Joely Richardson in The Last Exit @TADFF2023

There has been the rise of home invasion thrillers but there are only a handful that will stick with cinephiles. Adam Wingard‘s You’re Next or Don’t Breathe are two films that come to mind with home invasion thrillers. Director Matthias Hoene chimes in with The Last Exit which is far different from his last film Cockneys vs. Zombies. Premiering at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival, the film takes place in a lonely house in the Scottish Highlands. On a night of a vicious storm, we are introduced to a family of three. Mama is played by Joely Richardson and Maisy is played by Sadie Soverall. They both care for Pa, played by Roger Agojbe, who is confined to a wheelchair and unable to speak.

Things start to go south when two brothers start banging on the front door and cry for help. Matty played by Harry Cadby is screaming for the family to open the door to help his unconscious brother Jack played by Neil Linpow. The brothers eventually get inside and Jack is helped out by Mama where he does return to consciousness. The brothers are fed and they begin to backtrack their steps on the position they are in. The relationship they have with each other is intense with Jack being the dominant of the two. They must move quickly before the feds arrive to inquire about the accident that they were in which made Jack unconscious. But there is something more to discover about this family which is hiding beneath the surface.

Character Development

The Last Exit is about the development of its characters. Spearheaded by Joely Richardson, the rest of the cast feeds from this energy she brings to the film. Maisy brings innocence and naivety to the story who has not been in contact with the outside world. When Matty comes into her world, he brings about a change in her perspective on the outside world. Matty also develops himself through this brief encounter with Maisy. He becomes stronger and more independent of his dominant brother Jack who starts to realize how he treats his brother.

Director Matthias Hoene reveals to us here on FERNTV that character development is of the utmost importance to the foundation of this film. The audience becomes much more engaged and invested with all the characters in The Last Exit. They all have their unique little qualities about them whether they are positive or negative. But the audience begins to discover where they all actually come from. They all may not be an open book but Hoene’s characters have many layers for the audience to peel which makes this film so exciting.

Click below to watch our interview with director Matthias Hoene