Last Man Standing (film)

Infobox Film
name = Last Man Standing


writer = Ryuzo Kikushima
Akira Kurosawa
Walter Hill
starring = Bruce Willis
Bruce Dern
William Sanderson
Christopher Walken
David Patrick Kelly
director = Walter Hill
producer = Walter Hill
Arthur M. Sarkissian
music = Ry Cooder
Elmer Bernstein (uncredited score withdrawn)
distributor = New Line Cinema
released =
runtime = 101 min.
language = English
Spanish
imdb_id = 0116830
budget = $67,000,000 US (est.)

"Last Man Standing" is a 1996 action film written and directed by Walter Hill, starring Bruce Willis, Christopher Walken, and Bruce Dern. It is a credited remake of the Akira Kurosawa film "Yojimbo", and after Sergio Leone's "A Fistful of Dollars" was the second remake of the Japanese film, itself a probable remake of Dashiell Hammett's detective novel "Red Harvest". The film is known primarily for its intense gunfights, featuring Bruce Willis's character dual-wielding two M1911 .45 caliber pistols akimbo in the style reminiscent of Hong Kong Blood Opera.

Plot

In Prohibition Era Texas, a mysterious character (later identifying himself as "John Smith") drives into Jericho, a town mere miles from the Mexican border. Gang violence between the resident Irish gang (headed by Doyle) and Italian gang (headed by Strozzi) has decimated the town and left few legitimate citizens remaining, aside from the bartender Joe Monday, an undertaker and a corrupt sheriff, all of whom make their living by catering to Jericho's criminal elements. Smith immediately establishes a reputation by outdrawing and killing Doyle's top shooter, a brazen act that gets the attention of both gangs. Smith promptly hires himself out to Strozzi's gang for what Strozzi predicts is an upcoming gang war following the impending dissolution of an uneasy ceasefire. He dispatches Smith to oversee an operation where the corrupt Mexican soldiers guarding Doyle's illegal alcohol smuggling change alliances mid-operation and murder Doyle's men, stealing the product and trucks in the process.

Amidst constant bickering and accusations by Strozzi's hotheaded cousin Giorgio and unwanted attempts at investigating his past, Smith quits Strozzi's gang. Doyle returns to Jericho and immediately asks Smith to join his gang, which Smith politely declines. Smith later tells Strozzi a rumor about the Mexican soldiers returning to Doyle's ranks, forcing Strozzi to send Giorgio down to smooth things over. Later, Hickey (Christopher Walken) returns to Jericho and informed of the Mexican soldiers' betrayal, travels to Mexico and ruthlessly guns down the soldiers, several of Strozzi's men and an American police officer. Hickey leaves Giorgio alive as a hostage. An exchange is arranged between the two gangs, where Giorgio will be exchanged for money. At the swap, Hickey shoots Strozzi's bagman, revealing the contents of the suitcase to be newspaper. When Doyle threatens to kill Giorgio unless Strozzi surrenders and leaves Jericho, Strozzi pulls out Felina, Doyle's mistress whom he previously abducted and demands a clean exchange for Giorgio. The exchange is made and the two gangs scatter, leaving Smith standing alone over the discarded body of Strozzi's bagman and newspaper blowing in the desert wind.

Hours later Smith receives a visitor, Captain Tom Pickett of the Texas Rangers, who informs Smith that an American police officer in Mexico was murdered, presumably by one of the two gangs in Jericho. He warns that he can tolerate one gang in Jericho, but not two and if more than one remains in Jericho in ten days time, he will bring a squad of Rangers into Jericho and wipe out both gangs. On his way out, Captain Pickett warns Smith that he himself should also leave Jericho. The next day Smith joins Doyle's gang and warns of the risk an abducted Felina is to Doyle's gang, relaying a false rumor that Strozzi is bringing in a squad of excellent shooters for the impending war. Doyle orders Smith to the safehouse where Felina is guarded by eight men. Smith promptly shoots them in a brief yet fierce gun battle, vandalizes portions of the safehouse and sets Felina free with a car and money Smith received from Doyle. Felina gives him her crucifix necklace as a memento and disappears into the desert. Doyle arrives in the morning and enraged at the abduction of his mistress, ignites the Irish-Italian gang war that had been simmering for months. Days later in a quiet Jericho, Hickey corners Smith, revealing that Felina was spotted in a Mexican town with her husband and child. Finally assembling the pieces together and discovering Felina's necklace in Smith's possession, Doyle imprisons Smith and beats him to find out where Felina is. Throughout the beating, Smith refuses to cooperate. Several days later, he escapes, seeking help from the bartender who conceals and relocates him to a safehouse outside of town. While the Doyle gang is searching for Smith, the Sheriff falsely informs them that Smith is hiding with the Strozzi gang at Slim's roadhouse; the Doyle gang confronts the Strozzi gang there and sets it ablaze, shooting anyone who escapes into the streets. Strozzi and Giorgio are the last two to die.

Days later the Sheriff arrives at the safehouse, informing Smith that Doyle has discovered the bartender's complicity in Smith's escape and will probably torture him to death to find him. Smith re-arms himself and storms Doyle's mansion, gunning down a dozen men before freeing the bartender. He mounts a tommy gun onto the shattered remains of the mansion, signaling Doyle to meet him at Slim's Roadhouse at sunset. At the final meet, Doyle and Hickey meet Smith and the bartender. Doyle, happy with his victory over Strozzi, is despondent over the loss of Felina and begs Smith to tell him where to find her. The bartender promptly shoots Doyle before laying his gun down and watching how Smith and Hickey will react. Hickey expresses no desire to die in Texas ("Chicago maybe") before turning back on Smith. With lightning speed he quickdraws a pistol from his holster, but Smith is faster, and kills Hickey. With all the gangs dead, Smith slides his fedora onto his head, steps into his car, and drives off into the sunset.

Cast

Response

The film did poorly at the box-office, grossing only a total $18,127,448 by December 22, 1996, and received poor critical reviews. Common recurring complaints found in many of the negative reviews are the oppressive and depressing atmosphere of the film, the flat, almost monotonous personality of Willis' character between gunfights, and the film's Pyrrhic victory finale. Film critic Roger Ebert is quoted as saying, "...The victory at the end is downbeat, and there is an indifference to it. This is such a sad, lonely movie." [cite web | title = "Last Man Standing" review | author = Ebert, Roger | date = 1996-09-20 | work = RogerEbert.com | url = http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19960920/REVIEWS/609200302/1023 | accessdate = 2006-08-13 ] The cinematography of the movie, however, seems to have influenced subsequent pictures, especially with regard to the use of selective color.

Trivia

* This film was banned in Malaysia.
* The SDDS cinema audio technology premiered with this film.
* Bruce Willis would later star in Lucky Number Slevin, which shares many similarities with Yojimbo, the same film this movie is based on.

References

External links

*imdb title|id=0116830|title=Last Man Standing
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A1161271 A Comparison of "Yojimbo", "A Fistful of Dollars" and "Last Man Standing"]