bobbyf The Mod Squad's Michael Cole heads up this great made-for-TV thriller about a young couple on the run from authorities in a near-future world where couples are limited to one child per family. I saw this film several times on Saturday afternoon TV- gosh I hate infomercials. I miss great Saturday afternoon movies. The story in "The Last Child" takes place in the United States in a near future where population growth has caused the government to control the birth rate. Families are limited to one child. What makes this story compelling, is that the couple in question has had a child that died, and this "second" child is not permitted under the law. They are on the run for nearby Canada (of all places) where the law is not so imposing. Now, this is where I could digress into all kinds of political rhetoric, or force my own opinion on you, but in lieu of that, I'll tell you that the ensuing "pursuit" is what makes up the meat of the story. There are stereotypical "bad guys" determined to stop the couple from having their child and there are "sympathetic" good guys who endanger themselves by helping the young couple flee to safety. There's some low budget special effects, but over all, this is a good film for its time that imposes some compelling questions about how far political agendas should be pushed, etc. Personally, this stands as one of the best made-for-TV sci-fi films ever made. The acting and script make up for any technical shortcomings. If you can catch it- go for it.

Tony C So this reviewer's pro-life. This one's anti-socialized medicine. This one doesn't trust Bush. This one doesn't trust Democrats.Hey, guys, how was THE MOVIE?! You know, the one that came out in 1971 and had nothing to do with anything you're talking about? My answer: It was okay. Exciting in parts, kinda cheesy in production values as most TV movies are. Nothing that will likely stick with you forever or bear repeat viewings, but kinda thrilling for 70-some minutes. Van Heflin and Edward Asner were good, and the rest of the cast is mostly 70s actors who stuck mostly to supporting roles and occasional TV movies because none of them really had that much star charisma to speak of. Worth a watch if you catch it on cable or in the dollar bin.

[email protected] This movie was one of the most frightening I've ever seen because it is not only plausible, but may actually come to pass. I only wish it could be shown again and again on national television to remind us all of what can happen if the government ever takes over the health care system. When we undertake to surrender that much control of our lives to politicians and bureaucrats, the results will be catastrophic. Even today (2005) more and more control is shoved into our lives under the pretext of "security," and we are constantly treated to genuine and heartfelt reasons why we should surrender ever more control to the "authorities" who only wish us well. It is horrific to contemplate!

dnels The Last Child is an excellent movie which was classified as science Fiction and shows how irrational demand for the control of population can get out of hand and how one couple was willing and able to defy an unjust law so that the law could be changed