"The Last Deal" is a low-budget crime drama with a focus on the story, a thoroughly successful production design and a colour scheme that transports you straight to California. Jonathan Salemi manages to tell a calm and grounded story with this film, which doesn't convince with big twists and brutal action, but with a charming lead actor and a story based on real events. The film follows an interesting approach: it sheds light on the drug and especially the marijuana milieu in California after the legalisation of cannabis. The central theme is how an illegal scene has to adapt as a result of the sudden legalisation and has to face new problems despite the supposedly improved situation.
Anthony Molinari embodies the main character, who has to struggle with precisely this change and really endeavours to comply with the new regulations and continue his initially illegal activity legally. However, a rejection of his legal sales licence forces him to enter into one last dirty deal. The secret star of the film is Sala Baker, who despite the short screen time is able to play out his charm an d impresses with his physicality and simple coolness. Disasters like "Madame Web" are currently running in cinemas and are really intentionally pulling money out of your pocket with striking marketing, obvious deceptive packaging and the least amount of effort. "The Last Deal" isn't a masterpiece of creativity and therefore can't compete with indie hits like "Beyond the infinite two minutes" or similar, but it trumps with something that many films lack these days: honest entertainment. It's an indie film with a low budget that makes the best of it and only wants one thing: 90 minutes of cinematic entertainment. And it succeeds.
