The Last Stand (2013)

Well, if you take this too seriously you're missing the point. It's a comedy, and if not quite a parody of a tough lawman against the odds plot, it pumps up all the clichés nicely. It's fast, well done, and appropriately preposterous. And Arnold Schwarzenegger is true to form, even joking once about his getting old.

In a way, this is Arnold trying to be a bit like Clint. Clint Eastwood that is. Because Schwarzenegger is playing a sheriff in a lonely western town. When a bad boy drug lord (a very cute one) is set to be blast through in his Corvette, this sheriff, Ray Owens, won't tolerate it. Of course. Who would?

In this hyped up against-the-odds yarn, we have some excellent if well-worn clichés. First, the FBI gets its usual due. They are a professional team led by the ever-enjoyable Forrest Whittaker, but of course they are a bit too professional, and arrogant, and they make constant little mistakes of misjudgment. So the bad guy on the loose is on collision course with Owens with his rag-tag friends in his Arizona border town.

I didn't expect to like this, but ended up captivated. It works the same way a "Die Hard" movie works--fast plot, do good hero, nasty bad guys, and jokes. It's not realistic, but the characters are believable. This is in contrast to a movie I saw a couple days ago along the same lines (loner man against evil),"Jack Reacher," which was filled with such strained dialog and absurd plot conditions it was irritating. "The Last Stand" has the advantage of not taking itself seriously, and so it's great fun and well done fun all along.

Yes, it's stupid. I mean, come on, that's the point! But it's smart stupid. If you have an open mind for this stuff, give it a shot.

The Governor is back but after 10 years concentrating on a political career.

The film landscape has changed. Arnie is Sheriff Ray, a former LA top cop now living a more quiet life as a friendly sheriff in an Arizona border town.

Luis Guzman provides comedy as one of the deputies. Oscar winner Forest Whitaker has a good payday playing a FBI agent who contacts the Sheriff and lets him know an escaped drug lord (Eduardo Noriega) is coming to town on his way to cross the border.

Peter Stormare and his gang are there to create path to the border for him. It's up to Arnie and his deputies to stop them. The FBI have not been successful and seem always to be one step behind.

We have some tongue in cheek action, car chases, a few twists. We also have a clunky script, some old hat action as the plot goes down a predictable path.

A kind of film that only older Arnie or Stallone fans might appreciate while being nostalgic about 80s actions flicks but to others it's straight to DVD.

THE LAST STAND is a real blast of a movie and a perfect comeback film for Arnold Schwarzenegger who eases into the ageing hero role with aplomb. It's a simple story, ably told by the excellent Korean director Kim Jee-Woon, a man responsible for such classics as A BITTERSWEET LIFE and I SAW THE DEVIL. The film this most closely resembles tonally is THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD, as both are action movies packed with excitement and quirk.

The film features Arnie and his small team of deputies as the only people who can stand against a ruthless Mexican drug lord who's escaped and is heading for the border. What ensues is a film with a careful, exacting build-up in the first half followed by some bloody, pulse-pounding action in the second half.

THE LAST STAND isn't entirely perfect; it's silly and unrealistic in places, and sometimes the stunt doubles and green-screen effects are obvious. But the cast are entertaining (particularly Forest Whitaker as the dogged FBI agent) and the action, when it hits, is furious and exciting. There are also solid roles for Luis Guzman, Peter Stormare, and Johnny Knoxville. It's not quite up there as a classic but as a movie it's a darn sight better than some of the stuff Schwarzenegger was making at the turn of the century (like THE SIXTH DAY).