The Last Stand - L'ultima sfida

A lot of my favourite films growing up and to this day are some of Arnold's Classics like T2, Predator and countless others. Although not one of his best, The Last Stand is one of Schwarzeneggers better films and perfect for him to do what he does best - shoot bad guys and crack one liners. This film is a quality made action film that contains some innovative stuff blending old school car chases, blazing gunfights and an intriguing yet simple story in a solid modern action movie. Other than the action,the film blends comedy very nicely. The whole theatre was cracking up especially at the characters of Johnny Knoxville and Luiz Guzman. The movie overall is a solid, fun and entertaining film that keeps the momentum going to the final climax which is sure not to disappoint. If that sounds appealing to you, Check it out and you'll be sure to enjoy.

Overall: Solid 7/10

I grew up watching Arnold, I own every film of his, I am what you would call a serious Schwarzenegger fan. I have waited a decade for his return to the cinema, and I wasn't disappointed. The Last Stand isn't perfect, but Arnold fans can rejoice, for he truly is back!!

The premise (for those that haven't watched the trailer a dozen times like me) is a Mexican cartel boss (Eduardo Noriega) has escaped custody during transport and is heading to the Mexican border, and he is going to get there by going through the sleepy town of Sommerton, Arizona. Arnold is the Sheriff in this sleepy little town, and he is the FBI's last hope at stopping the ruthless gangster.

This movie is full of intense, bloody action, exciting car chases (thanks to a supped up Corvette ZR1 with over one thousand horsepower!) and funny one liner's. The film never takes itself too serious (which is good thing) and is surprisingly funny throughout. Arnold's acting is a little rusty, but he more than made up for it in the action scenes. And the (many) action sequences were exciting and bloody, the theater kept cheering out loud. The pacing was perfect, the film flew by.

The cast was great...Luis Guzman is hilarious as Arnold's Deputy, Forest Whitaker as the lead FBI agent, Peter Stormare as the maniacal "right hand man" villain, Johnny Knoxville as the town clown, Harry Dean Stanton as the crotchety old farmer, the list goes on...

The film was everything I wanted from an Arnold movie, it's fun(!), full of fast paced action and lots of (funny) one liner's. The non-Arnold fan probably won't get much from this, but this movie was made for Arnold fans, and it delivers.

This movie is a lot of fun for what it is, a mindless, bloody, shoot em up action movie complete with some Schwarzenegger one liners.

The Last Stand (2013)

Well, if you take this too seriously you're missing the point. It's a comedy, and if not quite a parody of a tough lawman against the odds plot, it pumps up all the clichés nicely. It's fast, well done, and appropriately preposterous. And Arnold Schwarzenegger is true to form, even joking once about his getting old.

In a way, this is Arnold trying to be a bit like Clint. Clint Eastwood that is. Because Schwarzenegger is playing a sheriff in a lonely western town. When a bad boy drug lord (a very cute one) is set to be blast through in his Corvette, this sheriff, Ray Owens, won't tolerate it. Of course. Who would?

In this hyped up against-the-odds yarn, we have some excellent if well-worn clichés. First, the FBI gets its usual due. They are a professional team led by the ever-enjoyable Forrest Whittaker, but of course they are a bit too professional, and arrogant, and they make constant little mistakes of misjudgment. So the bad guy on the loose is on collision course with Owens with his rag-tag friends in his Arizona border town.

I didn't expect to like this, but ended up captivated. It works the same way a "Die Hard" movie works--fast plot, do good hero, nasty bad guys, and jokes. It's not realistic, but the characters are believable. This is in contrast to a movie I saw a couple days ago along the same lines (loner man against evil), "Jack Reacher," which was filled with such strained dialog and absurd plot conditions it was irritating. "The Last Stand" has the advantage of not taking itself seriously, and so it's great fun and well done fun all along.

Yes, it's stupid. I mean, come on, that's the point! But it's smart stupid. If you have an open mind for this stuff, give it a shot.

And splendid for us, the audience. Arnie's back! After small cameos in The Rundown ( This blink-and-you-miss-it cameo also served as passing the torch to new action star, The Rock aka Dwayne Johnson) and The Expendables finally comes an action film with Arnold as the lead.

Directed by a South Korean Jee-woon Kim who is known for bloody and violent films so this information promises a great film filled with right ingredients for Schwarzenegger movie. The film starts off slow to develop the characters which is great at least you care about the characters. Arnold might be older now but he's still go it to be an action hero. The only problem is that this film is not doing well at the box office. The planned return of the 80's is not going according to plan, which is sad because the films reminding us of the most probably best times of action films are well made films. I have seen it in a packed theatre so I guess that is a sign positive word of mouth will bring a lot of Arnold's fans to theatre.

Johnny Knoxville is not only tolerable but he is also funny. His character bring some of the funniest moments in the film. Jaimie Alexander shows once again that she can pull of amazing kick-ass heroine. Let's hope she gets more screen time in the next Thor movie. Harry Dean Stanton who is her for one only scene is just unforgettable just as the dialogue in his scene. Forest Whitaker, an Oscar Winner, gives his usual magnificent performance which sometimes seems very funny given the context of the film and its ridiculous plot.

The violence in modern movies is not the same as in the 80s, 90s. I don't want to sound like a maniac but given the credit of Jee-woon Kim I expected this film to be more "off the chain". It is like the studio executives came on the set and told the director to tone the violence and blood down. Even when things get violent it is just not the same as it used to be. Despite some flaws this film still is a great mindless fun action ride and that is exactly what I expected and it's great to see Arnold back on the big screen.