The Last Chapter

Now that the Frenchman Bernard is retired, he is starting the final chapter of his life. He's moving into a new apartment, which will probably be his last. The much younger Gianluca Matarrese films his lover as they have sex—they have a BDSM relationship in which Bernard is the master—as well as during more mundane activities: searching for a lost cat, carefully packing up the dishware. Their conversations are about Bernard’s life, the greater part of which is now behind him. He lost both his first and his great love to AIDS. He himself came through this dark period physically unscathed, but now the years are slipping by. Matarrese portrays his lover intimately. The close-ups of Bernard’s face express life experience, wisdom, and above all, love. In titles between scenes, Matarrese shares messages that the men send each other. “We are what we are, unfiltered.” The result is an open and unabashed portrait of love in one of its many manifestations. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)