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The Last Castle
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The Last Castle (2001) More at IMDbPro »

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The Last Castle (2001) -- A Court Martialed general rallies together 1200 inmates to rise against the system that put him away.

Overview

User Rating:
6.5/10   18,594 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 59% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
Rod Lurie
Writers (WGA):
David Scarpa (story)
David Scarpa (screenplay) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for The Last Castle on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
19 October 2001 (USA) more
Genre:
Action | Drama | Thriller more
Tagline:
A castle can only have one king
Plot:
A Court Martialed general rallies together 1200 inmates to rise against the system that put him away. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
1 win & 3 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(9 articles)
James Marsden Starring in Straw Dogs
 (From TheMovingPicture. 22 April 2009, 10:23 PM, PDT)

Universal Eyes Another Toy Adaptation with Tom Hanks On Board
 (From Rope Of Silicon. 25 March 2009, 3:26 AM, PDT)

User Comments:
Filled with both strengths and weaknesses more
US TV Schedule:
Mon. July 137:45 PMMAX   

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
The Castle (USA) (working title)
Untitled Rod Lurie Project (USA) (working title)
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MPAA:
Rated R for language and violence.
Runtime:
131 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS
Filming Locations:
Nashville, Tennessee, USA more
Company:
DreamWorks SKG more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Winter and Yates are the names of two British chess champions. more
Goofs:
Factual errors: Whenever Col. Winters talks on his radio, you can hear a hiss of static after he releases the button (breaking the squelch.) You only hear this when you are receiving a message on any radio, never when you are transmitting. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Irwin: Take a look at a castle. Any castle. Now break down the key elements that make it a castle. They haven't changed in a thousand years. 1: Location. A site on high ground that commands the territory as far as the eye can see. 2: Protection. Big walls, walls strong enough to withstand a frontal attack...
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Soundtrack:
Concerto for Oboe, Violin, Cello and Orchestra in D Major more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
8 out of 11 people found the following comment useful:-
Filled with both strengths and weaknesses, 22 October 2001
Author: The Dread Pirate Roberts-2 from New York, NY

Most of the raves and pans you will read of this movie are equally true in their own respects. For my money, the film's weaknesses slightly outweigh its strengths but I can easily see someone else's scales tipping the other way.

The performances are splendid all around. Most especially, James Gandolfini (who had the inside track with the most richly drawn character) excels as the ambiguous villain who is actually right more than half the time.

The message which deals with the value of pride and the importance of identity and self-worth is certainly admirable. The fact that this occurs among men who have marred their own self-worth through violent crime makes the concept that much more interesting. It almost (but never quite) raises the idea of reclaiming integrity, once lost. If it had gone this extra mile, it may well have been a better film.

The weaknesses lie in the hundreds of stupid little inaccuracies which culminate into one stupid BIG inaccuracy: This place doesn't feel like a prison!

It is difficult to make a prison movie within ten years of 1994 without inviting comparisons to "The Shawshank Redemption." Rather than belaboring the obvious, I want to note one detail that is exemplary of the earlier film's superiority. Even the jolliest, funniest, most easy going prisoners in Shawshank had an underlying sense of danger about them. You didn't want to get on their bad side. You never doubt that they belong in prison (except, of course, for Andy Dufresne). But this is not so in "The Last Castle." No matter how often someone reads from a prisoner's file and discusses the horrible things he has done, none of the words, actions, or other moods conveyed by the men in this film make them seem in any way dangerous. Maybe it's a case of mass miscasting but I doubt it.

Compounding this problem is the lack of scholarship to be found in the little details. Robert Redford shaves with a safety razor in spite of the fact that no prisoner would be allowed such a tool. Razor blades, like belts and shoelaces, are potential suicide tools and, thus, prohibited in prisons. Also, people keep referring to an officer's side arm as his "gun" instead of his "weapon." These mistakes were easy to avoid and yet they remained in the film.

All of this makes a potentially fascinating film, filled with talent, seem a touch removed from reality. Like in "The Contender," director Rod Lurie has shown that his view of reality is based on his opinions rather than the other way around.

With all it had going for it, it's a shame really.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Last Castle (2001)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Either Colonel or Corporal xcfred
Funny way to look at it... (SPOILERS!) Low_Key
Entirely Incorrect. A General is isolated from the others. NanoFrog
I haven't seen this movie in a while and have a question supermario2084
Aguilar Pashalietis
Robin Wright Penn???? joba30
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