You know that word all the young folks like to use? You know the one. 

Cringe. 

Cringe meet Nikki. 

Nikki, played to humbling and humorous perfection by Bri Bagley, is the life of the party. We've all got a Nikki in our lives unless, well, we are the Nikki in our lives. She's the queen of questionable decisions and impulsive merriment. She's never seen a shot of liquor she'll say no to, however, she's just so darn likable that you just kind of look at her and laugh along with it all. 

Until, well, Nikki makes one questionable too many and cringe becomes kaput. 

Okay, not quite completely kaput. Nikki wakes up and finds herself in purgatory, her most recent questionable decision now leaving her on trial in a cosmic courtroom where her fate depends on coming face-to-face with her most cringeworthy moments. 

It's not pretty. 

Written by Bagley with Mike Pratt directing, Last Call is a dark comedy meets metaphysical morality tale with a surprising yet undeniable thread of charm throughout. I had to laugh a bit as the closing credits were rolling, Bagley's own e-mail catching my eye as she closed out her correspondence with a "Sent with a smile" closure that made me wonder who even submitted this film. Bri or Nikki? 

Who knows?

All I know is that Last Call is sharp storytelling filled with genuine moments of humor yet never making light of the dead serious, pun intended, subject matter as our troubled yet endearing Nikki reckons with accountability, memory, and the stories she, and we, tell ourselves when we're called on the carpet. 

Or maybe that's killed on the carpet? I dunno. 

Bagley's an absolute gem as Nikki, capturing the full spectrum of a young woman living in a cosmic haze of cringeworthy memories and the divine judges who will determine her fate. While this isn't a storyline that hasn't been told before, it's a tricky one and Bagley nicely balances the humor with an eye on universal truths and the ever-increasing awareness that Nikki can no longer just laugh off her parade of mistakes and questionable choices. 

I adored Nikki. Heck, at one time in life I probably was Nikki. This is what really makes Last Call work. Bagley makes sure that amidst all the chaos that we still give a damn about Nikki and that, maybe just maybe, there's a little bit of Nikki in an awful lot of us. 

Lensing by Evan Haacke is effective throughout. The lens toys with Nikki, our own eyes tempted to laugh even when we know we ought not. We're quietly judging her friends, yet realizing we are her friends. Tech credits are solid across the board. 

Kimberlee Connor also impresses as Val, while the rest of this ensemble clearly gets exactly the story Bagley is trying to tell here. 

Last Call is just getting started on its indie fest run. I can't imagine indie and micro-fests won't snatch up this insightful and entertaining short film. 

Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic