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Warning! Spoilers ahead for the Scrubs revival, Episode 9, “My Celebration.”
The Scrubs revival’s finale, “My Celebration,” reunites Zach Braff with former co-star Rachel Bilson for the first time in two decades. They last appeared on-screen together in a 2006 movie that failed to move the needle in any meaningful way. While it remains a cult classic among fans of the actors involved, the project has generally been banished to the substantial realm of Hollywood flops. So, while pairing Braff with Bilson a second time might sound like a recipe for disaster on paper, it’s actually a great way to redeem the feature-length project that never found success.
The Last Kiss came at a time when both Braff and Bilson were enjoying their first patches of great success. Bilson was nearing the end of her run as Summer Roberts in The O.C., and her co-star was in the middle of playing JD in Scrubs‘ original series. At the time, successfully transitioning from TV to film was seen as the desirable thing for Hollywood actors, but The Last Kiss wasn’t the big-screen break either of them was probably hoping for. Even on a fairly modest budget of $20 million, The Last Kiss bombed at the box office, and reviews were, at best, mixed. Still, it has provided a pretty meta opening for Bilson to enter the Scrubs universe.
Why Rachel Bilson’s ‘Scrubs’ Character Helps Redeem ‘The Last Kiss’
The Last Kiss revolves around Zach Braff as Michael, a man in his thirties who is terrified that he’s on the verge of committing to the wrong woman. While still in a relationship with her, he starts to have an emotional (and eventually physical) affair with Rachel Bilson’s Kim. The movie does have some interesting, vaguely philosophical nuances, but Michael largely comes across as a pretty unlikable guy. By extension, Bilson’s character doesn’t come off too well, either. Kim is the other woman who causes Michael to stray from his actual romantic partner, who has done nothing wrong and deserves better. The movie’s messaging is ambiguous, bordering on confused, and ends in such a way that it allows the audience to believe Michael gets off largely scot-free, if they want to.
Inversely, Bilson plays Charlie in the Scrubs revival’s “My Celebration.” She certainly seems to be single and a perfect match for JD. The episode ends with the implication that the pair will build on their impromptu wedding date if ABC orders another season of the show. For all the controversy surrounding The Last Kiss‘ divisive storyline, Braff and Bilson did have great chemistry in the movie, and Scrubs proves that dynamic hasn’t gone anywhere since 2006. The difference is that this time their characters have found each other when they’re both romantically available. It feels like a very intentional move to cast Bilson as Charlie, and it will be interesting to see where their obvious attraction to each other leads.
Is ‘The Last Kiss’ Worth Watching?
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Rotten Tomatoes rates The Last Kiss at 45%, based on 132 official reviews. The site’s popcornmeter, which is how audiences rate movies, gives it a slightly more respectable score of 59%, based on over 50,000 people logging on and rating it. So, the movie is relatively well-known, but its reputation isn’t a particularly positive one. Some who’ve seen The Last Kiss praise it for eliciting the difficult conversations many thirty-somethings aren’t bold enough to have, whereas others criticize it for both spreading the wrong message and being a frustrating watch when it comes to how the characters interact.
The Last Kiss is a remake of a 2001 Italian movie of the same name. However, unlike the American version, the original was given a 2010 sequel named Kiss Me Again.
Personally, I think the ratings on Rotten Tomatoes are fair. The Last Kiss is by no means a masterpiece, and while it was very on-brand within the genre for its era, it now feels like something approaching a parody of the 2000s quirky indie flick that it is. It takes some pretty big swings when trying to come across as profoundly wise. Sometimes it succeeds in doing so, but there’s not much in there that has made a lasting impact on Hollywood or popular culture in general. If you go into it expecting a quasi-nostalgic 90 minutes or so, you’ll probably not be disappointed, but the best thing to come out of it is Braff and Bilson’s Scrubs reunion so many years later.
