Coming in hot with a snappy title and stylish pedigree, horror/thriller Last Straw may be one of the year’s best surprises. In the feature debut of writer Taylor Sardoni and director Alan Scott Neal, a single-setting premise turns into a veritable playground of tension. An abandoned old school diner turns out to be the perfect place to unleash this film’s dramatic twists and turns. Jessica Belkin (American Horror Story: Hotel, Death Link) anchors Last Straw with her grounded performance as Nancy. Expect a headstrong final girl, notes of trauma, and enough thrilling action to satiate even the most casual viewer. A fast-paced bite of gritty low-scale horror, Last Straw is surprisingly effective and disturbingly realistic.
As so many other films in this genre do, Last Straw begins near the end—blood spilled all across the floor, phone ajar—before flashing twenty-four hours earlier. Nancy’s dad owns the Fat Bottom Bistro, making her status as manager particularly problematic to some of the employees. She always shows up late for her shifts with excuses, and in the opening scenes, Nancy’s pregnancy test shows up positive. Naturally, she has no idea who the father may be. Nancy discloses to her trashy friend that it could be a unibrow-clad lacrosse player, or perhaps cute Bobby (Joji Otani-Hansen) from work. Either way, Nancy will be in for a seriously rude awakening if she decides to keep her baby.
For now, Nancy just wants to get through the day. Her father (Jeremy Sisto, Wrong Turn, Six Feet Under) assigns her to work the night shift with “the freak,” Jake (Taylor Kowalski, Pieces of Talent, Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever). Bobby offers to stay with puppy dog eyes, but she insists that he go. Little does Nancy know, the night ahead holds many surprises. After being forced to shoo away a group of annoying delinquents in masks, Nancy abruptly fires Jake in her anger after he belittles her in front of the entire staff. Forced to work the night shift alone, Nancy initially has fun dancing and feeling herself before the quiet night devolves into a decidedly more sinister bent. Can the cops help, her father, or perhaps one of Nancy’s coworkers?
Director Neal carefully pokes at Nancy, observing every scenario strictly from her point of view until a surprising shift midway through shakes up the timeline. There is a generous amount of restraint here, especially for a first-time filmmaker. When the mayhem plays out, the brutality and intensity of the attack makes perfect sense given the context. There are two characters within who perfectly epitomize the title, Last Straw. That alone speaks as a testament to the brilliant writing. In its simplicity, the script explores Nancy’s trauma without wallowing in it.
Last Straw surprised me, particularly in its level of gloss often lacking in FrightFest titles. A perfectly orchestrated twist should pull out the rug from under some, while eagle-eyed watchers will no doubt be able to pick up on the direction it’s all heading. A future double feature of Last Straw with 2023’s The Passenger would present two tonally-similar movies whose dread unfold in the world of a restaurant. As it stands, Last Straw should delight with its harrowing journey of survival, and makes the case for Jessica Belkin truly arriving in the genre as an adult after a younger, scene-stealing performance in 2015’s American Horror Story: Hotel.
Last Straw screened at 2024’s FrightFest Glasgow.
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