THE LAST CASTLE

Starring: Robert Redford, James Gandolfini, Mark Ruffalo and Delroy Lindo
Director: Rod Lurie
Running Time: 131 mins
Certificate: 15

Out to buy on DVD 12th August

After disobeying presidential orders that resulted in the death of eight men under his command, General Irwin (Redford) is sentenced to hard labour at the high security military prison known as the Castle. The facility is ran with a firm hand by Colonel Winter (Gandolfini), a bitter man who knows a lot about the US military but has never actually been in combat. Disagreeing with his treatment of the prisoners and after Winter's refusal to listen to his grievances, the General starts to organise the inmates into his own army to take over the Castle.

This is a movie whose poster, showing the US flag flying upside down as a term of distress, will forever be associated with the September 11th 2001 as the only thing still visible at Ground Zero. It is just a shame that the movie isn't as memorable. At nearly two and a half hours, the film is just far too long. It spends far too much time getting to the prison uprising but it still never really lets you get to know what most of the key players are in prison for in the first place. Because of this you never really feel any sympathy for the characters, as they all could be murderers for all we know.

It does have its plus points however, namely the two lead actors. Robert Redford is always very watchable and has the air of a man that anyone would follow into to battle. James Gandolfini underplays the Colonel making him come across as a bully who has never had any real power until now and who sees the General as his first true opponent.

Overlong and under developed, The Last Castle is a pop at the US military system of law when it doesn't really need it.

NONE

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