A Última Chance

I just saw this recently, and found it interesting that the details of the case in it follow quite closely those of the controversial execution of Karla Faye Tucker Brown. Karla committed a double murder much like that portrayed in the film, and, like the film's Cindy Liggett, reformed her life in prison. Also like Liggett, she was a fairly attractive, articulate woman who argued eloquently, though futilely, for clemency. Unlike Liggett, however, Karla became a born-again Christian, and her clemency plea was supported by several prominent pastors including Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson. It is thus notable that the governor who signed her death warrant was none other than our current, allegedly born-again President, George W. Bush. It is possible that nothing in Bush's checkered career reveals his true character more clearly than his callous, smirking mockery of Karla's dignified plea for her life during an interview with Talk Magazine the year after her execution.

Incidentally, Karla Faye Tucker Brown was killed by the state of Texas in 1998, two years after this film came out. That suggests that the filmmakers might have been trying to to make an argument for clemency, as Errol Morris did for Randall Adams with his documentary "The Thin Blue Line." If so, it failed miserably.

For people who believe in second chances. "Last Dance" belongs to my top 10 lawyer movies of all time below "A Few Good Men," "Class Action" and "The Verdict." I've seen this movie a dozen of times and as a law student I must say that it is better than your average John Grisham legal drama maybe except for "The Rainmaker." This film takes on the professional and ethical dilemma of a young clemency attorney Rick Hayes played by Rob Morrow who befriends a death row inmate convicted of double murder Cindy Liggett played by Sharon Stone. She is about to be executed. He moves heaven and earth to save her from death by lethal injection. The rest of the cast are excellent from Peter Gallagher and Jack Thompson. Randy Quaid gives a very good performance as a sarcastic veteran clemency attorney Sam Burns.

For me personally that is always a real torture to watch type of movies,like this was,I feel myself so lucky from some reasons why I had seen a movie,without the danger of somebody wants to execute me.

Sharon Stone is absolutely great in this role,and I saying this against,I'am absolutely not a fan of her acting,and movies.

All the way I have to say,be careful,and think again before you see this,cause this film is enough strong to change your mood,and maybe is not for everybody.

I feels like the script wants to be independent,about the question,but it is not work well all the time,but when they really wants to say they has personal opinions,that is also directly keeps distance.

7/10

This movie is an attack to death sentences, it shows how these ones can be cruel and how someone can change after understanding his own mistakes. The idea is good but not the realization: this movie is slow and boring. But here there is a very lovely Sharon Stone: here she shows to be a very good actress, beside being a very very beautiful woman. Conclusion: just watch it on TV.

In case you're wondering, yes, "Last Dance" is clearly a film against capital punishment. But what makes it interesting is how it does not dwell on the morality of whether it's right or wrong to execute convicted criminals, but rather it focuses on the corruption of human government which uses lives for political manipulation. Whether you're in favor of capital punishment or not, we can all agree that we shouldn't send people to their deaths just so someone can win an election, right? That's the core theme of this film. One prisoner may be pardoned--why?--not because he's worthy but simply because the public likes him and will vote for any politician who will pardon him. Another prisoner may not be so politically valuable, so he ends up behind the 8 ball.

With this approach in mind, "Last Dance" leads us through a nightmarish labyrinth of human justice where innocence and guilt have nothing to do with punishment. Sharon Stone plays "Cindy" a condemned killer who brutally murdered two people 12 years prior. What follows is not an issue of whether she deserves to live or die, but it's an issue of whether her fate should be determined by a small handful of powerful people with only their own interests in mind.

There's a great line from the movie where one character shirks his responsibility with: "It's just the system" and another character responds "we ARE the system." Without devolving into a cartoonish conspiracy thriller, this film takes a broad and disturbing look at the ongoing failure of human justice. It's reminiscent of Orson Welles' masterpiece "The Trial" in the way that it doesn't accuse any individual culprit but rather the entire collective "system" which seems to perpetuate itself simply by people refusing to take a stand.

While there's not a lot of action, it's definitely a roller-coaster as our hero Ricky (Rob Morrow) struggles to set things right. Don't expect a fast paced flick with car chases and evil villains on his tail. No, this is the real world, and the only villains are his bosses, colleagues and politicians who thwart his progress by simply doing what they do every day.

Excellent acting by Sharon Stone makes you connect with her even though you remain fully aware that she is a killer. There's one fantastic scene in particular where you feel her exasperation come to a boil. It expresses the exasperation of American citizens who are so sick of corruption that they're ready to give up. Meanwhile "Ricky" symbolizes the spirit of the individual who is ready to fight it to the end.

Directed by Bruce Beresford, known for the sentimental "Driving Miss Daisy", this film definitely knows how to tug at your emotions. But at the same time it doesn't lose itself in sappy melodrama.

If movies like this interest you, I highly recommend "Monster" and the accompanying documentary "Aileen Wurnos: Life and Death of a Serial Killer". If you like films that explore the failure of the court system and why it fails, definitely check out the grandfather of such films "12 Angry Men", a slow yet riveting film set entirely within 1 room as jurors expose their own prejudices & selfish interests while deciding the fate of a young boy on trial. Films like these are practically historical documents as well as highly powerful cinema.