Solemplex To me, this movie is perfection.

Nessieldwi Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

Loui Blair It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

Rosie Searle It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Mad_Doctor_Tom Hard to believe no one reviewer made the connection between this movie, and the 2 I believe this to be remakes of sorts, 1] A Fistful Of Dollars -1964 & 2] For A Few Dollars More -1965., both from Clint's classic Man With No Name Collection.If you liked this then you should watch the 2 originals along with The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly as well as Hang' Em High - 1968.Looking forward to the thoughts of those reviewers and other after they watch the aforementioned Clint Eastwood movies and compare them to Bruce Willis' entry of Last Man Standing.

TheLittleSongbird Was not expecting much from 'Last Man Standing'. Despite a good cast on paper and a competent director who did generally deserve a better reputation, its reception at the time was mixed to negative and today is not much better (though as one has seen with many films audience reaction has been a little kinder to it over time).Seeing it for myself when it aired last night, will admit to expecting the worst having heard more bad things than good. Including a long-running magazine that mostly gets a lot of respect from me when it comes to film critiquing, even when we're not always on the same page, that tore it to shreds. 'Last Man Standing' turned out to be a heavily flawed film and to me a not particularly good one but actually found it not that bad a film. Do agree with a lot of the criticisms against it, well almost all, but 'Last Man Standing' does have things in its favour (that have been mentioned in previous reviews here) and there are far worse films out there.'Last Man Standing' does have good things. Personally thought the look of the film was good, not always attractive and often very darkly bleak but then again it's not an attractive story that it has, it's very stylishly shot and cohesively edited with costumes and sets that are both evocative and brooding. Nice to see mention of the music score, which is very soothing in the opening sequence and although relatively understated fits well, and of the beautifully poetic opening sequence.Not all the performances are bad, though most are not great at all to put it lightly. Christopher Walken has a lot of fun as the villain and is rightly hissable, the best actor in 'Last Man Standing' by quite some way and one of few that seems to be trying. He is also a strong contender for the film's best assets. Bruce Dern also tries hard.Bruce Willis conversely is a completely flat lead, he doesn't look interested at all and when he's trying to be gritty he has two expressions, those of looking constipated and looking like he's half asleep. Most of the supporting cast are completely wasted in severely underwritten roles that fail to stand out from similar ones of their kind in the genre. The narration has been universally panned and for good reason, it is far too over-explanatory, serves very little point and is delivered terribly.After a promising start, 'Last Man Standing' has moments of tension and fun but mostly uses every Sergio Leone-indebted cliché in the book and drags them out until they are no longer interesting, the pacing suffers as a result with a lot of it being sluggish. The un-originality (with a strong influence of Sergio Leone and Akira Kurosawa's 'Yojimbo') of the story can be forgiven, the dullness, ridiculousness and that it takes itself far too seriously with the bleak atmosphere often laid on too thick can't be. The script is stilted, especially the narration, the action occasionally excites but generally it's clumsy and pedestrian and the downbeat ending is so indifferently done, intelligence insultingly ridiculous and very anti-climactic.In summation, not awful but not great or even good. A little better than has been reputed but to me it is very easy to understand the critical reaction. 5/10 Bethany Cox

Scott LeBrun The great action director Walter Hill creates another effective male milieu in this stylish American reworking of the story previously told in "Yojimbo" and "A Fistful of Dollars". The film certainly *looks* good, even if it's somewhat limited in its use of colour, and Ry Cooders' music score is typically flavourful and evocative. A low key Bruce Willis leads a dynamic cast of well chosen character actors. Hills' script, which he based on the screenplay for "Yojimbo" written by Akira Kurosawa and Ryuzo Kikushima, is passable; the story here yields adequate entertainment without being particularly memorable.This version is set in a small, small Texas town during the Prohibition era. Willis plays the role of "John Smith", a drifter who arrives in town to discover that there are two warring crime families dominating things. The Italian family is headed by Fredo Strozzi (Ned Eisenberg), the Irish one by Doyle (David Patrick Kelly). Seemingly a man without scruples, Smith figures that he will play both sides of the street in the name of self-interest. Not surprisingly, he finds his way of life ultimately compromised.Willis is okay, but the people in supporting parts fare better. Christopher Walken has fun as a henchman with a pronounced raspy voice. Alexandra Powers does what she can with the most substantial female role in the picture, while Karina Lombard mostly just looks beautiful; Leslie Mann is fine in her brief time on screen. William Sanderson is endearing as bar owner Joe Monday; also appearing are Michael Imperioli, Ken Jenkins, R.D. Call, Ted Markland, Patrick Kilpatrick, Luis Contreras, Raynor Scheine, Tiny Ron, and Lin Shaye."Last Man Standing" is appreciably violent, if not that bloody. However, there's so much gunfire throughout the film that it all becomes a bit numbing. Also, Smith is able to blow so many damn bad guys to kingdom come that it actually comes as something of a relief when he takes his lumps at one point and we see he's human after all. The highlight for this viewer came at a little before the 80 minute mark when the intensity of the action reaches a peak.Fans of the action genre will likely have a pretty good time with this one.Seven out of 10.

Benjamin Cox You ever have a film in your mind that you loved as a kid but have since drifted away from? I remember watching this around the time of release and fell for its overly stylised, excessive violence and moody, oppressive atmosphere. But watching it again last night, I was left wondering exactly why I fell for it so badly. It might not be the most original picture out there and it certainly isn't what you'd call uplifting. But there is a strange, almost cartoon-y level of carnage that action fans will lap up. A pity then, that the film is about as deep as your average burst of Tom & Jerry.Bruce Willis plays a drifter who goes by the name of John Smith who winds up in the dead-end ghost town of Jericho, Texas. Quickly discovering that the town is the site of a vicious dispute between two gangs of bootleggers, Smith senses an opportunity to make a quick buck by playing the gangs off against each other. After working with the Italians led by Strozzi (Ned Eisenberg) and then the Irish families led by Doyle (David Patrick Kelly), Smith's plan quickly unravels when Doyle's psychotic right-hand man Hickey (Christopher Walken) reappears in town and takes exception to Smith's quickly-earned reputation as the ultimate gun-for-hire...Shot in a warm orange glow that's reminiscent of a sepia photograph, "Last Man Standing" is a real oddity that blends westerns, gangsters and even Kurosawa in a not-entirely-successful picture. The setting is an odd mix of a hot and sticky western town and even has a corrupt sheriff (Bruce Dern) but seems populated almost entirely by sharp-suited gangsters in old Fords, a snivelling bartender (William Sanderson) and an undertaker for whom business is good. The plot, which shouldn't be that confusing to follow, is lost in a mire of mumbling characters and possibly the dullest voice-over in history by Willis who appears to have suffered from a personality bypass. The problem is exacerbated when Willis and Walken share the screen as each of them sneer and growl at each other like a couple of grumpy old dogs instead of lighting the screen up with sparkling dialogue like the stars they are. At times, it's almost laughable.But then a scene appears when Willis gets to do some serious ass-kicking and indeed, "Last Man Standing" does not disappoint in this department. There is a strong sense that writer/director Walter Hill spent a lot of time watching "Desperado" because this film also has baddies flying through the air, bullets raining down from Willis's dual pistols (which only run out of ammo when the baddies are either dead or reloading themselves) as the screen lights up with muzzle flashes. It is jolly well done and very exciting but when the guns are holstered and Willis is smooth-talking his way into the bed of moll Lucy (Alexandra Powers), the film badly sags. There's no real pulse behind it as the film continues to tell its story, which is one that really hasn't any got much substance to it. Certainly, nothing ever feels at stake and Willis's enigmatic loner is a difficult hero to get behind. Seasoned action fans will get a kick out of this but I can't avoid the feeling that it needed something else. "Desperado" has a feeling of fun to it, a sense that its OK to laugh in places - not to mention the sexiest sidekick of the 90's, Salma Hayek. "Last Man Standing" has no joy or fun to it and in many ways, it's like Smith himself - awesome when there is a gun in its hand but without it, it's a load of nothing.