They're acting out their desperation in a way that demonstrates that they have nothing to lose. They're strangers as the film opens. Then again, there's an opposites-attract chemistry that deftly suggests Jack Kerouac and Neal Cassady in an openly gay 1990s variation on Kerouac's On the Road . The Living End clearly benefits from the circumstances under which it was made. Cast and crew filmed when they could, sometimes reaching the burn-out stage at the same time as the characters.
Nothing seems faked.
As Jon's best friend, who goes to pieces in her own way once he takes off, Darcy Marta is sympathetic without becoming stereotypical. The version of The Living End that opens today at the Broadway Market Cinemas is slightly different than the 16mm print that played the Seattle International Film Festival a few months ago. For more information, click here .