object for artists, including many well-respected poets (I'm sure you can think of examples).
It did not help that Evan evidently abandoned his writing in favour of a completely pointless, destructive occupation (filming office hardware being thrown off a cliff by some modern Luddites). Was this some sort of a post-modern, meta-textual remark on the film itself? or do you genuinely believe talented writers should pursue such roads? if the latter, where does it leave yourself?
Yours sincerely,
Konstantin
I'd really like to hear Geoff's response, but if I may, I can chime in my thoughts.
I don't believe the film crucifies the protagonist for doing something forbidden; if there is any crucifiction going on, it's because the protagonist ekes out an existence without getting involved, without having any positive influence on the world (at least not the world of the living).
An analogy would be a coffin maker who dedicates all his art & craftsmanship to building something that doesn't benefit any living soul. Wouldn't the coffin maker be a more productive force if he were to build houses or even, I dunno, chess boards?
This film seems to ask that same question. There is no clearcut answer because of course the world needs coffins. But on a personal level, perhaps the coffin maker (suicide note writer) reaches a point where he is tired of living among the dead and instead tries to interact with the living and, himself, learn how to live.
This is symbolized by the protagonist's decision to help just 1 soul (Abel) and indulge in Abel's screwball idea of blowing up things. It's not meant to be anything colossal like curing leprosy or whatever; that would kill the point. The point is that it's a transition, a vacation, a much-needed trip to Disneyland for a person who has been out of the world for too long.
If the story were to continue, I doubt either Evan or Abel (an accomplished composer) would seriously dedicate his life to blowing up things. Once in a while you just need to take a step back, far away from your vocation, to get a new perspective on life, and I thought the fax-blower-upper was a perfect illustration. If instead the story showed Evan suddenly becoming a successful novelist and Abel becoming a world class composer, wouldn't that be the dumbest, most Hollywood ending ever?
[quote]It did not help that Evan evidently abandoned his writing in favour of a completely pointless, destructive occupation[\quote]
I think you need to take into consideration the influence a woman has on a man. Though it seems like there is no direct connection between switching occupations and his relationshiop with Charlotte, there's a good chance that the way the relationship ended left a bad taste in his mouth for his writing, whether it be his motive, process or the end results of the writing.
Sometimes after a such an impacting event, people need change, even if just for a little while.
Yes I think you have a point there obishawn-2 and for me the fact that he Evan abandoned his writing was to do with the recognition of what connecting with another is about. He was disappointed in his capacity to connect with Charlotte and (let's face it with the deception involved he was impossibly handicapped) felt the need to address his lifestyle through what had been modestly accomplished in connecting with Abel. I too see it as a transition but in the sense of the beginnings of real communication the potential for which will lead him to a better place in his life.
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