The Last Run (1971)

A getaway driver comes out of retirement to pull off one last run - one that could send him to an early grave instead.

Directors:

Richard Fleischer, John Huston (uncredited)

Writer:

Alan Sharp (original screenplay)

Stars:

George C. Scott, Tony Musante, Trish Van Devere

Cast

Complete credited cast:
George C. Scott	...	Harry Garmes
Tony Musante	...	Paul Rickard
Trish Van Devere	...	Claudie Scherrer
Colleen Dewhurst	...	Monique
Aldo Sambrell	...	Miguel (as Aldo Sanbrell)
Antonio Tarruella	...	Motorcycle Policeman
Robert Coleby	...	Hitch Hiker
Pat Zurica	...	1st Man (as Patrick J. Zurica)
Rocky Taylor	...	2nd Man

Storyline

A former getaway driver from Chicago (George C. Scott) has retired to a peaceful life in a Portuguese fishing village. He is asked to pull off one last job, involving driving a dangerous crook and his girl-friend to France. However, the job turns out to be a double-cross and the trio are pursued back to Portugal where they make one last stand on the coast while the enemy assassins attempt to gun them down.

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Plot Keywords:

gun | driving | checkpoint | convertible | hitch hiker | 

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Taglines:

It was his first job in 9 years. Drive a young killer from Spain to the south of France. No one told him about the extra passenger, the girl or the seven men trying to kill them all.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

GP

Did You Know?

Trivia

George C. Scott stars with 2 wives from 3 marriages. At the time the movie was filmed, he was near the end of his second marriage to Colleen Dewhurst. He married Trish Van Devere the next year.

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Goofs

When George C. Scott puts on part of the Carburetor at the beginning of the movie he doesn't add the gasket.

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Quotes

Claudie Scherrer: Thank you for drying my things. Otherwise I'd have been traveling in wet knickers.

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Connections

Featured in Portrait of an Actor (1971)

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Soundtracks

The Last Run
Written by Jerry Goldsmith, Mack David and Mike Curb

User Reviews

A Race to the End

Subtlety is everything in understanding the Last Run. It is a movie about lost dreams and lives that didn't turn out quite like things were planned. The protagonist is not old Harry Garmes, retired and living the good life, a beautiful spot in seaside Portugal. If anything, Harry is the antagonist: he is the one who made it past all the danger only to be caught up in the real web of life. Harry thought life would be perfect, but it isn't. He wakes up at the beginning of this film and discovers he has nothing, despite having almost everything he thought he wanted. As others have said, this is existential, to be sure, but so beautifully sublime, I could only wish more movies were made like this, replete with beautiful cars for those who know, in contrast to the flashy but horrid handling boats like the bloated 428 Mustangs.

The protagonist is the car, the exquisite BMW 503. Harry comes back to the car, not all the other things surrounding the plot. He resurrects the car along with himself. Watch the careful way he sets the floats, listens to the engine the old way, with a rubber tube. He does it carefully, step by step dusting himself off at the same time. he does it with devotion and love. Harry knows that things aren't as important as living and he only feels alive when driving the car. Harry comes alive when he is driving "her" and he is only too happy to make one more run for his old employer's friends. He wants to feel again, something that the pain of life has beaten out of him slowly. Remember, Harry retired 9 years before;he knows he's a dinosaur, just like his car. He knows he is dying, albeit of complacency and scar tissue, and wants a chance at life... one more chance to be alive. He wants to dance with someone he loves. His driving mirrors real life. His love is really the car, the only thing he has left of which he is capable of loving, Trish Van Devere's underwear notwithstanding. To any car buff, the sound of the supercharger engaged in this car is a thrill beyond measure. There are no fat tires, no suspensions on the ground, no huge engines. In fact, the 503, cum supercharger wasn't even all that fast in its day. In 1971, the XJ6 with a 4.2 liter engine would have made a good match for the old Beemer. Tony Musante is perfect in the guise of the young action oriented hit-man who can only have fun by hurting and killing things. It's a perfect scenario of the modern world steamrolling art. When you add the scenery and a gorgeous Trish Van Devere, who I think later married George C., Colleen Dewhurst, whose acting is stunning, how can anyone think of a better action movie? Subtlety in art is better than flash and tinsel. Nevertheless, maybe it would lose in a ballot to what passes for art these days.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Portuguese Spanish

Release Date:

24 September 1971 (Japan)

Also Known As:

The Last Run

Filming Locations:

Granada, Andalucía, Spain

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1