It has been a long road to get to this point in time, but we are extremely excited to announce that The Last Reel trailer is now live on the Hanuman Films Youtube channel, clocking in at 1m 45s.
The Last Reel is the most significant independent feature film to come out of Cambodia in a generation. 2014 has already seen the success of Cambodia’s first Oscar-nominated film, Rithy Panh’s The Missing Picture. The Last Reel is the directorial debut of Kulikar Sotho, based on a script by Ian Masters. The film was shot entirely on location in Cambodia during 2013 with a cast of leading local talent. Onboard as Executive Producer is Lloyd Levin, Producer of major Hollywood films such as Tomb Raider, Boogie Nights, Green Zone and United 93.
“There are many versions of the truth and between them lie the source for a thousand stories.” Rebellious teenager Sophoun discovers an old film starring her mother, offering her the chance to dictate her own destiny at last, but at the cost of uncovering some dark secrets from the past about her parents lives during the Khmer Rouge regime.
The Last Reel exposes the legacy of civil war and genocide and the shadow this violence has cast over subsequent generations. The trauma may have only been experienced by those who lived through the dark years of Khmer Rouge rule, but the impact of the living nightmare has been passed on to the next generation. Almost nobody talks about the past, almost nobody has dealt with their past, but have chosen to suppress or ignore it as a coping mechanism to deal with the pain. However, this suppression of raw emotion comes at a cost and affects the behaviour of an entire older generation in their everyday lives. In trying to protect the next generation by concealing a painful past, many parents have in fact damaged the next generation instead by not allowing themselves to heal. It is hoped that The Last Reel will play its part in a long overdue healing process in Cambodia by encouraging generations old and young to talk more openly about the past. The ghosts of the past are not easily buried and will continue to haunt a generation unless they are able to give a voice to the victims and their own suffering.
Before coming onboard as Executive Producer, Lloyd Levin had this to say about The Last Reel in November 2013: “I’m overwhelmed. It’s magnificent. It’s beautifully shot. Acting and writing is terrific. Just beautifully made from top to bottom. This is such a sophisticated film thematically I can’t believe it was directed by a first time director. The way it weaves regret, remorse, joy, love, guilt, redemption, politics with the past and present. I was moved by the sentiment that movies can be the thing that can bring together disparate people – political enemies, oppressors and their victims, fathers and daughters – despite everyone’s different version of the truth. And the idea that a movie can be just as, if not more real, than reality, and can become our reality, is truly sublime. That’s a beautiful idea and The Last Reel is a wonderful movie.”
People who have travelled to Cambodia will be touched by this movie and find a deeper level of understanding of this complex country, its traumatic history and how the past continues to cast a shadow over contemporary life today. Please share this trailer with your friends and family, your colleagues and partners, those who have travelled to Cambodia, lived in Cambodia or have an association with Cambodia. This film combines a snapshot of life in Cambodia today together with a lost world that came before, including the golden years of filmmaking in the kingdom before the dark shadow of the Khmer Rouge fell upon the land. More than 300 films were made before Pol Pot came to power, but only around 30 of them survived the destruction. Actors, artists, songwriters and directors were specifically targeted by the Khmer Rouge and many perished. The Last Reel is dedicated to their memory.
Many thanks for watching and helping to support The Last Reel as it approaches its worldwide premiere.
