The Last Joke

While the sudden end of humanity is a scenario that would bring to mind images of horror in most, there are some who see the comedic potential in such an apocalypse. Vasilis Kalemos and Tasos Batsoulis are two such people - the writers of 2020’s The Last Joke. While the film lacks some polish, the creative gags and sharp dialogue help make up for some of its storytelling deficiencies.

Tasos Batsoulis stars as Avgeris, the last man on earth, having survived a quiet and sudden apocalypse in which every single human has vanished overnight. It’s a thoroughly quiet affair for such a morbid premise, and Batsoulis plays the role as earth’s sole human survivor humorously straight. There’s little time to wallow in misery in his deadpan performance; he would much rather sit at home watching Internet videos and largely sticking to his old routine. Batsoulis carries a heavy burden in The Last Joke, appearing as the only member of the cast for almost all of the runtime. It’s fortunate that his performance is so charming considering he has few other characters to bounce off, and it’s his childlike and endearing performance that will earn many of the film’s deserved laughs. A particular highlight features Avgeris playing football on his own, diving to the ground and rolling around clutching his knee one moment, and the next, switching to the referee blowing his whistle. The film wisely doesn’t waste time languishing in the horror of the situation - this isn’t an episode of The Twilight Zone. Instead, the audience are treated to an absurdist rendition of the ‘last man alive’ trope, where our protagonist is extraordinarily ordinary and largely unwilling to confront the reality of his new situation.

While Batsoulis’ performance is easy to praise, it’s hard not to think that a lot of comedic potential is missed in what is ultimately a constraining premise. The film lacks a strong narrative throughline, and while the comedy mostly hits, The Last Joke may fail to hold an audience’s attention for its 80 minute runtime. Occasionally the film breaks from reality, indulging in non-sequiter dream sequences that parody other film genres. It’s undeniable that these moments stand out, allowing Kalemos and Batsoulis to momentarily escape the restrictive corner they’ve painted themselves into. Sadly though, these moments are soon over, and the audience are returned to the empty, desolate reality of the postapocalypse. There’s not enough narrative structure in the film to support the comedy; each scene of Avgeris navigating an empty world feels as though the writers are spinning the wheels until the next joke, iterating on this unoriginal concept in scenes assembled haphazardly. Comedy is a broad genre, and it doesn’t need to always follow the rules of conventional storytelling. However, The Last Joke needed just a little more narrative complexity, some sense of rising and falling tension, to keep the audience more invested between the jokes.

Judging by the film’s release date, it’s easy to see that The Last Joke’s depiction of torturous boredom in a world suddenly uninhabited by neighbours or strangers was made in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. It’s laudable that the filmmakers took their opportunity to film The Last Joke during this period, and they do succeed in capturing the zeitgeist. There’s an unmistakable resemblance to the quiet streets of national lockdowns, and Avgeris’ obsession with escapism is a sentiment familiar to that which characterised 2020. The Last Joke benefits from this historical context, giving it the quality of a cinematic time-capsule.

While watching The Last Joke, I was reminded of the Fox TV series The Last Man on Earth starring Will Forte. It’s no surprise that this show introduced new supporting characters at the end of the first episode, since the premise of a world empty but for one unremarkable man is fairly limited. Make no mistake: there are glimmers of brilliance in Kalemos and Batsoulis’ film. However, the vehicle is too lumbering and unrefined to stand with confidence. Perhaps their brand of absurd comedy would play better in shorter form media, rather than a feature length film. There is an awful lot to admire about The Last Joke, and it’s doubtless that with some refinement, an exciting comedic duo could emerge from this admirable project.