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Tell us what you think.
Selected submissions will be posted here, so check back regularly.
2/26/07
Kevin
Are you all kidding me? This movie was horrible! I HAD to watch it for a visual arts class in order to write a 5 page paper on it. It was slow, uninspiring and the themes were to transparent. A film made in an off the wall style should at least challenge the viewer, and this one did not do that in the least. However, I will say this, Catherine Samie produced a great performance and should be applauded. Other than that, this was not a good film.
5/11/05
M. Alice Cassidy
Manchester, NH
Like some others I happened on the showing of "The Last Letter" in the middle. All of the superlatives mentioned in Talkback are well deserved. I quickly taped the next showing of Independent Lens only to discover that Sunday was the last showing of this film. I hope you will show it again soon. It was a very powerful choice for Mother's Day, but is tremendously valuable at any time.
Would it be possible to send me the dates of a replay?? I had never seen Independent Lens. I will certainly look for it again but please don't let us wait too long for a repeat performance.
I would happily buy the video but apparently it is only priced for libraries and public showings. $300 Any chance that could change? What an artistic treasure!
5/11/05
Paul
Scarborough, ONT
What this poor woman went through is unbelievable. I can only imagine the pain she endured.
The long-term psychological effect must be a torture by itself. One can only be thankful to God that she survived to tell her story.
It's unfortunate she had to experience what she did. I am never a person that's fond of "War".
May God heal her painful memories and bless her to somehow have a happy and peaceful life for the rest of her life.
5/9/05
Whigham,Georgia
I am rarely effusive about film. The Last Letter may well be the best I have ever seen. Madam Samie touched me as only another woman who has had many years of working thru suffering,putting aside failures to be dealt with later and finding out there is no time to right or pay homage to the painful past.To tell someone you love them and you are sorry you were less than perfect is a hoped for opportunity. I have continued to savor and sorrow the story for 2 days,I have been changed,I thank you.
5/6/05
Gerry
Manalapan, NJ
Having lost a good portion of my family during the Holocaust, this particular show really struck an emotional chord with me. Ms. Samie was not acting in the normal sense. She was living that role. You could see it in her eyes, and in her gestures. I could have been looking at a great aunt I never had the chance to meet. The author, actor, director, and PBS deserve an award for this.
5/6/05
Diane W. Young
San Marcos, TX
I could not take my eyes off "The Last Letter". What an eloquent and heartbreaking script. How marvelously presented. The austere setting only made the expeience more remarkable. Thanks, PBS, for trusting us to have the attention span to watch such a production.
5/5/05
JULIAN BARRY
REDDING, CONNECTICUT
I WAS INTERESTED TO SEE THAT THE FOR ME AT LEAST THE LAST LETTER WAS INFINITELY MORE MOVING THAN THE PROGRAM WHICH PRECEEDED IT. THE BRITISH FOOTAGE OF THE CARNAGE THEY DISCOVERED AT BERGEN-BELSEN AND BEYOND IS SO HORRIFIC THAT IT'S ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO FEEL WHAT ONE WANTS TO FEEL BECAUSE THERE A KIND OF OVERKILL TAKES OVER AND ALL THE STACKS OF IMATIATED CORPSES CEASE TO HAVE A HUMAN PERSONA. BUT WHEN ART TAKES OVER IN THE LAST LETTER AND ONE WOMAN STANDING IN THE SHADOWS SPEAKS OF HOW HER NEIGHBORS FOUGHT OVER HER FURNITURE IT IS IMPOSSIBLE NOT TO BE MOVED TO TEARS.
THE LAST LETTER BRINGS THE NAZI NIGHTMARE DOWN TO A LEVEL WHERE YOU CAN AND MUST LET IT IN. MS. SAMIE IS A GREAT ACTRESS, AND FREDERICK WEISMAN IS A GREAT FILM MAKER.
THANK YOU PBS FOR PUTTING THIS ON THE AIR.
5/5/05
Melody
Menominee, Michigan
I tuned in late and only caught the last 30 minutes of the program, but I found myself holding my breath. I have never seen anything like this before. It was very moving, pure, and horrific.
5/5/05
Natalie
Richmond, Va
This is one of the most - if not the most - amazing, poetic, moving films I have seen. I was immediately captivated by Samie's face and voice, this beautiful woman expressing such sorrow and love and horror. I can not imagine a more effective, beautiful, or honest portrayal of this story. I could watch this over and over and over...
5/5/05
Neilan Tyree
New Orleans, LA
This was one of the most moving pieces of dramatic artistry I've ever seen.
Interestingly, I was in Paris for the first time in December 2003 and desperately wanted to see this as a play but my French wasn't nearly good enough for me to do so. Imagine my surprise when I stumbled on this extraordinary film last night. God works in mysterious ways and, in this case, ensured that I saw what I needed to see...when the time was right.
THIS is public broadcasting at its best. And the short films that followed broke my heart as well.
One tiny caveat? The searing art direction of the black and white piece was horribly disturbed by the PBS and Independent Lens logos that popped up from time to time. I'm an advertising pro for the record so understand what led to this, but it was wrong. And I hope future airings will eliminate it.
I plan to share this film (as soon as I can get DVDs of it -- now or...whenever!) with many friends and family, but particularly with my own mother. As I hope others will as well.
Has anyone seen anything else in recent memory so utterly moving and absorbing? The many talents who made this possible have all soared to the top of my personal list of living heroes.
5/5/05
Sabrina
Charleston, SC
I was searching through the channels last night when I found your movie, The Last Letter. The French woman on screen looked and sounded exactly like my French grandmother, who died 10 years ago at age 89. Listening to this woman was like listening to the war stories my grandmother would tell me when I was a child. It was such an eerie feeling; it made me sad, but I just couldn't quit watching. The tall thin woman with gray hair in a bun and the dark clothes; that was exactly the way she looked the first time I saw her.
It was like going back in time for me; mesmerizing. I didn't get to see the whole movie, so I'll have to watch for it again.
5/4/05
Etta Kern
El Paso, TX
A moving, heart-rending work of art! The acting and staging were magnificent. Unforgettable.
5/4/05
kelly dwyer
rockwall,texas
I watch PBS frequently but rarely have I been so moved as by Independent Lens "The Last Letter". Actress Catherine Samie is magnificent. Thank you for putting on such memorable programs.
5/4/05
michael koby
chicago, illinois
as a visual artist/writer this work is the single most beautiful and poetic thing i have ever seen.
it is new, fresh, and intoxicating.
catherine samie is just as much a genius as the writer of the novel.
from the beginning to the last invocation to "vie! vie! vie!"- this film will last the course of time and come out a celluloid godhead. brava!
5/4/05
Glenn Procanin
Lynwood, Illinois
I watched this film last night in its entirety simply because I couldn't turn it off. The story was horrifying and sad,but the performance of Catherine Samie,through her facial expressions and voice tones put you there in that little cottage... in that ghetto. You were no longer just listening to a story - you became part of it. It is the next day now and this film still dominates my thoughts.
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