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The Last Stand (2013)


daisho2004

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I wonder if I should see Red 1?

Yes, you should. It's a blast. Even though there are some plot holes, the cast is so awesome I really didn't care. I'm excited for RED 2.

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OpiumKungFuCracker

I hope this movie does well too in the long run, dvd/bluray/vod sales.. I guess people are still hungover from Oscar season and Arnold being away for more than a decade will have audiences reluctant to go watch an Arnold film... That works best for me because the theater that I went to had nobody in it maybe at least 15 in a very large auditorium and I had the whole 2nd half of the auditorium to myself... It was awesome, no teenagers/ no phone ringing off/ no texting/ no farting/ no nothing... I guess it also helps that I went to a 4:30 matinee showing...

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masterofoneinchpunch
Yes, you should. It's a blast. Even though there are some plot holes, the cast is so awesome I really didn't care. I'm excited for RED 2.

I'll add to my list of movies to pick up. I like Willis so I'm sure I'll enjoy it.

... It was awesome, no teenagers/ no phone ringing off/ no texting/ no farting/ no nothing... I guess it also helps that I went to a 4:30 matinee showing...

I prefer going at off times. It has lead to a couple of times of getting the whole theater to myself (Searching for Sugar Man, Brave) and sometimes with only one other person in the theater (Case De Mi Padre). But lately, because of winter I've been with full or almost full audiences at matinee (Life of Pi, Silver Linings Playbook).

I don't mind crowds if they behave. But with certain films they tend not too.

Back to The Last Stand: During the cornfield chase I was thinking of a similar one in The Hunter (with Steve McQueen). I don't think it is close enough to be an homage, but it did remind me of it.

More blather: A couple of similarities I noticed between Commando and The Last Stand: both mentioned sending people piece by piece through the mail. Both stated Arnold as being old (that cracked me up while watch Commando, if only Bennett knew.

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Decided to go and see this today. I was surprised to see that almost every seat was taken! One of the best cinema experiences I've had in a long time. Excellent film, lots of laughs, no annoying teenagers, comfortable seats. I want to see it again!

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Just watched this and was pleasently surprised. Only a handful of people in the cinema but hearing the affectionate laughter at the action and jokes was great, I think that this was exactly the right comeback vehicle for Arnie - reccomended!

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Elemental Fist
Regardless of the small budget the movie has been classed as an instant BOMB. A #10 opening for an Arnie movie is a shocker. Clearly American audiences have no taste and would rather see such megastars as Bradley Cooper and Shire LeBeef. I only hope this (and the upcoming Stallone and Willis films) do well internationally otherwise we could see the end of the mainstream R-rated actioner.

If only they'd kill him before the movies begin..........

Apparently Johnny Knoxville is box office poison, unless it's Jackass

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masterofoneinchpunch

Usually it is the lead not the supporting players that play into the initial box office.

I am thinking this film is this year's Get the Gringo: underappreciated action film with older lead with checkered past that hurt box office receipts :bigsmile:

I loved it too, wrote small review a page back on this.

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Guest Markgway

Yeah, but just think how much better The Last Stand and Get the Gringo would have been had they starred Shia LeBeouf or Taylor Lautner!?!

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Elemental Fist

I was joking about how some people blame on certain actors who are not stars of a movie but are blamed when a movie (especially one that gets good reviews) flop

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Went to see this today with my friend and really enjoyed it! Have always liked Kim Ji Woon's style and this is no different, noticed he used a Korean DP and it showed, I thought the film looked great. Definately didn't deserve to bomb at the box office.

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Guest Markgway

You're lucky. I missed Arnie's comeback which I'm bummed about...

The film only lasted one week at my local multiplex and charted #19 in its second weekend.

It made less money here than the abysmally reviewed Movie 43.

I despair.

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Ahh that sucks, sorry to hear that. My friends convinced the reason it flopped was because of a poor trailer. I think it's because people would rather see homo shit involving gender confused vampires.

Must apologise for the homophobic undertones to this post, must be something to do with the film last night and the distinct lack of girly men in it. No girly men would survive in the last stand. Only big men with big guns :tongue:

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Is that a penis metaphor?

Lol, no, I think the general american fixation with big guns is probably due to disadequate use of their penises. You know on one level there's a repulsion with what last stand was, an ode to weapons and blowing shit up. I think the boundaries do blur somewhat between film and real life as film like any art can be a reflection of our society at large. On the other hand however, damn it was fun and I like seeing the old guard still being able to lay it down, I think that's a positive message in fact, senior members of our society are still capable of holding it down and kicking arse.

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GOLDEN DRAGON YIN-YANG

At my local library I see the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie:

 

'LAST STAND'

last-stand-movie-poster.thumb.jpg.80d411

 

Never heard of it, so not knowing what to expect I said lets watch this yesterday evening.

 

Wow!

 

Was I surprised.

 

A masterpiece in my minds eye.

 

How on earth can actors and CGI make such ruckus?

Last-StandTop500.thumb.jpg.af4d2a97644f3

 

 

With out a doubt some of the best action I  have ever seen anywhere.

 

Great characters.

The_Last_Stand_Luis_Guzman.thumb.jpg.6b2

 

 

 

If you have not seen this.

 

Do so.

 

And that car.

0ba1fb18a68b1e0f9df3b6e9e7684818.thumb.j

 

GD Y-Y

 

 

 

 

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Secret Executioner

This one came out a couple of years ago, and I'm pretty sure it had its own thread on the old KFC Forum. I don't remember if people overall liked it though.

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GOLDEN DRAGON YIN-YANG

This one came out a couple of years ago, and I'm pretty sure it had its own thread on the old KFC Forum. I don't remember if people overall liked it though.

AS I STATED THOUGHT THIS WAS SUPERB,

 

WITHOUT A DOUBT.

 

GD Y-Y

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masterofoneinchpunch

Here is my review of when I watched the movie in the theater (which you should have done :D).   Note that it is positive.

The Last Stand (2013: Kim Jee-woon)
I have not seen a film on opening day since Drive. I tend to avoid the Friday crowds (and extra fees where I go), but crowds have been busy throughout the week and I had to see something. I did not have the time to go to any coffee shop so I was more coherent than usual. I made it in time for the first trailer for the latest Die Hard and later for more Bruce Willis enjoyment and to my surprise there was one for Red 2. I wonder if I should see Red 1. This was shown in the second largest theater and the crowd was somewhat noisy, but luckily about half full so I got a good seat toward the back with no one behind me. Unfortunately, there was nothing unusual about the boilerplate crowd except for the vast amount of Arnold accent imitations that permeated the theater.

This is the first 2013 film I have seen. I was not expecting much since this is a come back film for Arnold, except that I noticed it was directed by Kim Jee-woon who had directed a horror film A Tale of Two Sisters which I had thought quite highly off and an action film The Good, The Bad, The Weird which I had liked and felt it was influenced by Hollywood action films regardless of the Spaghetti Western name. I thought he might be a good fit. Many an action aficionado will state the corruptive effect for Asian action auteurs in Hollywood such as John Woo (though some of his Hollywood output like Face Off I really like) and Ringo Lam. But with a relatively smaller budget at 30 million there might not be as much pressure from the producers, though it may have trouble making that money back with a weak opening weekend.

Arnold is Ray Owens a local sheriff who was a successful cop in LA but wanted to work at a slower pace (in some ways this character reminds me of the Tom Selleck Stone Cold character). He has a rag tag assortment of inexperienced deputies including Luis Guzman and eventually Johnny Knoxville. Meanwhile a drug kingpin Gabriel Cortez (Eduardo Noriega: The Devil's Backbone) is being shipped under Agent John Bannister (Forest Whitaker: Ghost Dog), but is unfortunately freed with the help of a large magnetic device and lots of hired mercenaries. He is then heading toward the border to escape through a town already partially taken over by his gang led by Burrell (Peter Stormare: Get the Gringo).

The cinematography from Kim Ji-yong was impressive. It is not overtly shaky like much of the Michael Bay and Bourne films that has dominated and influenced the action landscape -- detrimentally in my opinion. But it is not static either. It should not be with the amount of car chases, gun fights and general mayhem.

It is interesting how MMA style has been influencing action fight scenes over the past few years. There is a nice one here involving Arnold and Eduardo Noriega that is appropriately intelligent enough between a smaller faster man and a stronger older one.* I watched Commando the following night and I can easily say that fight finale with Vernon Wells is much worse, though The Last Stand has nowhere near the amount of one-liners. Arnold's delivery of dialogue is a bit rusty here, but his presence is still formidable. I am curious on how The Tomb is going to turn out. I hope it is as good as this film.

This was a good start to the 2013 season. While the plot was nothing extraordinary and the federal and local police were pretty inept in dealing with these hired mercenaries, this is a fun and fast bloody popcorn film with plenty of humor and exploding bodies.

There are no additional scenes after the credits.

* Spoilers below: though sometimes I do wonder when someone is stunned why you do not continue the assault instead of letting them get back to their senses. This seems an extremely dangerous approach with criminal psychopaths. Of course then the fight scene would be over sooner. I thought the power slam after the arm-bar/scissor choke was quite appropriate. It is similar in that aspect to the triangle choke/power slam combination in one of my favorite fights of all-time with Donnie Yen and Collin Chou in Flash Point.

Peter Stormare does not seem to live much in films does he?

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I enjoyed The Last Stand much more than I expected to at the time. They should have let Kim Jee-Woon have a crack at directing the last Expendables film. Eduardo Noriega did a great job as the films main villain.

 

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I haven't seen this yet, but I did watch Escape Plan and loved it. It was cheesy and over the top, just how an action movie featuring Sly and/or Arnie should be, regardless of what era. I'll be sure to seek Last Stand out. Thanks for the review Masterof1.

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GOLDEN DRAGON YIN-YANG

I enjoyed The Last Stand much more than I expected to at the time. They should have let Kim Jee-Woon have a crack at directing the last Expendables film. Eduardo Noriega did a great job as the films main villain.

 

Agreed. I never saw this guy before>

 

GD Y-Y

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Agreed. I never saw this guy before>

 

GD Y-Y

I'd never seen him before this film either dude, but he is an established actor.

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