Wordiezett So much average

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Verity Robins Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

Maleeha Vincent It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

jimbo-53-186511 Decorated and respected General Eugene Irwin (Robert Redford) finds himself court-marshalled after disobeying orders and ends up being sent to a military prison. When he arrives there, he is stripped of his rank and now finds himself having to answer to Colonel Winter (James Gandolfini) who uses somewhat questionable methods in order to run his prison. Irwin is not happy with the way Winter runs things at the prison and with the help of his inmates he makes a play to overthrow Winter and his brutal regime...On the whole, I enjoyed The Last Castle although it's fair to say that this is not the most briskly paced of films; the first half of the picture is painfully slow and repetitive and it does seem to take an awful long time to make its point. This inevitably takes away some of the enjoyment from the picture and makes the film feel a little uneven.However, once Irwin starts to rally the inmates then things do pick up and the film does become a lot more energetic. The section where the inmates overthrow Winter is entertaining and quite imaginative - although there are some section of this that seem a bit unrealistic (such as how the inmates manage to create/devise/build their various weaponry and devices without any of the guards noticing at any point?The acting from the big name actors is fairly good; Redford is a good presence and gives a cool and rather low-key understated performance. Gandolfini also does a decent enough job even if he feels like more of a caricature than a real person. Ruffalo is good in support and his character is of some interest, but little is really done with him - this extends to several other characters who are mostly thinly drawn. The only other person of interest to me was Steve Burton who could be a professional Sean Kanan lookalike (I actually thought he was Sean Kanan until I saw the credits rolling at the end). The plot thickens though as it turns out that Steve Burton is related to Sean Kanan by marriage - scary!!!If you can make it past a fairly slow paced first hour then this film more than compensates your patience by a much more enjoyable second hour. I do feel that this film would have benefitted from more editing and the way I see it is that The Last Castle would have made for an excellent 90 minute film, but at 130 minutes it's too long and as a result of this it is merely a good film.

Joe Despite the double star studded leads of the legendary Robert Redford and James Galdofini, they really couldn't help this crass jinogistic tale set in a prison for US military inmates.Taking in part its cue from Shawhank Redemption but without any class or twists, we don't really have much to say more. It's just twee.Seriously just avoid this film. It's not worth watching even for the leads. Interesting to see some early roles for a few recognisable faces, but beyond that it's worthless.

yuengling215 This movie was really good! I was a skeptic at first but gave it a chance & it was well worth my time... This movie unfortunately came out just a couple of weeks after September 11, 2001 which overshadowed this movies release I believe. If it didn't come out directly after the Horrible attacks on 9/11 I think this movie would've gotten a lot more attention. But at that time we were a nation in shock & those events overshadowed everything within that time period Following the horrific events of that day. Getting back to the movie, it was very well acted & very well scripted. Also the movie had quite a few well-known actors including Robert Redford & James Gandolfini just to name a couple. If you're looking for a movie that is not your typical Hollywood CGI, action-packed, horribly acted movie, then I definitely recommend you check this flick out. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Frederick Smith Despite the setting, this movie has little to do with prisons. Rod Lurie's vision, combined with the extraordinary talents of Robert Redford and James Gandolfini, is a morality play set in the most unlikely of locations. We have a man who has risen to the height of his potential, the Colonel, who will never advance above that rank, and is bitter with his role in life. He is an administrator among soldiers who wanted to be a soldier and was instead given the task of maintaining order at a prison. That he could show leadership by helping these men to regain their self respect and dignity has escaped him, and he is content to amuse himself by creating situations which lead to the prisoners becoming the animals he believes them to be. When the General comes to his prison, he thinks he has found a kindred spirit who can appreciate his manipulation of the men. To his disappointment, he finds the General a thoughtful and honorable soldier who has chosen to accept his punishment without excuse or explanation. While the Colonel must fight to maintain control, his methods and his intellect lack humanity and understanding. The General is given control by the prisoners because of his intellect and understanding. He offers the prisoners the one thing the warden cannot, dignity. Rated R for language and violence, this film is not for everyone, and certainly not for the very young. It is, however, an essential element in the creation of a leader, and should be seen by anyone who aspires to lead.