Watch The Last Match For Free

This is How Movies Should Be Made

Purely Joyful Movie!

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

I've seen so few good 'gay-themed' films. "La partida" aka "The Last Match" is one of the great ones. From the director of another excellent film, "Clandestinos," we have a rare instance where gay characters aren't portrayed as ridiculous, clown-like stereotypes. The leads don't wear eyeliner, and they aren't go-go boys who hang out in bars, and they don't have drug problems. Instead we have two leads who are just regular people, who discover that they have a mutual attraction for each other. Living in Cuba, with a wife that supports him financially, Reinier is an avid futbol player, who is hoping to go pro, as a way of escaping a country where freedom does not exist. He also wants to escape the poverty that envelops him and his family and mates. So desperate for a way out, his own mother pushes him towards male prostitution, hoping that her young son will marry a foreigner, and thus give them all a way out of Cuba. Likewise Yosvani is in an unhappy relationship with a female, also supporting him. The two guys figure out that they like each other more than they should, and soon it turns into love. From that point everything and everyone seems set on destroying what the two have found with each other.This is a sad story. It is romantic in a way that so few movies of this genre are. The two lead actors are great, especially Milton Garcia as Yosvani. He loves his friend in this intense way that we all wish we could be loved. His eyes are so sad, as though he knows from the start, that the love story will never have a happy ending. But he doesn't give up. This guy was brilliant.Director Antonio Hens has a way of showing his audience a different kind of gay world, one that is free of dumb stereotypes. In "Clandestinos" we have a gay terrorist. And here we have a guy who plays football, and a street thug, who just happen to be attracted to the same sex. Films like this are so important, in that they teach the uninformed that gays are not "freaks," but in many cases completely typical men and women that just happen to be drawn to the same sex. As long as they are portrayed as silly stereotypes, the hatred and prejudice will be perpetuated. We need more cinema like this. It's a great love story, well-made and beautifully written. I recommend this movie as well as "Clandestinos," for people looking for something different.

I am sure life was not easy in Cuba before the Castros, but in spite of their nice slogans and levelling activities (often compelling), living conditions have worsened, particularly after the collapse of the socialist camp since 1990ies. So many continue or have been forced to live in poverty, and those wealthier are often engaged in dubious trades.All this we can see in Spanish-Cuban La Partida, where daily life is ruled by earning and adoring money, and even sexuality is subject to this, no matter what God or nature has determined. And deviations from this, including feelings and caring, do not end / work out as in fairy-tales... Performances are brave and distinct, at least 1 point from me for that, plus the viewers obtain images how living and infrastructure in present Havana look like, and probably would feel pity and sad.In XXI century, Cuban people deserve much more than doddering revolutionaries are willing and able to offer.

A tragic love story between two soccer mates Reinier and Yosvani amidst the neighborhood slums of Havana and prostitution. What makes me love the movie is that you get to root for these seemingly real characters until the very end. We see Reinier's hand-to-mouth existence to survive for his wife and child. We see Yosvani's dependency on his girlfriend and her shark father. We see the male prostitution in the streets and how Reinier's family approves of this work to live. And then we see how the love blossom between two macho individuals living in poverty and ask themselves in the process where would this lead to. Although both are dreamy characters, Reinier is more practical in views on love and money.It is not a feel-good film but will certainly have an impact on you after watching the film.Natural acting from the main leads who are both good-looking. Fast-paced and never boring. Good slum photography.A film worth watching.

I did tick the 'spoilers' box, but it doesn't seem to be showing, so: Spoilers apply!I don't know what the legal status of homosexuality is in Cuba, but 'La Partida' is set in Havana and tells the tale of Reinier, a young father who pays for his taste in new clothes by turning tricks on the seafront at night. By day he plays football on some waste ground with a bunch of mates. One of those mates is Yosvani, who makes his living by working in the import business run by his fiancée's thuggish father. A drunken kiss from Reinier one night confuses Yosvani - he's repelled by the excesses of the seafront rent boys, but is unable to resist starting an affair with Reinier.The friend who watched this film with me pointed out that gay dramas often end with one of the protagonists dying - and so it is here, with one of our boys not alive as the end credits roll. For many film-makers, it seems, the only way for a gay romance to end is fatally! But apart from that this is an engrossing film: not so much for the romance, which follows predictable film lines, but because of the fact it is set in Cuba: how accurate is its portrayal of poverty there I am not qualified to judge, but given the self-imposed Castro regime isn't brave enough to allow free and fair elections I suspect it's fairly accurate. As for the acting, the two young leads do not disgrace themselves: Milton García as Yosvani is especially good in portraying the journey from macho tough guy to bewildered dumped lover. So this is definitely worth watching, at least once.