The Last Conception

My big problem with lesbian pregnancy films is how predictable they are. Most of them follow variations on the same formula. The Last Conception is not wholly predictable. Parts of it are pretty dang out there. So, it’s got that going for it. But it’s also a pretty uneven film.

Lesbian Savarna works at a fertility clinic and has a girlfriend of two years named Charley. But Savarna’s parents aren’t aware that she’s gay and moreover, really want to know when Savarna’s gonna have kids. Her parents come to terms with the gay thing, but the issue of children still remains heavily pushed on Savarna. As it turns out, Savarna’s parents have a larger motivation than your standard traditional immigrant parents. Savarna’s family are the potential descendants of Siddhartha, THE founder of Buddism. And Savarna is the only descendant left who can carry on the line.

A major part of The Last Conception’s uneven quality is the comedy. This film has a funny premise and especially in the second half, some good jokes. But before we get to those good jokes, we have to sit through the film outlining the genuinely disturbing issues this plot involves. Savarna’s reaction to her parents’ pressure for children in the first half of the film is flat rejection. She has many scenes discussing with many characters how fucked up this ask is. As she says, everyone is expecting her to give up bodily autonomy for the sake of an old belief and concept of a “pure bloodline.” That’s fucked up! Savarna is also unenthusiastic about children. She and Charley talked about it and maybe someday she wants to be a mother, but she expresses no interest in being pregnant in the near future if at all.

But, once Savarna has exhausted all the reasons this plot is fucked up, she does a 180 and is now okay with it? This change in opinion really feels like the writers realized they wouldn’t have a movie if their lead didn’t go along with the premise. So, Savarna starts trying to get pregnant and it’s all pretty standard and unremarkable. Normal lesbian pregnancy movie stuff. Personally, I wished they’d focused more on the religious pressure and background of all of this. Savarna’s grandmother is the leader of a devout sect. And there’s a few funny moments in regards to religious devotees now turning up. I wanted more of that instead of the fairly well-trodden path of artificial insemination is frustrating and doesn’t usually work first time. I’ve seen all that. I’ve seen a lot less stories about what if your grandma ran a cult?

The strongest joke in The Last Conception is the one they go out on. There’s a further twist to the already absurd premise which is really funny. But I’m torn about it. Because ending the film on the premise of that joke is inherently funny. It’s like the whole movie lead up to this punchline. But also, the premise of the joke is so interesting I’m annoyed we don’t get to see what happened with it! Again, I’ve seen lesbian pregnancy storylines a bunch. And that’s still a lot of this movie. What The Last Conception introduces with that final punchline is a much more novel premise that I was really excited to see play out. Instead, the credits rolled and that left me a touch disappointed.

I give The Last Conception props for adding such a weird and absurd element to its lesbian pregnancy comedy film. It definitely does make this one stand out. But in execution, it’s pretty imperfect. I liked the second half of the film way more than the first half. The first half of the film feels too standard and not remotely comedic enough for where the plot goes. I like it when movies are weird, surprising and novel. And The Last Conception found a premise that fits those criteria and seemingly tried to neuter it. Just go full weird with it, I beg of you.

Overall rating: 5.5/10

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