The Last Castle Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
A castle can only have one king
When three star General Irwin is transferred to a maximum security military prison, its warden, Colonel Winter, can't hide his admiration towards the highly decorated and experienced soldier. Irwin has been stripped of his rank for disobedience in a mission, but not of fame. Colonel Winter, who runs the prison with an iron fist, deeply admires the General, but works with completely different methods in order to keep up discipline. After a short while, Irwin can feel Winter's unjust treatment of the inmates. He decides to teach Winter a lesson by taking over command of the facility and thus depriving him of his smug attitude. When Winter decides to participate in what he still thinks of as a game, it may already be too late to win.
| James Gandolfini | |
| Delroy Lindo | |
| Robert Redford | |
| Mark Ruffalo | |
| Steve Burton | |
| Clifton Collins |
| Rod Lurie |
6.40 out of 10 (15017 votes)
Visitor Reviews
good acting but some plot problems
posted on 16 Aug 2009What can you say about Robert Redford? He's been in a lot of movies and has dabbled in some directing too. I've always liked him as an actor and although the movies he's directed don't always appeal to the masses, they've always appealed to me. They have a beautiful cinematic feel and the storylines are excellent but I'm digressing here. The Last Castle was not directed by Redford but he was the primary character and to make things interesting, he's playing opposite `Mr. Soprano' himself, James Gandolfini. Gandolfini has made a living being a bad character on the popular TV series and he gets to do it again in this movie.The Last Castle is about a well-decorated General (Robert Redford) being convicted for a war crime and sent to a military prison. Colonel Winter (James Gandolfini) is the warden overseeing the prison and is a no nonsense type man. Although General Irwin is convicted of a war crime, he's no less respected and the moment it is made known to Winter that this great war hero is coming to his prison, Winter quickly gets his establishment `cleaned up' and his personal war memorabilia collection polished up to impress this man. Things don't quite turn out the way Winter hopes as General Irwin alludes to the Colonel's collection as a sign of a soldier never having seen combat. This comment basically sets up the remainder of the movie as the two battle wills and wits with ultimately one left standing.The interesting thing about this movie is that there really isn't a `bad' character in it. Gandolfini has refined the art of playing a character that does bad things occasionally but still being likable and he carries that into this movie. Although some of the things his character does can be out right despicable, you find yourself still occasionally rooting for him or at the very least sympathizing with him. Redford's character is likable throughout and he has always had a way of exuding a quiet strength and charm that is difficult to ignore. But this movie seemed to show what a talent Gandolfini is.As much as I liked the performances of the main actors, there were some flaws with this movie…namely some of the plot events. The stunts were interesting but a bit on the ridiculous side and in the context of the characters and the personalities they exude, I'd have a hard time believing that Gandolfini's character would allow a mutiny to occur in his prison. There's one scene where the prisoners were able to build a catapult out of common building materials and essentially use it to bring down the guard towers. Now as interesting a concept as this is, it does sound rather ridiculous and all the more so on the screen. Overall, I liked the movie but there are some plot events that you have to take with a grain of salt. Suspend reality for a bit and you'll enjoy the movie.
Good and bad
posted on 16 Aug 2009On the one hand I liked this movie (always start positive :-)) as it gave me a bit the feeling I got in "Shawshank Redemption" : people sticking together in difficult circumstances.On the other hand it felt a bit exaggerated to me : this would never happen in real life... It's off course a movie but with a movie like this, you're aiming at a more realistic approach. Also the end of the movie didn't really satisfy me. It left me with the feeling that it was all for nothing.Conclusion : liked it and liked it not but Robert Redford puts down an excellent acting role which pulls the movie to a positive score.So my final score : 7/10
Hilarious movie packed with clichés
posted on 13 Jul 2009Robert Redford and James Gandolfini deserve better than to be seen in such a painfully silly movie. The script seems inspired by the boyish fantasy of a very unimaginative MacGyver viewer (the bazooka!, the sling shot!,...). It is, however, squeezed out by a 'David Scarpa'. I didn't find any other examples of his work on the IMDb but I am rather curious to see if he can surpass this monstrosity with his next screenplay. But should he really be given a second chance? If you thought the military tactics in "Starship Troopers" were a bit on the primitive side, come and see this one. You will also learn some very deep stuff about castles from the off-screen voice....
Good, but too predictable
posted on 03 Jul 2009MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD:It was great to see Robert Redford in a role that showed his acting ability (it's been a long time!). However, this movie would have been much more enjoyable if: (HERE COME THE SPOILERS):--it wasn't so apparent that Redford would go from a reluctant "I'm just here to serve my time" prisoner to "I'm going to lead a revolution!" hero;--we didn't know from the first moment we heard the stutter that this would be the guy who would die, creating the catalyst for the revolt;--we didn't know that (1) Gandolfini would have a chance to get Redford out of the prison, and refuse; (2) would then do anything he could to discredit him; and finally (3) offer to "make peace" when it was too late to stop the inevitable;--the colonel's "mole" hadn't changed so quickly to a good guy. Come on, we all knew the scene in the colonel's office was staged, especially once we heard that something had been stolen. The who-how-when was so contrived...--we didn't believe that the prisoners would win 90% of the battle with few weapons and much ingenuity. And when the heck did they build that catapult? I know *how* they made it, but when? Where did they hide it?--it wasn't SO very, very obvious how this was going to end. DUH. I could predict down to the last detail when we got to the final ten minutes...and I was right.If I hadn't seen this all before, this would have been a much more enjoyable movie. But everything happened just the way you expected it to happen...no twists, no surprises. If any *one* of the above scenarios had been tweaked a little, this movie would stand out from others of the same genre. No such luck...I'll give it 7 out of 10. Some good character development with Redford and Gandolfini, but also some storylines that were never resolved (what happened to the daughter...more accurately, why was she there in the first place???) Definitely not a movie that I'd watch again given a choice. If you're looking for a good prison movie, watch "Shawshank Redemption" or "Escape from Alcatraz". This one has no surprises.
A study on power and authority from the bottom up
posted on 24 May 2009Like others I saw this almost by chance and with low expectations - yet another prison (and military prison at that!) movie. I found a very interesting treatment of what power is all about, in the well- opposed characters of Redford (the disgraced general) and Gandolfini (the warden -thus mediocre- colonel). At the outset he former is and has nothing (after the suspension of disbelief that an actual high-ranking, highly decorated officer would be sent to prison via court martial) - just another convicted prisoner. The latter has all the elements of power his command affords him. And yet the ex-general starts gaining authority, and power, while the warden starts losing them: there is a quality to understanding authority, and especially, people, that the ex-general has in spades, and the bureaucracy-minded colonel does not even fathom.
Definitely not a chick-flick, but with much broader appeal than one would expect given the billing.
Remind anyone else of Gladiator?
posted on 24 May 2009Fun movie to watch. The idea of a three star general going to jail is intriguing and I was excited by the multitude of singular situations that could result. How will he handle himself on the inside. Is he going to crack or prove men do not ascend the military chain of command for no reason. Redford's character with a little tweaking could have made the the film great. Unfortunately the general in the movie is something of a disappointment. Only one or two scenes show us attributes that reveal the man he is. Mainly he is a boring individual to watch with a very limited coolness factor. Sadly Redford and the writer's had trouble bringing to life a memorable character upon which the movie would hinge. We are left with mediocre entertainment. Nothing that will change your life here. As kind of a side note this movie seemed to be a Gladiator rehash. But not nearly as good. Watch the movie and see if you agree.As a final analysis using the Universal Movie Grading Accepted Scale (UMGAS) I rate this movie as having 4 out of the 10 necessary points required for Universal Acceptance as worthwhile movie.
The Best Movie! A Must SEE
posted on 10 May 2009I watched this movie. In the beginning I was like this is boring, but I watched the rest with my jaw dropped. I also fell in love with mark ruffalo. He brings life into the movie along with james grandolfini and robert redford. watching this movie makes you think hero's have mistakes too. Its a movie I will never get tired of. The characters are excellent, and robert redford has a unique character. its the best military movie I have ever seen. I am not even into action. I like how they set the plot and the storyboard. Could this movie be any better? I would watch this all day if I could. I also like the song. A movie with bad military boys is a must watch movie I give it 9 stars!
Designed to mind-wash the young..
posted on 31 Mar 2009*sigh* Does anyone remember that "Simpsons" episode where Bart became a boyband member? And it turned out that the song "Yvan eht nioj", was a subliminal message? Yes, well, this film felt like a more grown up version of that song. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to find out that the US military financed this.To explain, this movie's main goal, or so it seems to me, is to present the American soldier as a man of integrity, who will always fight for Good, with a capital G. (This despite the fact that the movie is set in a maximum security prison, these inmate, well, BY GOD, they will be MORAL).This, alongside the artificial sense of heightened drama, and the saccharine directing, made the movie one of the worst I've seen.Put frankly, those are TWO AND A HALF HOURS that I will NEVER get back.Who know? Maybe this will appeal to brainless teen boys, but for those searching for some Redford magic...prepare to be disappointed..
fabulous
posted on 31 Mar 2009I've seen a lot of jail movies in my life, and I can tell you this is the best I've seen. More entertainment then THE SHAWSHANK, and much better dialogues then ANIMAL FARM... Simply, this is THE BEST!!! Robert Redford may be an old actor (BUTCH CASSIDY & THE SUNDANCE KID), he's still the best! So if you want to rent (or buy) a great jail movie, don't forget this one! Yes, I know THE ROCK is a better movie, but I recommend this movie. I didn't want to rent it in the store. I thought it was going to be another stupid jail movie... AGAIN. But when I saw it, I loved it! This is a MUST for everyone who conscidderes him/herself as a filmfreak!
Only watch this for a laugh
posted on 09 Mar 2009One of the funniest films I've seen in a long time - but unfortunately I don't think it's meant to be. From the forbidden salutes to jailed general Robert Redford - which prisoners get round by saluting and then smoothing down their hair - to the ridiculous siege weapons which the prisoners have somehow been able to make in the prison workshops. I mean, we know the director is trying to compare the prison riot to a medieval siege but do we really need all the prisoners running around with shields made of trays, bows and arrows and a trebuchet (oh yes). I was only waiting for the final swordfight between Redford and the warden to be shown as shadows cast on the prison wall. It's totally laughable and has one of the cheesiest endings you will ever see.
Impressive
posted on 05 Mar 2009This movie really though me off. I thought it was going to be a war picture. It was and it wasn't. If you haven't seen this film, I don't want to give anything away becuase I thought it was very surprising at times. I thought it was great that they put an old-time classic actor like Robert Redford in this movie. He did a wonderful job and the camera work reminded me of Saving Private Ryan. I thought this film did a wonderful job with action and the twists and turns in this movie are pretty impressive. Watch this movie.
Very enjoyable movie
posted on 27 Feb 2009I think people are reading into this movie too much. There's this little thing called literary license--it's a movie, it's not supposed to be based 100% on fact.Moving along from there, I think it was a very good movie. From what I could tell, the military information was accurate, even the history of the salute (at least according to the textbook the US Air Force issued me, so go figure).The only complaint I had about this movie was the disregard for the lives of the guards at the end. While it was somewhat entertaining to see the prisoners launching homemade firebombs into the guard towers, I don't think it's very realistic. Those men were still soldiers, and murder is still murder.Along the same lines though, I would hope that the guards would not have obeyed COL Winter's orders to abuse the prisoner, but sometimes people abuse the power given to them.On the whole though, I rather enjoyed this movie, and I know the other people who saw it with me did as well--maybe it's just because I was in a room full of people training to be officers in various branches of the military, but I think there were a lot of good leadership lessons in that movie.And for those of you who can only see the bad in the movie, I think you should just grow up and chill out--it's just a movie, after all.
Some effective performances shine through
posted on 30 Jan 2009The Last Castle, from director Rod Lurie, isn't a war movie, yet not really a prison movie either (wait, it is, nevermind). It stars Robert Redford, his first good role in quite a long while, who gets sent to a military prison (knicknamed the castle) where a corrupt Colonel, played to close perfection by James Gandolfini, sometimes doesn't play by the rules and deep down can be considered a sadist. This eventually prompts Redford to lead the rest of the prison in a mission to take over the castle.That might've been too much info (NOT IF YOU SAW THE TRAILER!), but it doesn't deter the film from being more often than not quite compelling and enthralling, especially near the last leg of the film. Character flaws and uneeded scenes pull this movie down, however if only to see Redford and (especially) Gandolfini should the movie be seen. Delroy Lindo (another General) and Mark Ruffalo (another prisoner) give equally powerful supporting roles alongside the two stars. Grade: Slightly A-
Ridiculous, and a total waste of time
posted on 14 Jan 2009***SPOILERS ALARM***What a waste. How come such an intelligent people can participate in such a bad movie! The main (and fatal) problem is, of course, the script. It is so full of clichés, so illogical, so - why not say it - stupid, that it insults the audience. It could easily pass as a parody on patriotic jail movies.And the ending. Come on! Give us a LITTLE credit. The worst soap opera is preferable, because soap operas do not pretend to be what they are not.
Robert Redford vehicle. Also cheesy ending, no surprises
posted on 23 Dec 2008This film is certainly watchable, but don't expect anything above average. The plot is so obvious (decent guy goes to prison for a 'gallant' mistake, sadistic warden, other inmates ready to follow the mercurial new inmate, rise-up against the system, and so on to obvious ending) that I spent the time guessing which inmate was going to fulfil which 'key' plot turn and what methods were going to be employed to bring about the inevitable uprising...This is where the average became silly. Robert Redford somehow marshals a few hundred inmates (all ex-army like him)and then moulds them (back) into a fighting force with respect etc etc and on top of this mean feat they also manage to build an arsenal of medieval weaponry - including a 30 foot trebuchet. Well the warden may be a sadist, but he's obviously an idiot. And the less said about the flag waving, god bless America, dying hero ending the better.Again - not unwatchable at all. Totally forgettable, but can hold the attention just about.
Terrific Performances + Implausibilities/Bad Ending = Good Movie That Could Have Been Great
posted on 13 Dec 2008Contains Spoilers!! THE LAST CASTLE is the kind of good near-miss film that, in a way, is much more frustrating than a film that is truly and unredeemably awful. People watch a film like KUNG POW! ENTER THE FIST and know (if they hated the film--I'm assuming most people who saw that abomination didn't like it very much) that nothing could have been done to save it. But THE LAST CASTLE is a movie that's faraway and so close; the things in it that work aren't blotted out by the stuff that doesn't, but they are overshadowed to an unfortunate extent.What works? Simply put, the performances, especially the lead performances, are superb. Robert Redford has never had a problem playing characters who are leaders, who are used to getting what they want. The brilliant twist on that, presented through General Eugene Irwin, is that Redford doesn't just start out not really wanting anything, he basically finishes the film that way too. Oh, he wants Colonel Winter to lose his job and to give the ex-soldiers in the prison their pride and respect back, but he wants nothing for himself--after he concedes that he will not have a chance to have a relationship with his daugher and grandson. That 1 scene with Robin Wright Penn ends up selling, believably, Irwin's turn from wanting to do his time quietly to being a martyr for the cause of others. He doesn't even seem to hate Winter that much, he's just disgusted by him, and driven to show that he's a better military man at 10% of his resources than Winter is at 100%. Mr. Redford is great at showing a man who lives for the burden of command, even though that burden has left him imprisoned and could kill him.James Gandolfini is even better as Winter. It's very interesting, the way Mr. Gandolfini changes his persona so subtly to fit the role of Winter. Obviously, one difference is that his voice is almost deathly silent, a fair cry from the booming rage/joy/commanding nature of Tony Soprano, but his voice is also leeched of emotion; there's none of the introspection and black humor his Leroy had in THE MEXICAN. Something bad happened to Winter (never revealed explicitly what that was) that ruined him. He knows that he is all that he can be and that it's not nearly enough, and that Irwin either has the parts he's missing or had the life that enabled him to find them. The brilliant development in Rod Lurie's script is seeing how much Winter hates himself, and is ultimately not surprised that Irwin doesn't even care enough to hate him in return. This was an Oscar-caliber turn by Mr. Gandolfini. The other performances are on the sides, but Mark Ruffalo, Frank Military, Clifton Collins, and Steve Burton are all great in roles with rich characterization but limited screen time. And Delroy Lindo commands the screen in his brief turn as a General who doesn't even try to hide that he believes every word of Irwin's over Winter's.That's what drives the first 3/4 of THE LAST CASTLE and is very compelling. Unfortunately, 90 minutes of terrific filmmaking are badly undercut by the poor finale. Oh, in a dramatic sense this kind of climax is good, and the final scene is actually good, but the action scenes here are pathetic. There's no clear sense of action, the items the prisoners use are deus ex machina overkill, and the climactic effort (by Ruffalo's helicopter pilot) had me snickering when I should have been enthralled. So it was a mixed bag, but when a movie keeps you going for most of a 2 hours+ length and has such great acting, it gets a positive overall review.Note: Some folks have criticized the "flag-waving" material in the film and said it reeked of hyper-patriotism after 9/11. THE LAST CASTLE finished filming long before 9/11, and the emphasis on the American flag in the plot of this movie is not only appropriate, but intelligent in showing the role of the flag in military leadership. Ironically, the early posters for THE LAST CASTLE featured an upside-down American flag (the distress signal), which were quickly (and also appropriately) changed after 9/11 to ones with Redford's and Gandolfini's faces.
Not bad at all.
posted on 03 Dec 2008This is not the sort of film that you would expect Robert Redford to do but i'm glad he did because all in all this is a highly enjoyable movie.It's great to see James Gandolfini getting some top film roles too after his brilliant performances in the Sopranos.Here he plays the roll of a military prison governor who after taking in a top ranking officer as a prisoner starts to lose his grip on the prison he runs. Although a lot of what goes on is very far fetched this film is none the less very entertaining and the 130 minutes soon flies by. Better than i expected. 8 out of 10.
Robert Redford past his peak
posted on 26 Oct 2008The Last Castle was a movie that was not very well thought out. The plot was sketchy and the acting mediocre. The most unbelievable part was the mass explosions and homemade weapons at the end. i don't know how in a maximum security prison they could have gotten all the materials for their homemade rocket launchers, there bombs and grappling hooks. the acting was actually pretty good but the movie in general just had an unbelievable plot.
Brilliant, understated acting by Redford and Gandolfini carries this tragic movie.Gandolfin
posted on 20 Oct 2008Gandolfini (of "Sopranos" fame and an ageing but effectiveRedford lend telling facial expressions and understated emotionsto a tragic story of former American Armed Forces personnel (alllevels and services) now in a high security military prison. Gandolfini is a sadistic warden, and Redford is a formerhero-general. They clash, and Redford wins over the inmates andrestores their self confidence and pride with tragic consequencesincluding some deaths, and a violent prisoner revolt. There isterrific suspense throughout, but especially in the last half hour. Several "inmates" are excellent in their small roles. This movie isabout self respect against impossible odds. The ending is verysad. I would like a sequel with Gandolfini on court martial and trialfor the terrible tings he does in his role as Warden. Exhaustingmovie.
excessive patriotism is sickening!
posted on 18 Aug 2009need one say more? You've got to be an over zealous American to take all this in. Reading most of the other comments seems to mirror these sentiments. If just once, American's wouldn't come off so smuggly as more patriotic than anyone one else on the planet..I'm sure more of the world would give this picture a fairer shake.