User reviews

This is by far one of the best indie films I've seen in a very long time. It's a great combination of good acting, balancing humor and suspense while leveraging a great script that is impossible to predict.

Indie films usually struggle with budget and acting, so if you can strip the need for budget and get some quality actors to come on board you're gonna have a shot at a winner...this is one of those times.

Joceline Donahue (from The House of the Devil) and Jim Cummings hit the ball out of the park with their acting in this. Also, even being in just one remote setting primarily, the film never gets boring and the last third is super engaging. Great effort guys!!! Kudos to all involved! 8.2/10.

... and i mean this in a far more positive way than it sounds!

A slow-burning B-movie with a single-setting scenario and American Rust atmosphere, Yuma County introduces lovably one-dimensional characters (again I mean well, they are so by design) - right until the plot decides to have a lil bit of macabre fun and put them in the most complex, unresolvable, dilemmatic (most often life or death) situations. The second half of the movie recompenses for the viewer's patience with the first: it is dark and hilarious and sad and unnerving, and more; there's twists and turns worthy of a James Patterson novel, and soon enough it all escalates faster than you can say -escalation-...

In short: One can see where the good ratings throughout come from. This is an enjoyable little gem of a movie that also doesn't overstay its welcome. Technically and acting-wise it does a fine enough job as well.

While stranded at a rural Arizona rest stop, a traveling salesman is thrust into a dire hostage situation by the arrival of two bank robbers with no qualms about using cruelty-or cold, hard steel-to protect their bloodstained fortune.

It reminded me a little of Natural Born Killers, and From Dusk til Dawn. In that it's slightly offbeat, filmed in a very stylised manner, and every single person in the film carries out their role with skill and panache.

It's one of those crazy films where you simply don't know what's going to happen next, and when it does, you think nothing more crazy can happen, then it does!

It's never slow or dull, it's never silly, it's just excellent bloody adventure with tons of twist. I loved it and gave it a 7.

Short review: I enjoyed 'The Last Stop in Yuma County', however I feel like there was room for me to enjoy it even more. I typically love these single-setting mystery/thrillers. I felt like the film was consistently good throughout, but it was never quite able to take a step up and reach that next level to make it something truly great.

The film is a lot of fun though. There are all the usual rag-tag misfits in terms of characters. Some nice dashes of humour along the way and some good menacing villains that are not to be messed with. The ending was also pretty wild and made sure things ended on a reasonably memorable note. 7/10.

...I was really surprised the movie was this good. Its premise is simple. Small diner in middle of nowhere. Where nothing really happens. Life is a cup of coffee and you live on.

The assemblance of character cast was interesting. No big names, just simple people that made it work. They are good at what they do. They entertain us, that made the difference. It gave the moments grit from all sides of life. Crooks, geeks, elderly, blue collars..etc.

Directer did great job, keeping us idling along just right. It never got boring. Kept us waiting for what could or would happen next.

Ambiance worked great. Dry, hot, desolate weather. How can anyone live here? But they do.

Very enjoyable, flick.

You've seen this movie before, this doesn't really do anything new that those haven't done. It's well acted, tightly and competently written, and rather predictable. They try to throw a wrench at the end, but eh, I've seen enough of these types of movies before. The "sweater unraveling movie".

You start out with a loose thread, and the initial pull on it; "No Gas at the Gas Station, since they're in a super remote area, and no gas for the next 100 Miles." Then more and more people come to pull on that loose thread speeding up the destruction of that sweater, 'til it's a pile of yarn. There's your movie.

Its strength is in the acting, and doing CRISP, CLEAN, BELIEVABLE DIALOG and ACTIONS. No one really behaves in a way that doesn't make sense, all actions taken in this movie makes sense and the results of those choices also makes sense. It's a tight and clean script. Which also what makes it mediocre. It's a little too by the books and safe. They realize that by the end and TRY, but fail, TRY to throw a slight curve ball, but you as a wise audience member calls it from a mile away.

You watch this once, and you're good. You won't feel like you were robbed of your time, but ONCE is more than enough. There aren't clever clues foreshadowing the next move in the series of events, hidden in the scenery. It bears everything out in the open.

Nice interesting take on the heist take genre. Lots of inspiration from obviously Quintin, spaghetti westerns especially The Good the Bad and the Ugly. The story unfolds in this wild paranoid situation that can blow up at any moment. You will sit on the edge of the seat during this one.

This film is also set in what looked to me the 60s, so you get a great bit of Americana here and who doesn't love that? The small town in the middle of know where where the gas truck is late an the gas station is out of gas sets up the plot for the entire movie, which is great story telling device. Very possible scenario out west especially in the 60s. I also, love that everyone has a gun on them, which isn't that out of the ordinary in a small American town...though I am only speaking from a current modern perspective of living is small town USA.

Some of the negatives, is sort of basic Hollywood trope on how guns work, which is rather silly, but at least in this movie the unrealistic gun battle, is very important to set up the morality of the characters.

We all believe we are good people, but when the opportunity is there to get away with a crime, this is what really sets apart from the good the bad and the ugly.

At an isolated rest stop in Yuma County, Arizona in the 1970s, several characters are forced to wait at the nearby diner after the resupply truck for the gas station is running late including two bank robbers who stole $700,000.

The Last Stop in Yuma County is the feature debut of writer director Francis Galluppi who began his career in music before transitioning to film with short films High Desert Hell and The Gemini Project. A passion project for Galluppi, he spent years trying to get the film made with a larger studio only for disagreements between the financiers and Galluppi over the direction of the material to stonewall progress. After that point Galluppi accepted the offer of his executive producer, James Claeys, who sold his home in order to acquire the film's estimated $1 million budget. Using a roster of smaller names and character actors to fill out the cast, the film was a true independent project with the cast mainly coming together through goodwill and shared passion. The film has received a lot of considerable acclaim with director Sam Raimi so impressed with the film he personally hired Galluppi to direct a film in the Evil Dead series. The Last Stop in Yuma County is a solid showcase of Galluppi's strengths as a writer director who creates an engaging thriller with a limited location, talented cast, and guerilla ingenuity.

The Last Stop in Yuma County's premise is simple in that it takes a bunch of different characters with big personalities and builds tension in a small location using the old standard of the "money in a bag". Galluppi does a nice job of establishing his characters who range from overworked waitresses and hard luck traveling salesman to bank robbers on a hair trigger or youthful crooks who fancy themselves as romanticized versions of Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate while ignoring what happened to them. The cast made up mostly of smaller character actors do well with the mateiral including Jim Cummings' unnamed knife salesman who's very much a wrong man at the wrong place at the wrong time or Richard Brake and Nicholas Logan as the bank robbing duo who start on simmer until building to an explosive release. The film stays great for 70 minutes but once it reaches its conclusion it does kind of feel like Galluppi struggled to wrap the film up in a way that was up to the level of its first two thirds. There's nothing really wrong with the film's ending as it's more or less the old ironic standard that's been the basis for this kind of story seen as far back as The Treasure of Sierra Madre, but it does feel like a case where it's kind of stretching itself in order to get to that point.

The Last Stop in Yuma County is an effective small scale thriller that uses its limited resources and location to strong effect using characters with strong personalities to create a tense thriller that works its way up from simmer to a boil. I personally wasn't a fan of the third act as I felt it paled in comparison to the first two thirds, but it's a strong and effective showcase of Galluppi's abilities as a writer and director.

With each new narrative development, the film's game of cat and mouse grows more complex... Some people lay on to the danger they're in, while others are blissfully unaware. The diner becomes a pressure cooker, and you never know who's going to make the move, either accidentally or on purpose, that sets the whole thing off...

You can feel Quentin Tarantino's artistic DNA coursing through this story... There are little moments of blackhearted comedy among the bloodshed, but through it all, The Last Stop in Yuma County makes sure that those gunshots resonate. It isn't about the violence overall as we're watching people die messy, unnecessary deaths that come about for no good reason. They just happened to run out of gas at the worst possible time...

Galluppi isn't afraid to kill any of his darlings. Who's left standing by the day's end becomes just as surprising as the insanely entertaining journey getting there... The single location setting is richly textured, with production designer Charlie Textor ensuring the rest stop has as much personality as the elite group stuck there. The vibrant color grading further enriches the production value. Despite the desolate setting...

Also the primary thing that stands tall is the camera work gorgeous enough that reflects the mood of the desert...Also the score combines with what's in the frame in such a way that it satisfies the haunting minds of the atmosphere...While the sound design helps to design or to establish the tension that the least or minute barren desert too contributes...

And finally what to say about the casting everybody did their job in perfection that you can't move the eyes off the screen & therefore keeping our adrenaline pumping until the last act...One can't forget "FARGO" or even " THE HATEFUL EIGHT" Where the director honors the G. O. A. T...

Overall it's everybody's cup of coffee to rejuvenate consuming the medium called Cinema...

Summary: The movie is entertaining with a theme of western slow burner. But does not go beyond a good one time watch.

Details:

• The western vibe with desert, dust, heat, guns, bad guys, is all spot-on and gets you hooked into the story

• In the beginning the slow-burn is good but soon the movie picks up pace and there are lot of small twists and turns

• But you dont really feel bad for any character or emotionally moved/attached(except maybe for the scenes with baby) or have deep philosophical state of mind at any point in the movie or in the end.

• it has traces of Tarantino style western, coenesque theme of idiocy meeting evil with surprising coincidences/accidents but fails to match up to their level.

• Basically its a movie about greed which keeps you glued when its on but after watching the movie you are underwhelmed and forget this movie quickly.

No pun intended - the movie almost entirely plays in one location. Something that some may not feel to hot about, but the movie has enough ideas and enough suspense (plus twists) for it to work! Not to mention the actors to really elevate it. That is Richard Brake to name one - so good, so charismatic ... so powerful! But even the "old couple" is able to smitten the viewer. Especially grandpa - a hand gesture alone says more than a thousand words ... and works like charm too.

That all said, the movie is boiling hot - not just because the AC is not working. You have to wait for something to happen at first ... but when the movie lets the lid off ... well it really blows off entirely. Morality may be hard to find - but that is what we get served ... which also may not be exactly what you will be ... expecting! Enjoy this for what it is ... a great b-movie with an idea and dialog that go hand in hand ... I've got some silverware to sell you - watch out for the audio extra during the end credits.

Let me preface this review by stating that I love these claustrophobic small venue movies. You can really put a lot of tension into these scenarios. Same has been done here. The premise is really nice. A gas station without gas is accommodating a bunch of strangers while they're waiting for the gas truck and some of them have their secrets. You're instantly hooked.

The problem occurs in the last third of the movie. Until then you're really enjoying yourself and sit on the edge of your seat but the resolution of some of the conflicts are underwhelming and nonsensical from the characters behavior. And the acting in the last third is horrendous.

I really enjoyed the direction and cinematography. Sim of the actors have done a great job. However, the third act falls apart and some of the actors' performances really take you out of the movie.

It's a shame cause I really liked it till then.

The Last Stop in Yuma County is a fun little flick, well produced, the cast solid. I agree, not everything may really make sense in a logical kind of way, but the suspense and how the story takes its turns did hold my attention. Maybe the timing and mix of elements of comedy into the plot sometimes did not work too well, and are the weakest in link in the chain, but anyway, I was still well entertained. The Last Stop in Yuma County reminds me a little of Tarantino's The Hateful Eight, but without reaching its quality, of course - so if you are in the mood for a movie like The Hateful Eight or Bad Times at the El Royale comes to mind, you might give this one a try.

It might be an overstatement but at the end this movie gave me Reservoir Dogs vibes. In his directorial debut, Francis Galluppi has made one of the most enjoyable crime-thriller in recent times and that too with a bunch of underrated cast. It's dark, it funny and it's intense.

At last resting stop before Arizona a knife salesman get stranded due to unavailability of fuel at the gas station. So, he waits for the refill truck at the adjoining café which slowly gets crowded with other customers who are struck due to the same reason. Things go south when a two of them are runaways from a recent robbery.

A totally unpredictable movie with a chaotic ending, the one we more often get from Tarantino. The short duration is the added advantage that makes it worth watching. So go for it!!!

This was enjoyable and very unexpected because its a movie of Cummings, this was a little indie 85 minutes crime movie with q lot of interesting idead, its not a mind blowing movie of course but it is very enjoyable in this age when big budget hollywood movies always sucks, i like little movies like this because it can help indie filmmakers to made their own little movies, if you have passion for movies you can make any movie you want, so im talking to you movie makers, don't get discourages after seeing dune 2, not every movie needs to be big as that one, you just try to enjoy making movies ok.

At a lean, flab free 90mins this mash up of Coen Brothers and Tarantino reminded me of other 90s dialogue heavy crime thrillers-Two Days in the Valley, Things to Do in Denver When You are Dead to No Country for Old Men (it even features Gene Jones who played the gas station attendant).

In an age of 2hr + crime films/actioners it's refreshing to see something that is well written, funny and knows/wears its influences on it's sleeve. It maybe derivative in it's telling from other films set in small diners on the desert highway but I was invested in it's slight story thanks to sound, believable characters(Jocelin Donahue is touching and real as the kindly waitress Charlotte and the ever reliable character actor Richard Brake is even more creepy than he was in Barbarian) Okay, so it wont win awards of originality but at this length I'm not complaining.

A well-produced film that clocks in at 1h 30m giving us a quick tight story that delivers solid suspense, tension and entertainment.

The characters are basic. The type of person they are shown in the first few seconds when introducing them. The premise isn't too original but the execution is done well enough to merit a watch. Clearly taking inspiration from Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs & The Hateful Eight, two great films.

The music does a lot of heavy lifting delivering key moments that wouldn't work without it. The screenplay isn't winning no awards but it does the job.

There are a couple scenes that could have been edited to speed them up but equally the tension is rising within the drawn out segments so it could go either way and the director chose drawn out.

There are some character choices that annoyed me a little but it doesn't completely ruin the experience. No moments are out of character, I just wished that guy turned left

The best parts of the film is Richard Brake acting, the music and the majority of the film being laced with suspense & tension. I got what I expected going in.

I do wish there were more to the story so it could develop into some greater. It's held back by it's simple nature as well as being a plus

For a directorial debut, this is promising and I'm be looking forward to what Francis Galluppi delivers next.

No in depth review.

If you like a snappy crime thriller, see this movie.

It's like Reservoir Dogs, mostly in that you wish there were more of it.

Like RD, it's so tasty, yet so brief, that you're left longing for more footage.

Oh no. I'm only at half my character count.

Remember Mr. Blonde? What's up with him? Give us a few more minutes with Mr. Blonde. Oh wait--he's dead?

What happened to Mr. Blue?

Why can't I have more of these guys?

That's what Yuma is like.

Dismiss any review that calls it slow.

The setup is meticulous and the payoff is brutal.

As the credits roll, for once, in an ocean of overlong movies, you'll be wishing Yuma had been bloated.

It isn't. It's trimmed so lean that you'll almost feel like you didn't get a full serving.

That's a compliment.

I gave the film 8/10 instead of 10/10. I deducted 2 points because I have a problem with the bathroom arrangement.

Send people out and around to the motel? What? Does Yelp not exist in 1974?

Like most indi films, it started out strong with a strong premise and very promising story. However, eventually like most indi films, it runs out of ideas as if the writers just making it up as it goes along. The ending is extremely weak and kinda ruined the whole film to be honest.

The writing is extremely creative, that's what gets you engaged in the beginning. There is a lot of creative humor and suspense, keeping you wondering what is coming next. This is why there's a build up to the end, which did not deliver. Was hoping for something creative to top it off, saving your best for the end.

Overall it is entertaining for the most part.

6/10.

I love it when they don't spend millions, no special effects, only one location, not an original idea, and yet... spell-binding. Very original because you think you know what is going to happen but then it surprises you. Similar to but not as hard core as, "When Ya Comin Back Red Ryder" (1979). All the cast were spot on, I only recognized the older man who was in, No Country for Old Men. I had not heard of it before happening upon it so it was a great surprise. I had not heard of the writer/director Francis Galluppi, and have since learned via IMDB that since 2017 he has made a couple of shorts and a couple of music videos before this project. I look forward to what he will do next.

"The Last Stop in Yuma County," the debut film from director Francis Galluppi, offers an intense and thrilling ride that packs a lot into its singular, rural Arizona setting. The story revolves around a traveling salesman who, while stranded at a desolate rest stop, suddenly finds himself caught in a harrowing hostage situation initiated by two ruthless bank robbers. Galluppi's choice to set the entire drama in one location amplifies the claustrophobic tension, which is skillfully maintained throughout the film. The retro style pays homage to the gritty crime thrillers of the 70s, providing a nostalgic touch that enhances the overall visual appeal and atmosphere.

The acting is a real highlight, with performances that bring depth and authenticity to the high-stakes drama. This strong ensemble cast ensures that every moment of the film feels urgent and genuine, echoing the intensity often found in Safdie Brothers films, yet with a unique flair that sets it apart. Although the film is mostly engaging and well-executed, there are a few spots where the pacing stumbles and the focus wavers, hinting at areas where Galluppi might further hone his skills. Despite these minor flaws, "The Last Stop in Yuma County" is a compelling watch, especially for those who appreciate tightly wound narratives and a solid throwback vibe. It's a promising start for Galluppi, showcasing his potential to grow into a noteworthy filmmaker in the genre.

## A tense, suspenseful thriller with a Tarantino twist 🤠🔪💰

The Last Stop in Yuma County is a 2023 American crime thriller film written and directed by Francis Galluppi. It stars Jim Cummings, Jocelin Donahue, Richard Brake, Faizon Love, and Michael Abbott Jr.

The film is set in a remote desert location in Yuma County, Arizona, in the 1970s. A travelling knives salesman stops at a filling station, where he is informed by the attendant, Vernon, that the station's pumps are dry and that there are no other filling stations for over 100 miles. However, Vernon tells him that a refueling truck is expected to arrive soon.

While awaiting the next fuel truck, the salesman finds himself in a high-stakes hostage situation when two bank robbers arrive, also stranded and seeking fuel. The robbers will stop at nothing to protect their bloodstained fortune, and the situation quickly becomes dire.

The film has been praised for its clever plot, strong performances, and effective direction. The cinematography is also noteworthy, capturing the harsh beauty of the Arizona desert landscape. The film has a runtime of 90 minutes and is rated R for violence and language.

The Last Stop in Yuma County is a gripping and intense thriller that keeps viewers on the edge of their seats. It is a tightly wound narrative that delivers solid suspense, tension, and entertainment. The film has a quirky, indie neo-noir Western feel with a dash of Coen Brothers and a sprinkle of Tarantino.

Overall, The Last Stop in Yuma County is a compelling watch and a promising directorial debut from Francis Galluppi.