I want you to spread the word tomorrow that if anyone doesnt want to fight it will not be held against them. Some of them have wives and children. Some have weeks or months until release. There is no dishonor in standing aside.

- General Irwin

BY STEVEN WOODRING| In Rod Luries first big budget film, The Last Castle, we witness just what a leader can accomplish against all odds. As a film that depends heavily on its main theme revolving around leadership, one hardly thinks that prison would be a proper location for such a subject, but Rod Lurie & Co. weave an important story that right now, everyone may be able to identify with.

General Irwin (Robert Redford) is a three-star military General who is court-martialed and sent to Fort Truman, a maximum-security military prison for a ten-year sentence. Once inside, he is warmly greeted by Colonel Winter (James Gandolfini), who turns out to be quite a fan of the infamous General. But after an innocent comment made by Irwin, which Winter overhears, it seems that all bets are off as to what will happen between these two leaders.

The film starts out beautifully, and amazingly stays that way throughout the whole picture. What Cinematographer Shelly Johnson has done is not only help make The Last Castle look amazing, but also shows how much he has matured from his last picture, Jurassic Park III. The entire tone of the picture is carefully thought out, neutralizing any form of brilliant color in the prison yard, and giving it all to Colonel Winters office, which is practically a full-blown military paraphernalia museum. But once control of the prison shifts to the inmates, the color also shifts, leaving Winters once vibrant office looking more like a dark cave.

Throughout the film, its hard not to notice the experimentation of these filmmakers. Johnson and Lurie use techniques found all the way back in Citizen Kane (1941), attempting the rarely used deep-focus technique that was pioneered by Kanes Cinematographer, Greg Tolland. Its definitely a nice piece of eye candy, but it soon becomes unnatural, and distracts the viewer from the most important part of the picture, the story.

Lurie also pays homage to one of his favorite directors, Stanley Kubrick in The Last Castle, by using the same font for the titles as Kubrick did in 2001: A Space Odyssey.

As the story develops, Irwin begins to form relationships with the inmates, and learn more about the mistreatment that they receive from Colonel Winter. There are some fantastic moments shared between Robert Redfords character, and Clifton Collins, Jr., who plays the slow but lovable Corporal Ramon Aguilar. Its truly a shame Clifton Collins wasnt used more in the picture. Paul Calderon was great in the role of Dellwo, a hard yet understanding inmate who helps Irwin rally the inmates together. Each role of the core group of inmates was fantastic, such as Jeremy Childs character Cutbush, who was imprisoned for grand theft auto, but as Cutbush says;  it was a f*cking Hyundai, so there was nothing too grand about it. Mark Ruffalo also does a superb job as inmate Yates, who is torn between taking sides with either Irwin or Winter.

The only trouble I have as far as the characters go, is that of Frank Military and his role as Doc, one of the brightest inmates in The Castle. It seems that through the editing process, character development was obviously cut for more action on screen. Thats fine, but it could have had a lot more impact if a few of the more personal scenes between the inmates were left in, such as Docs live-saving scene in the cafeteria-turned-makeshift-medical-ward during the inmate uprising. Oh, and Brian Goodman as Beaupre, well, to put it simply, badass.

All these characters are great, but the two main reasons people will be paying to see this film are James Gandolfini and Robert Redford. James Gandolfini is absolutely incredible. His character on screen is so intense and passionate; you cant help but be personally moved, and offended by him. If this isnt Oscar worthy, I dont know what is. And now for Robert Redford. He has a big fan base, I know, Ive witnessed the madness personally, and I still cant understand it. Ill probably end up being stoned to death for this, but the only role Ive ever enjoyed him play is that of Martin Bishop, in 1992s Sneakers. This is almost an identical role. Theyre both leaders, and theyre both willing to put everything on the line for what they believe in. What Redford does in The Last Castle as General Irwin is commendable. I believe he did a fine job with the material, but it just doesnt make a fan out of me. However, the thirty-something women out there in the world will appreciate the shirtless scenes, and their ticket sales alone will probably cover the cost of production.

Another star of the picture is actually the location. The Tennessee State Prison looks absolutely wonderful in this film. Production Designer Kirk Petruccelli and Cinematographer Shelly Johnson have definitely taken the time to establish the location for the audience. Whereas The Green Mile only gave you a mere glimpse of the beautiful architecture, these men now show us the often eerie, haunting feel it has to it as well. (Speaking of haunting, a few crew members actually stayed away from certain parts of the prison, noting that they felt very uncomfortable about working in certain areas, citing feelings as if they were not alone). And let us not forget the amazing prison tier set. Its hard to believe the three-story housing facility for the prisoners was completely fabricated, isnt it? Once again, Kirk Petruccelli proves hes a man of many talents, from the temples of Cambodia (Lara Croft: Tomb Raider), to the battle fields of the revolutionary war (The Patriot), to the life of a prisoner, he makes it all live and breathe for us on screen.

Towards the end of the picture, we get to see Irwin and his men revolt against the Warden. The action scenes are pretty damned good. Rod Lurie actually had the chance to direct most of the scenes in the prison yard, such as the trebuchet scene, and everything revolving around General Irwin in the makeshift command post before he moved to a warehouse down the street to film in the tiers with Redford. Mic Rodgers (Fast and the Furious) then took over and helped make one hell of an intense battle between the inmates and guards. The helicopter scene was very interesting to watch on screen, but there was however one absolutely hokey moment, which I will not ruin for any of you, but the use of a mannequin as a stunt double just made me laugh.

In the climax of the film, where General Irwin and Colonel Winter meet face to face, it seems to me that it moved too fast. When you film one scene for a week and a half, you know you have the footage available to make it last. This is the payoff; this is where good can triumph over evil, or vise-versa. What we have is a quick resolution that doesnt really let the actors like Gandolfini shine. If you were there when it was filmed, youd remember hearing a certain crackle to Gandolfinis voice. Almost as if he was about to break down and cry, he was so upset. In the finished product, what you get is man that cant control his anger, which of course is fine, but I wasnt moved by his performance like I thought I would have been. As for Redford, well, the end scene is his glory moment, and rightfully so, but I wasnt impressed.

The soundtrack by composer Jerry Goldsmith is very intense and has a wonderful patriotic feel to it. Add to the mix Funk Master Flexs track Ante Up, and you pretty much have yourself a well-rounded prison score. But lets not forget extra-turned-actor Dean Hall, who plays Harris in the film (it looks as if any scene filmed with him acting has been edited), who adds a great soulful little tune titled Chiseled in Stone. Stick around for the end credits to hear him kick it up a notch.

So what we have is a good, smart story, and a great cast with a lot of energy. The only problem I found with this film is the pace. For me, it moved way too fast. It felt like a week after General Irwin is imprisoned at The Castle, hes turning around ready to take over the facility. It just had no sense of time for me, and that bothered me a great deal afterwards. But if youve read some of the other reviews for this film, youll hear that it was too slow. I suppose Im just a sucker for story instead of action.

As Rod Luries first big feature, hes done a good job. Hes poured his heart into the film. But lets not kid ourselves; hes got a long way to go. It would be nice to see Mr. Lurie actually get behind the camera once in a while, and not rely solely on the video village to gauge how good a shot is. These days, its almost disheartening to see a director behind a monitor instead of a camera. If he was willing to get his hands dirty, we might have seen a more intense, grittier picture. But if this is what he can offer us in his rookie stage at directing, think of the quality material hell be giving us in about ten years.

And one last word: if youre not interested in prison or military films, go see he Last Castle, dont let genres stop you from seeing a great movie. It's two hours of pure fun.