The Last Castle (2001)

A court-martialed General rallies together twelve hundred inmates to rise against a corrupt and sadistic warden.

Director:

Rod Lurie

Writers:

David Scarpa (story), David Scarpa (screenplay)

Stars:

Robert Redford, James Gandolfini, Mark Ruffalo

1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Redford	...	General Irwin
James Gandolfini	...	Col. Winter
Mark Ruffalo	...	Yates
Steve Burton	...	Capt. Peretz
Delroy Lindo	...	Gen. Wheeler
Paul Calderon	...	Dellwo
Sam Ball	...	Duffy (as Samuel Ball)
Jeremy Childs	...	Cutbush
Clifton Collins Jr.	...	Aguilar
George W. Scott	...	Thumper
Brian Goodman	...	Beaupre
Michael Irby	...	Enriquez
Frank Military	...	Doc
Maurice Bullard	...	Sgt. McLaren
Nick Kokich	...	Pvt. Niebolt

Storyline

Robert Redford stars in this action drama as General Irwin, a respected three-star tactician whose career ends in disgrace when he's court-martialed and sent to The Castle, a maximum security military prison. Irwin quickly butts heads with the facility's autocratic warden, Colonel Winter (James Gandolfini), who runs his command with an iron fist, even killing prisoners when he deems it necessary. Irwin rallies his fellow convicts into a rag-tag army and leads them in a revolt against Winter, an action that the warden is ready to repel by violent means.

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Plot Keywords:

hanoi vietnam | 2000s | badge | bus | transport | 

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Taglines:

A castle can only have one king

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and violence

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 October 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Castle

Filming Locations:

Nashville, Tennessee, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$72,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$7,088,213, 21 October 2001

Gross USA:

$18,244,060

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$27,642,707

Company Credits

Production Co:

DreamWorks, Robert Lawrence Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

131 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Kathryn Morris appeared as a DOD Investigator but was cut from the film. The scene is included on the DVD.

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Goofs

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.

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Quotes

Irwin: [narrating first lines] 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. 3: A garrison. Men who are trained and willing to kill. 4: A flag. You tell your men you are soldiers and that's your flag. You tell them nobody takes our flag. And you raise ...

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Connections

Referenced in Bad Girls: Episode #6.4 (2004)

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Soundtracks

Get Behind the Mule
Written by Tom Waits & Kathleen Brennan
Performed by John Hammond
Courtesy of Pointblank Records/Virgin Records America, Inc.

User Reviews

Redford has the ability to fade

Redford's ability to fade into a character is profound. Sometimes an actor who has been in the business a very long time will become larger than any role he plays... John Wayne for example (with a couple of exceptions). He becomes Eugene Irwin in this movie. This movie isn't about Redford's character, just like "The Legend of Bagger Vance" isn't really about Bagger Vance. The Last Castle is about honor to one's self and honor among soldiers, even if they are prisoners. James Gandolfini's portrayal of a colonel who knows nothing of this honor or brotherhood is excellent. He makes you despise his character. Colonel Winters is a deeply disturbing study of corrupt power and jealousy of others' glory. A fine ensemble cast of characters make this movie well worth watching.