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Originality escapes 'Last Castle'
[Photo: DreamWorks]
Robert Redford plays a prison inmate who brings down an abusive warden in The Last Castle. |
By STEVE PERSALL
© St. Petersburg Times,
published October 18, 2001
This drama about a military prison has a lock on hackneyed convention and uses a contrived ending to camouflage its exploitation of behavior unbecoming to the uniform.
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Watch the closing scene in Rod Lurie's The Last Castle, think about the plot that has been defined and recall the fallout in show business after Sept. 11. Then tell me if you think the final shot of the movie has been altered to satisfy our new patriotism.
I believe it was. Not that it wasn't a good idea, considering the image that everything else sets up for us to see. Even if Lurie intended the fade-out as it stands, the sight doesn't suit the unbecoming conduct displayed in this military prison drama. Whether the move is pompous or opportunistic, it's a jarring lunge for a feel-good finale.
Up to that point, little of The Last Castle provokes serious examination. It's no different from Cool Hand Luke, The Longest Yard and any other lockdown drama in which a charismatic prisoner brings down a tyrannical warden. The sense of deja vu is heightened by the fact that the convict savior is played by Robert Redford, who once served time as Brubaker.
Redford acts his age (64) for a change as Gen. Eugene Irwin, a legendary soldier sent to prison for a crime that remains vague even after it's explained in the last half hour. Casting Redford automatically makes us feel that this man is innocent, or at least justified in his offense. Irwin has the look of a martyr from the time he steps off the transport bus.
Col. Winter -- bad guys don't need first names in such paint-by-number conflict -- is played by James Gandolfini, who chose the wrong role to ditch his Tony Soprano toughness. Gandolfini softens his voice to an inappropriate degree for the part, apparently seeking a quiet madness and finding only weakness. So, we have a weary hero and a mealy villain. That's no way to conduct a movie war of wills.
Winter admires Irwin, even asking for an autograph when the general arrives. The relationship sours when Winter overhears Irwin dismissing the warden's collection of war memorabilia as the possessions of someone who never saw battle. Winter's feelings are hurt, poor baby, so he begins abusing prisoners and baiting Irwin like an insecure schoolyard bully.
Something must be done, and the general is just the proud lion to do it.
Nothing is surprising in The Last Castle from that point. Irwin initially is razzed by other inmates until he passes a physical test proving his mettle. Nothing as much fun as eating 50 boiled eggs as did Paul Newman, but toting rocks gets everyone cheering all the same. Someone who viewers were set up to enjoy is killed. A family member visits Irwin. Inmates construct a symbol of independence, and Winter tears it down. The movie is just doing time.
Some cliches are noteworthy, though. The Last Castle works best when the narrative slows down to Redford's aging pace instead of constructing rousers for the balcony. Mark Ruffalo, a breakout performer in last year's You Can Count on Me, is an obviously promising screen presence.
Then there is the finale, which won't be spoiled here. But after that swelling in your heart subsides, think about the film's previous emphasis on the military's darkest facets -- drugs, murder and megalomania. Ask yourself if that final shot is in tune with the two hours that preceded it or with the month before that. It's appropriate to salute the uniform, not the men wearing it, or, in this case, the movie.
The Last Castle
- Grade: C+
- Director: Rob Lurie
- Cast: Robert Redford, James Gandolfini, Mark Ruffalo, Robin Wright Penn
- Screenplay: David Scarpa, Graham Yost
- Rating: R; violence, profanity
- Running time: 125 min.
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