"Last Run" is all about Asante, an ex-CIA operative in the Communist bloc whose position was made defunct by the end the the cold war and who is paid to escort a wanted-dead-or-alive Soviet ex-security chief to the West against all odds. "Last Run" is an okay Budapest location shoot with Asante serving as a solid centerpiece. However, there's insufficient character development to give us an emotional connection, the action is little more than a lot of shootouts, the drama is mostly lots of scurrying and skulking, and the story is so convoluted it's difficult to follow. Worth a look for the bleary eyed couch potato and Asante fans. (C)
14 Reviews
Not a bad spy thriller
rmax30482316 October 2003
Warning: Spoilers
SPOILERS.
The plot is rudimentary -- Russia is about to elect a corrupt government and Jurgen Prochnow, as Bukarin, knows where the bodies are hidden. (Actually in a box buried near some Communist statuary in Hungary, in a deserted field, huge and powerful iron icons of men like Lenin, representing Prochnow's idealism.) Prochnow of course is known to have this evidence by both sides, the Russian secret police and the CIA, and both sides want the information he's carrying. Assante and a handful of his friends are hired by a third party to smuggle Prochnow out of Kiev to freedom in the West. That's about it. The plot is a bit murky in its details. (A lot of people wear ski masks or disguises.) I lost track of who was on who's side, although it didn't matter much because neither side is "good".
So as a spy story it's a bit confusing at times. But as an action movie it is a relative success. There is only the briefest of car chases and no exploding fireballs in sight. Instead of everyone running around with an Uzi, sound-supressed pistols and rifles are used. And the sound effects are quite good. And if they are sometimes implausible they are uniformly well staged.
One can't help noticing that the performances too are quite good. Assante, as the heroic man of principle, is not glamorized. And Jurgen Prochnow gives a superbly understated performance as a kind and committed mensch. This is his best role since "Das Boot." He has a conversation in a falling-down church in which he more or less explains why he gave up the religion of his childhood and embraced politics instead. "Redemption," he asks rhetorically. "Can a man be redeemed if he has done nothing wrong?" Most of the dialogue is pedestrian and functional but it has its moments.
The location shooting in Budapest is evocative. This is a city in the midst of a continental winter with dreary skies and slick streets. It makes one long for a bowl of steaming goulash.
A superior action movie with a comment on the nature of the Cold War. You probably won't be bored by it.
The plot is rudimentary -- Russia is about to elect a corrupt government and Jurgen Prochnow, as Bukarin, knows where the bodies are hidden. (Actually in a box buried near some Communist statuary in Hungary, in a deserted field, huge and powerful iron icons of men like Lenin, representing Prochnow's idealism.) Prochnow of course is known to have this evidence by both sides, the Russian secret police and the CIA, and both sides want the information he's carrying. Assante and a handful of his friends are hired by a third party to smuggle Prochnow out of Kiev to freedom in the West. That's about it. The plot is a bit murky in its details. (A lot of people wear ski masks or disguises.) I lost track of who was on who's side, although it didn't matter much because neither side is "good".
So as a spy story it's a bit confusing at times. But as an action movie it is a relative success. There is only the briefest of car chases and no exploding fireballs in sight. Instead of everyone running around with an Uzi, sound-supressed pistols and rifles are used. And the sound effects are quite good. And if they are sometimes implausible they are uniformly well staged.
One can't help noticing that the performances too are quite good. Assante, as the heroic man of principle, is not glamorized. And Jurgen Prochnow gives a superbly understated performance as a kind and committed mensch. This is his best role since "Das Boot." He has a conversation in a falling-down church in which he more or less explains why he gave up the religion of his childhood and embraced politics instead. "Redemption," he asks rhetorically. "Can a man be redeemed if he has done nothing wrong?" Most of the dialogue is pedestrian and functional but it has its moments.
The location shooting in Budapest is evocative. This is a city in the midst of a continental winter with dreary skies and slick streets. It makes one long for a bowl of steaming goulash.
A superior action movie with a comment on the nature of the Cold War. You probably won't be bored by it.
Easily forgotten
sveknu15 May 2005
This is a bad movie. The story seemed decent enough. Sadly, that was before I saw the film. Eastern Europe, present, linked to happenings in the last period of the cold war. Our "Hero" tries to escort a man named Bukarin from one place to another. Bukarin is a man many people want. That's the main plot in this movie. For the details, just skip them. It's too difficult to get the whole picture anyway. The scriptwriters did a really lousy job writing the story for this movie, that's for sure. On top of that, the action scenes aren't thrilling either. And for the acting, well, just forget about it.
Avoid this one, it's just a big waste of time.
Avoid this one, it's just a big waste of time.
how bad can a movie get?
YanivEidelstein25 December 2001
pretty bad.
no use describing the plot of this wannabe spy thriller; it makes no sense at all. watching it is like staring into a blank wall.
the script to this movie is so bad, some of it felt like an airplane-type (or fatal instinct-type) spoof, some felt like bad tv, some just made my jaw drop. and a lot of it was very boring, too.
the only positive thing i can say is that budapest, hungary (where this movie was filmed in its entirety, even though it takes place in about 8 different countries) is beautiful.
i was paid to watch this movie, and unless you are too, steer clear.
i probably put more thought into this review than the writers did in their entire script.
no use describing the plot of this wannabe spy thriller; it makes no sense at all. watching it is like staring into a blank wall.
the script to this movie is so bad, some of it felt like an airplane-type (or fatal instinct-type) spoof, some felt like bad tv, some just made my jaw drop. and a lot of it was very boring, too.
the only positive thing i can say is that budapest, hungary (where this movie was filmed in its entirety, even though it takes place in about 8 different countries) is beautiful.
i was paid to watch this movie, and unless you are too, steer clear.
i probably put more thought into this review than the writers did in their entire script.
An enjoyable little film that knows what it is
Curtis G.3 August 2003
My best friend kept telling me about this movie he'd seen with his dad recently, "Last Run" with Armand Assante. So I finally rented it, and I'm glad I did. It's not perfect by any stretch, but it "knows what it is." That is, the filmmakers had a strict budget and it appears they worked hard to get everything they could on-screen without over-reaching themselves. The plot is pretty standard spy stuff--the action and Eastern European locations had me thinking of "Ronin" and "The Bourne Identity"--yet it was compelling to watch (the cemetery firefight was a thing of beauty).
Armand Assante chewed the scenery pretty well, which was a good thing--because when he emotes, he enunciates. But when he falls into his calmer, deep-throated growl, he might as well be speaking gibberish, he's so hard to understand. Again, not a perfect movie, but if you like the post-Cold War spy genre, you'll find this one worth a rental.
Armand Assante chewed the scenery pretty well, which was a good thing--because when he emotes, he enunciates. But when he falls into his calmer, deep-throated growl, he might as well be speaking gibberish, he's so hard to understand. Again, not a perfect movie, but if you like the post-Cold War spy genre, you'll find this one worth a rental.
Interesting euro spy thriller
mattclark18 February 2002
Sure, like most films of this genre there are some holes in the plot. But when it's filmed beautifully, in some stunning locations, and well- acted, especially by Armand Assante who spends the whole movie glowering as if he's about to explode, then it's easy to forget a few logic leaps and just enjoy this movie. There are some great chase sequences, and some good tension, and it keeps you guessing. Forgive the flaws, appreciate the scenery, and appreciate an above-average spy thriller.
Excellent B-flick
dima-126 December 2003
I feel kinda sorry that LAST RUN didn`t get a theatrical release. It is a perfect B-film that Joel Silver and Jerry Bruckeheimer should be churning out between blockbusters. Hickox masterfully direct East European locations, as good as Michael Oblowitz on a good day.
The plot is straight eighties spy yarn. A team of ex-CIA enforcers are hired to extract a former Soviet bigwig that has some useful post-Cold War know-how. The team is led by hardboiled Assante who lost his wife in the last extraction job.
The script follows the plot and gives us enough detail to care for the characters, gives us enough suspense and twists to care for the plot and sets up some nice action set-pieces.
Sadly, Hickox never cut it in mainstream Hollywood and his resume is quite mixed, look at bizarre failure JILL RIPPS or INVASION OF YOUR PRIVACY but in this one he does some A-work with a direct-to-video budget. Every set-piece is smart and juggular and able to grip you by the neck and yet never blow early and uncover the flat budget. Give this man a 25-million-per-actioner-Joel-Silver-treatment (ROMEO MUST DIE, EXIT WOUNDS, CRADLE 2 THE GRAVE) and he`ll outgun Bartkowiak by a mile.
The problem with Hickox making it in Hollywood is that his filmography is too hectic for PR managers. The director of JILL RIPPS is a hard-sell. It is so sad that PR schemes are more important than actual movies in contemporary Hollywood. I cherished the times when Anthony`s dad Douglas was making pictures, when directors were either auteurs or anonymous executors hired to make pictures for pictures` sake. And yet I hope there are enough people unaffected by this PR business who can enjoy a good B-movie and consider Hickox an author that he truly is.
I hope Hickox yet unreleased film BLAST! that seems to be heading to theatres proves to be a surprise hit. We need this man back!
The plot is straight eighties spy yarn. A team of ex-CIA enforcers are hired to extract a former Soviet bigwig that has some useful post-Cold War know-how. The team is led by hardboiled Assante who lost his wife in the last extraction job.
The script follows the plot and gives us enough detail to care for the characters, gives us enough suspense and twists to care for the plot and sets up some nice action set-pieces.
Sadly, Hickox never cut it in mainstream Hollywood and his resume is quite mixed, look at bizarre failure JILL RIPPS or INVASION OF YOUR PRIVACY but in this one he does some A-work with a direct-to-video budget. Every set-piece is smart and juggular and able to grip you by the neck and yet never blow early and uncover the flat budget. Give this man a 25-million-per-actioner-Joel-Silver-treatment (ROMEO MUST DIE, EXIT WOUNDS, CRADLE 2 THE GRAVE) and he`ll outgun Bartkowiak by a mile.
The problem with Hickox making it in Hollywood is that his filmography is too hectic for PR managers. The director of JILL RIPPS is a hard-sell. It is so sad that PR schemes are more important than actual movies in contemporary Hollywood. I cherished the times when Anthony`s dad Douglas was making pictures, when directors were either auteurs or anonymous executors hired to make pictures for pictures` sake. And yet I hope there are enough people unaffected by this PR business who can enjoy a good B-movie and consider Hickox an author that he truly is.
I hope Hickox yet unreleased film BLAST! that seems to be heading to theatres proves to be a surprise hit. We need this man back!
BEAUTIFUL PLACES rough people
keith-charles12 April 2006
Dear All, This exceptional movie proves once again who can you trust?. The plot is greatly narrated at times where Armand thoughts come alive. And he wonders at times if serving your country as a spy is really worth the time and trouble. I enjoyed this movie and own a copy on DVD. The places used to shoot various scenes are very pictureque. Although the swearing at times was unnecessary.This a very gritty production and needs your undivided attention to grasp the whole story. Don't look for everything to explode!!! It's a "cold war" thinkers flick and if we really had thought about it there would not have been a cold war.
Keith.Charles@ubs.com
Keith.Charles@ubs.com
Thrilling post cold war action
Mikew300117 March 2006
Although Last Run is just another spy/secret agent/cold war movie, it's working pretty well. A team of American and Russian agents try to bring a Russian agent over the borders of the east into the West... of course the Iron Wall doesn't exist anymore in 2001, and Americans and Russians work together, so there are lots of more Gangsters and double agents kicking the butts of our heroes...
The film is thrilling, and the action scenes (lots of great shoot outs) are photographed very well. The score reminds me a lot of John Barry's old James Bond movie soundtracks and adds a certain sixties' feeling to the film. The locations are also unusual, being filmed in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria and Germany, mostly on the beautiful countryside.
The actors are also well chosen. Instead of taking dumb non-actors like Michael Dudikoff, Dolph Lundgren or Jean-Claude Van Damme for this movie, the director and producers chose mature actors like Armande Assante, Ornela Muti and Juergen Prochnow of "Das Boot" fame as main actors. Assante plays the cool and disillusioned U.S. agent very convincing, and pretty Ornela Muti looks like a stunning, red-haired version of The Avenger's Diana Rigg.
A good secret agent thriller in the wake of Ian Fleming's, Frederik Forsythe's and Colin Forbes' political thrillers that proves that cold war plots are still worth a good movie in the new millennium.
The film is thrilling, and the action scenes (lots of great shoot outs) are photographed very well. The score reminds me a lot of John Barry's old James Bond movie soundtracks and adds a certain sixties' feeling to the film. The locations are also unusual, being filmed in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria and Germany, mostly on the beautiful countryside.
The actors are also well chosen. Instead of taking dumb non-actors like Michael Dudikoff, Dolph Lundgren or Jean-Claude Van Damme for this movie, the director and producers chose mature actors like Armande Assante, Ornela Muti and Juergen Prochnow of "Das Boot" fame as main actors. Assante plays the cool and disillusioned U.S. agent very convincing, and pretty Ornela Muti looks like a stunning, red-haired version of The Avenger's Diana Rigg.
A good secret agent thriller in the wake of Ian Fleming's, Frederik Forsythe's and Colin Forbes' political thrillers that proves that cold war plots are still worth a good movie in the new millennium.
A good film for Assante!
GOWBTW10 April 2006
I think to say about this movie is that it's not bad for a B-film. Armand Assante has shown a lot of character and depth to his role. As Frank Banner, he doesn't liked to be jerked around by anyone, anywhere. When his pregnant wife was killed during the move of defectors, Frank took this thing very seriously. Bringing back the crew may not have been easy, it was worth the attempt. Giving the amount of money would make anyone comeback to work for the Government. Leo(Robert Foxxe) was a formative, yet seedy character who would do anything to put Banner on the payroll again. Filled with philosophical interpretations, this movie wasn't boring. And the sacrifices the fighters made were heroic. At least Jana, the widow of a fighter didn't lose her life. For Frank, he got the bigger pay than any of his superiors, if it wasn't for the book "War and Peace" by Leo Tolstoy. This reaps the rewards to other spy films. It was subtly entertaining from the beginning to the end. Rating 4 out of 5 stars.
Last Run better than most out this year
jime-217 June 2002
Last Run is a very thrilling movie and the settings are beautiful. Marvelous action and staging. You have to think to follow the story which is very interesting. Hopefully the U S will get to see this movie soon. Armand Assante tops the acting of anyone who is promoted so much now and all the actors were great. This movie is well worth watching.
Mumble, mumble, mumble
Phoenix_1315 March 2004
I might have enjoyed this movie more if I had been able to understand the dialogue. I THINK it was in English (mostly), but who could tell with all the mushmouths? I expected better from Armand Assante, at least.
Only one actor in this entire movie enunciated clearly enough for me to understand his lines, but unfortunately we don't see him until half way through the film.
That actor was the unforgettable Juergen Prochnow (best known for his role as the U-boat captain in DAS BOOT), as former KGB-chief Andrus Bukarin.
The plot was thin, the good guys were completely unbelievable as covert operatives, the ending was anti-climactic, and some of the scenes were downright laughable (like the one with the English (or was he an Aussie or a Kiwi? I couldn't quite nail the accent) speaking German to a Romanian circus girl).
I suppose this is what I get for being such a Prochnow junkie that I'll watch almost any movie in which he appears.
At least Wing Commander had a few good laughs (and overall excellent acting), particularly the send-up of DAS BOOT.
Only one actor in this entire movie enunciated clearly enough for me to understand his lines, but unfortunately we don't see him until half way through the film.
That actor was the unforgettable Juergen Prochnow (best known for his role as the U-boat captain in DAS BOOT), as former KGB-chief Andrus Bukarin.
The plot was thin, the good guys were completely unbelievable as covert operatives, the ending was anti-climactic, and some of the scenes were downright laughable (like the one with the English (or was he an Aussie or a Kiwi? I couldn't quite nail the accent) speaking German to a Romanian circus girl).
I suppose this is what I get for being such a Prochnow junkie that I'll watch almost any movie in which he appears.
At least Wing Commander had a few good laughs (and overall excellent acting), particularly the send-up of DAS BOOT.
Good little spy flick
mikkklx10 May 2015
I have just watched this movie. It is a little beauty and is worth way more than its current IMDb rating of 4.8 The movie rates an easy 4 out of 5 in my 9,000 movie collection. It is an excellent little B spy thriller. Not up to the very best but very watchable and with good action and suspense. Armand Assante is very good and the rest of the cast also do a good job. Action and twists galore as you would expect in a spy thriller but way better than those depressing stories from Le Carre. I also recommend one of Armand's other hits - "I, the Jury". For all intelligent viewers give this one a try - not perfect but an enjoyable movie.
By Neil.
neilharold29 December 2002
I rented a DVD of Last Run and I would like to comment. I have watched the film one time and part-way a second time. The photography is very attractive with European Landscapes and some urban subjects. The movie must be watched more than one time to get the plot. The politics of the plot are suppressed. There is a dialogue line about "I do not know which side won the cold war". The movie could go either of two ways. One is more of the action movie comic book plot. I go to a lot of movies for the simple plotting. The other way and I think maybe a follow-up movie like Last Run is something like the alienated existential intelligence man. The lead role is smoother than "Frank Banner" (I am using the IMDB credits page for my information here) but the art direction and production would be similar to what I watched last night. Last Run is pretty good. I can give the movie three stars out of five. But I want to write some more.
The woman in the movie are all mature, adult and over eighteen years of age. I must write that I wonder if they rent or own. They all die in the movie and Frank gets upset and yells the word NO and tries to revive one of the women. (The cast link does not work on the IMDB credits page to get the names. What do you know?) The women are attractive and European. Since I had problems following the politics of the plot story line I wonder how much the locations, which are in Hungary and Austria, are important. One scene shows a map in color and I want to use the stop button on my remote to look at the map a little more closely. There are weapons in the movie. The audio seems to be subdued and filtered which is a good thing because I do not need to pay for volume that it too loud and would damage my equipment or my friendship with my neighbors. The music is recorded, interesting and orchestral. There is little Rock music in this film. I do not remember indigenous music in the native languages. But the weapons could need to be identified by a specialist in arms. I do not know. I just wondered if identifying the arms and the locations would help in the plotting.
The end of the movie is a scene from a open space of land with statues and monuments from the communist era. One statue of Lenin is photographed on the screen. The end of the story is the digging up of dirt on one of the Eastern intelligence bosses from a safebox that has been hidden near the statues. And that is it. Kind of anti-climactic! I have gone through critiquing and letting people read my thoughts. Thanks. But what makes my review important? Why not enjoy the film and let it ride? Let the show go on. Well the answer is technical really and not aesthetic. The beginning of the movie reminds me of the computer game Myst and also Sim-Isle. The point in the game where the statuary is around the fountain. And just a little of the soundtrack of Last Run seems to be from Sim-Isle. I have both games and returned my warranties. The main part of the movie does not continue this. Just briefly in the beginning. Then the last scene with the communist statuary resembles the earlier scene and Myst also. The open space of land with the statuary appears to be a real place. But the games are hard to play. I mean for the audience and the market for computers, PCs and DVDs a lot of people might not be able to figure out the solution to puzzle games or to work to successfully development an island's economy like in Sim-Isle. I know that I can't. I just play for fun. Why sell game software to this market? You see some customers would never be writing a program script. It is just not something they will learn. But the PCs and DVD drives have enough processor power to enable these scripts and integrated programming environments.
I cleansed my DVD disk wiping from inside to outside with glass cleaner. The photography which is excellent in Last Run sometimes is washy looking and I wondered if this had something to do with the suppressed plot or the movie business because there is rain in some of the scenes and raindrops appear on the automobile glass and resemble the problems with the disk. I do not think it was the cleanser because the washy look was always cut with the scene and the lighting. Like a dark scene with a washy fault on my disk and cut to a brilliant outdoor landscape shot that was very attractive and had no technical faults. Maybe I am not washing the disk correctly?
Finally when rewatching the film the second time I turned on the Spanish subtitles to see if I could follow the plot-line by reading and including the Latin. But except for the characters names, no deal. But I enjoyed the disk more with the subtitles on. I watch the subtitles all the time on other disks.
The woman in the movie are all mature, adult and over eighteen years of age. I must write that I wonder if they rent or own. They all die in the movie and Frank gets upset and yells the word NO and tries to revive one of the women. (The cast link does not work on the IMDB credits page to get the names. What do you know?) The women are attractive and European. Since I had problems following the politics of the plot story line I wonder how much the locations, which are in Hungary and Austria, are important. One scene shows a map in color and I want to use the stop button on my remote to look at the map a little more closely. There are weapons in the movie. The audio seems to be subdued and filtered which is a good thing because I do not need to pay for volume that it too loud and would damage my equipment or my friendship with my neighbors. The music is recorded, interesting and orchestral. There is little Rock music in this film. I do not remember indigenous music in the native languages. But the weapons could need to be identified by a specialist in arms. I do not know. I just wondered if identifying the arms and the locations would help in the plotting.
The end of the movie is a scene from a open space of land with statues and monuments from the communist era. One statue of Lenin is photographed on the screen. The end of the story is the digging up of dirt on one of the Eastern intelligence bosses from a safebox that has been hidden near the statues. And that is it. Kind of anti-climactic! I have gone through critiquing and letting people read my thoughts. Thanks. But what makes my review important? Why not enjoy the film and let it ride? Let the show go on. Well the answer is technical really and not aesthetic. The beginning of the movie reminds me of the computer game Myst and also Sim-Isle. The point in the game where the statuary is around the fountain. And just a little of the soundtrack of Last Run seems to be from Sim-Isle. I have both games and returned my warranties. The main part of the movie does not continue this. Just briefly in the beginning. Then the last scene with the communist statuary resembles the earlier scene and Myst also. The open space of land with the statuary appears to be a real place. But the games are hard to play. I mean for the audience and the market for computers, PCs and DVDs a lot of people might not be able to figure out the solution to puzzle games or to work to successfully development an island's economy like in Sim-Isle. I know that I can't. I just play for fun. Why sell game software to this market? You see some customers would never be writing a program script. It is just not something they will learn. But the PCs and DVD drives have enough processor power to enable these scripts and integrated programming environments.
I cleansed my DVD disk wiping from inside to outside with glass cleaner. The photography which is excellent in Last Run sometimes is washy looking and I wondered if this had something to do with the suppressed plot or the movie business because there is rain in some of the scenes and raindrops appear on the automobile glass and resemble the problems with the disk. I do not think it was the cleanser because the washy look was always cut with the scene and the lighting. Like a dark scene with a washy fault on my disk and cut to a brilliant outdoor landscape shot that was very attractive and had no technical faults. Maybe I am not washing the disk correctly?
Finally when rewatching the film the second time I turned on the Spanish subtitles to see if I could follow the plot-line by reading and including the Latin. But except for the characters names, no deal. But I enjoyed the disk more with the subtitles on. I watch the subtitles all the time on other disks.
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