The Last Kiss

It's been more than a year since I was one of the many extras in the Madison filming of "The Last Kiss." I got to see the movie a couple of months ago, and I'm finally writing about it.

Living in Madison and being 26, I thought the movie hit down-to-Earth as Zach Braff's character (Michael) and his friends all feel "old" at age 30 because they live in a college town. For me, this is most obvious when going to the downtown bars, most of which are college bars [one of the many complaints about the bar scene here is that there aren't enough bars for 25-35 year-olds].

I really enjoyed the opening scene because it takes place on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and there is a nice view of the Capitol. I also finally see what the "legs" were that were cast when I was an extra. (No one then really knew what their legs would be used for.)

I was quite disappointed by how much of the Madison scenes were cut from the final product. We spent 10 hours at Bascom Hill (starting at 6 a.m.!), but only 15 seconds of that scene were used (and it was cut so poorly that it made the scene somewhat hard to understand within the context of the movie). I think I saw my head in the shot of Bascom Hill facing toward the Capitol, but I'll have to buy the DVD and freeze that frame to know for sure. I thought I had a great chance to see myself walking behind Blythe Danner and Harold Ramis, but that also didn't make it in.

Watching the Union Terrace scene was cool. I didn't partake in the filming that day, but it was neat to see all the people I was with for 14+ hours (including the stand-ins for Zach Braff and Rachel Bilson, both of whom were sitting at the table shown at the end of the scene).

After accepting the disappointment of not seeing myself, I was hopeful that my car would make it in the movie. Afterall, Braff and Rachel Bilson ("Kim") have an argument right in front of it on State Street. In the scene in which Kim visits Michael at work, I was sure my car scene would be next, and it actually would have, but that scene also was cut. Damn! I hope the DVD includes all the deleted scenes.

One other comment: I'm glad they made the dorm room a realistic size, not like a suite in "Saved by the Bell: The College Years."

Good movie overall, and I'm not just saying that because it takes place in Madison or that I possibly could be in it. :-)