Echoing films like “Into the Wild” or the documentary “Grizzly Man," this dramatic film is about an intrepid character who challenges Nature and finds that Nature can bite back hard.
It’s based on the true story of the death of John Allen Chau, a Chinese-American evangelical who became obsessed with bringing Christianity to the primitive North Sentinel Island—part of an island chain in the Indian Ocean, characterized in the film as the “Mount Everest” for missionaries.
The Indian government officially bans outside contact with the tribe—partly to protect the natives from germs and other ill influences; and partly to protect trespassers who will almost certainly be slaughtered.
The film is anchored by Sky Yang’s performance as Chau—nicely measured between idealistic courage and naïve delusion. Director Justin Lin (who broke out at Sundance with 2002’s “Better Luck Tomorrow”) tells Chau’s story with a sweeping, globe-hopping energy. But a couple of sub-plots look Hollywood-phony, (I don’t know if they’re based in fact) and they don’t amount to much. Notably, a smart young policewomen (played by Radhika Apte) tries to halt Chau’s suicidal mission, but is hampered by a pig-headed male superior.
On the KPCW sun rating system, "Last Days" receives three out of five suns.
