The Last Stand (2013)

I’ll be back….Wait….I am back!

Dir: Jee-woon Kim (2012)

The Last Stand (2013) marks the official return of Arnold Schwarzenegger to the silver screen for the first time in only 5 months.  Although this film is being marketed as Arnold’s big return, he did have a small supporting role in last years The Expendables 2  making this another “old guy action film” where hopefully the nostalgia factor will distract you from what you are actually seeing.

The Last Stand (2013) is the story of Ray Owens (played by Schwarzenegger), a former LAPD narcotics detective, who is now the sheriff of Sommerton Junction, a small town near the border of Arizona and Mexico. Unknowingly to Owens, the most dangerous Mexican cartel leader has escaped from custody in Las Vegas and is heading towards his town as he attempts to flee the country. Owens and his deputies are the last line of defense between incarceration and freedom for the cartel leader.

At the helm is South Korean director, Jee-woon Kim.  Kim is known for his 2003 neo-western, The Good, The Bad, and The Weird, as well as his 2010 revenge thriller, I Saw The Devil.  This is Kim’s, cinematographer, Ji-yong Kim, and composer, Mowg’s first American production.  Now, I must admit, I Saw The Devil is the only film of Kim’s that I had seen prior to seeing this film, but I thoroughly enjoyed it so the combination of him and a legend like Schwarzenegger was enough to pique my interest.

From the opening scenes, the film had a great pace and kept the average viewer entertained with fast cars, recognizable actors, and over-the-top violence.  However, these are also the aspects that hurt the film in my opinion.  The pace was quick enough to make the film seen shorter than the 107 minute runtime, but it made everything seem less important.  Almost every scene not containing Schwarzenegger himself felt like filler.  Schwarzenegger’s long layoff from the big screen was noticeable as he seemed even more robotic than the three times he’s played The Terminator in his career. But, luckily for him, the rest of the cast was right on par.  Filling out the rest of the cast were familiar faces such as Oscar winner Forest Whitaker, Peter Stormare (FARGO, THE BIG LEBOWSKI), Luis Guzmán (BOOGIE NIGHTS), Zach Gilford (FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS), and everyone’s favorite jackass, Johnny Knoxville. Why Knoxville is cast in anything that doesn’t involve hitting himself in the groin, is beyond me, but I’m a fan.

Jee-woon Kim’s style was noticeable throughout the film but especially during the action sequences.  Kim uses many bird’s eye and worm’s eye angles as well as dutch angles and quick zooms.  The unsteadiness of the camera in tight spaces enhanced the frantic pace of the film and worked very well in the multiple car chase scenes. Composer, Mowg’s soundtrack was a nice change of pace from the current state of action films. No blaring rock or hip-hop music, but a sound that I could only describe as a “new western” soundtrack.  The theme that played a few times in the film was great and an obvious throwback to the great westerns of last century.

One thing I noticed about the credits of this film was that the screenplay was written by newcomer Andrew Knauer, yet was rewritten by Jeffrey Nachmanoff. Nachmanoff is known for such Hollywood duds as Traitor(2008), and The Day After Tomorrow (2004).  The writing department didn’t gain any credibility until George Nolfi (THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM) was on board as writing supervisor.  The dialogue of the film felt stale and unoriginal. The biggest surprise was the amount of “old” jokes was much less than I was anticipating.

Although this wasn’t Schwarzenegger’s best film to date, it was entertaining enough to hold your attention for a little less than 2 hours.  I wouldn’t set it on any pedestals as far as the action genre is concerned, but it gives me hope that Schwarzenegger will be able to churn out another big hit or two before calling it quits for good.

6/10