‘Last Flight Home’ by Ondi Timoner

Ondi Timoner tells the story of her father, Eli Timoner. From his early days as an entrepreneur and founder of an airline, to his last moments dying at home surrounded by his family, the film shows an intimate portrait of a family as they discuss and enact his end-of-life wishes. The film touches on the effect that the choice of medical aid in dying has on the family, the procedure provided for under California’s End of Life Option Act, and the family’s personal choices for how to use the 15-day waiting period that is required by the California law. The film ends with a powerful eulogy given by one of Eli Timoner’s daughters, who is a Rabbi, and which speaks to the importance of tying one’s worth to the love they provide for those around them, rather than their ability to provide for a family.

Last Flight Home takes place in the California legal context, where Eli Timoner is fully eligible for medical aid in dying under the End of Life Option Act. Only 11 states in the United States give residents the option to choose medical aid in dying. The film depicts certain criteria of the law and how the family approaches the prescribed procedure. Eli Timoner frequently mentions that he does not want to go through the 15-day waiting process, however his family is shown explaining why the waiting process exists and how they will make the most of that time. There is a poignant scene where Eli Timoner must practice drinking out of a cup with a straw on his own, as the Act does not allow his family to assist him in taking the assisted death medication. The film also depicts the hurdles that a patient seeking medical assistance in dying must go through in California. When providing the medication to their father, several of his children are seen perhaps crossing the line of assisting him in drinking it, leaving the viewer to consider how the law’s hurdles impact those who seek medical assistance in dying as well as those who support their family members through the process.