STELLA’S LAST WEEKEND: An Intimate Ode To Love, Loss, & Family

Nat Wolff and Alex Wolff each have successful acting careers in their own right, which are only growing. Nat received critical acclaim for his performance in Gia Coppola‘s (granddaughter of Francis Ford Coppola) directorial debut, Palo Alto, in 2014. Since then, he has appeared in notable works such as The Fault In Our Stars, Paper Towns, Grandma, Ashby, and the HBO series Room 104. Over the past four years, Alex has starred in hit films like A Birder’s Guide To Everything, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2, My Friend Dahmer, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, The House of Tomorrow, and Hereditary.

Before their newfound screen acting careers, Nat and Alex were two halves of the band “The Naked Brothers Band,” formed when Alex was just in preschool with the help of their mother, actor, writer, producer, and director Polly Draper. It isn’t difficult to fathom how they obtained the prodigious musical talent; their father is jazz pianist Michael Wolff (former band leader on The Arsenio Hall Show). “The Naked Brothers Band’s” fame peaked in 2005, when Draper wrote and directed The Naked Brothers Band: The Movie, followed by a television series two years later, eponymously titled, which ran for two years. Today, the brothers still play and perform. Their band is just called “Nat and Alex Wolff.”

Aside from appearances together in a made-for-TV movie titled Mr. Troop Mom in 2009, the brothers haven’t acted in a film together in almost 10 years. That is until Stella’s Last Weekend, Draper‘s quietly emotive ode to first love, coming of age, resilient familial bonding, and human beings’ canine companions. Not only does Draper play their onscreen mother, but Nat and Alex play onscreen brothers as well. With the talent behind the film, it isn’t hard to find things not to enjoy about the Stella’s Last Weekend.

A tale revolving around a beloved dog’s last weekend is one that may seem primed to ignite waterworks, but, in the end, it is more celebratory and endearing than heartbreaking. The cynical viewer will undoubtedly nit-pick away at various aspects of the Draper‘s admirable film that they may not find suitable to their confined tastes. Stella’s Last Weekend allows itself time to breathe, assuredly meander, and go with the mumblecore-esque flow exuded by the Wolff brothers‘ quirky interpersonal interactions.

Nat & Alex

One might think that it’s easy to play oneself while acting in a film or television show. It isn’t. It may come as no surprise that Nat and Alex are convincing as brothers in Stella’s Last Weekend. The reality is that it is not a given that natural chemistry should happen between family members or couples. Nat and Alex arguably seem the most at ease as they’ve been in respective acting roles with Draper at the helm. Their interactions and verbal exchanges are a mile-a-minute, and not one moment seems phony.

Nat, Alex, and Draper play Jack, Oliver, and Sally, a close-knit family who come together to celebrate their childhood dog’s final days before she has to be put down due to old age. While Jack, Oliver, and Sally bond, Sally’s boyfriend, Ron (Nick Sandow), struggles to understand their eccentric family dynamics, effectively leaving him the odd man out throughout the film. Jack and Oliver constantly make fun of his combover and corny, old-fashioned sensibilities. Sandow serves as the brunt of the joke as Ron, but Draper also writes him as a thoughtful, three-dimensional character. It’s a joy to watch Nat and Alex’s back and forth with Sandow as Jack and Oliver slowly break him down.

The Multifaceted Draper & Co.

Draper famously starred as Ellyn Warren in the hit American television series Thirtysomething, for which she was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. Since then, she’s built an envious career in film and television. The writing in Stella’s Last Weekend, specifically, the dialogue, is exceptional. It’s more than likely that nobody knows Nat and Alex better than Draper does, and it shows; Nat’s calm, confident character offsets Alex’s rowdy, earnest character. There is a decidedly refreshing lack of urgency about Draper‘s direction in this film. She might extend a given scene to explore some interesting interplay, conversation, or exchange going on. She may subtly weave in some soothing background music to add mood. As always, in front of the camera, Draper is incredibly natural.

The film’s soundtrack and score is, as one might imagine, thoroughly enjoyable. Draper‘s husband and Nat and Alex’s father, Michael Wolff, composed the pensive piano score. “Nat and Alex Wolff” also wrote and performed songs that were featured in Stella’s Last Weekend, including “Rollin’ Around” and “Tenderly.” Even Draper‘s brother and father, the prominent venture capitalists Tim Draper and William Henry Draper III, are involved in the film as producers. It is truly, as they say, a family affair.

Stella’s Last Weekend

Considering the film’s title, Stella is somewhat absent throughout. Granted, the canine storyline isn’t intended to take centerstage. Rather, it’s used as a device to examine interpersonal relationships. However, for the most part, the titular event doesn’t exit the viewer’s subconscious until it surfaces as the main plot line in the third act. Most of Stella’s Last Weekend focuses on the aforementioned relationships, as well as a love triangle between Jack, Oliver, and Violet (Paulina Singer). Naturally, with a film whose intention is to focus on family, Violet becomes secondary in character development. That isn’t to say that she doesn’t have a realized arc. She simply doesn’t have enough screen time to become as fully realized as her onscreen counterparts.

Alas, the day comes for Stella and her family of humans to say goodbye to each other. If anyone has ever had a dog, they understand how painful the moment one loses a dog is. It is utterly heartbreaking. The audience may not have spent enough time to bond with Stella, but they don’t need to. Draper understands that, if you’re a dog person, then you understand the emotions Jack, Oliver, and Sally are experiencing. Nat and Alex, never ones to hold their emotions in, do a fine job of projecting such a devastating loss onto each other, before properly internalizing their grief.

Conclusion: What’s Next For Polly Draper?

After skillfully crafting an indie hit like Stella’s Last Weekend, one must ask themselves what’s next on the horizon for Polly Draper? She certainly has a continued promising future as a writer and director. Winner of the Grand Prize at the San Antonio Film Festival, Draper‘s film is worth the price of admission, or, in this case of most people (seeing as this film saw a limited theatrical release), the price of a VOD purchase.

The performances and quality of writing and direction isn’t exactly a surprise. What may be, for some viewers, is the emotional arc that Sandow‘s Ron has. It’s a beautiful performance within a beautiful film. Stella’s Last Weekend is an under-the-radar gem of an independent film.

Are you a fan of “Nat and Alex Wolff?” What did you think of Nat and Alex’s performance as on-screen brothers in Stella’s Last Weekend? Did you enjoy Draper’s direction? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

Stella’s Last Weekend was released theatrically and on VOD on October 12, 2018. For more information on its release, click here.

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