I don't mind suspending disbelief, and I don't mind turning the other cheek when things get a bit stupid. This movie, however, is filled with so many instances of anti-realism that I actually couldn't finish watching. Let me sum up a few of them:
-Ray Owens, a veteran American police officer that has worked on the force for many, many years, is a heavily accented non-American. Seriously, they couldn't have just called him "Ray van Owen" or something? This is an unnecessary oversight.
-At one point, you see the big baddie do a J-turn in his Corvette. Cool move! It's too bad you see what speed he's doing right before the maneuver: 200 mph. Do you know what happens when you pull the handbrake and violently jerk the steering wheel at 200 mph? You die. They could've just as well not shown the spedometer in this scene.
-two small-town cops in their twenties think it prudent to have a firefight with fifteen obviously well trained, armed-to-the-teeth gangsters.
-ten minutes after one of these young coppers dies, everybody's fine and laughing. Yes, laughing.
-Arnie, the veteran officer, easily convinces four untrained deputies to take out an enemy that has just butchered about a hundred highly trained SWAT guys, FBI agents and cops.
-Forest Whitaker's character would be fired in minutes for gross incompetence. Also, he's a total douche. He starts yelling at an unknown sherriff even though Arnie's obviously telling the truth and has just lost a young guy in a huge firefight.
-If the villain is really as bad as they say he is, they would've drone missiled the crap out of that Corvette, hostage or no. He's the most wanted drug pusher in the world, just took out an army of cops, and is obviously not going to stop. One woman would be acceptable collateral damage.
-Nobody seems to actually LIVE in the small town.
-the dialogue is so obviously written down, that whenever the characters speak, you get pulled out of the movie. No young adult says "I'm going a little stir crazy" to a lifelong friend.
-a cop would never deputize an obvious paranoid schizophrenic for some weapons. Seeing as the law is irrelevant in that town anyway, he could've just seized the weapons.
Anyway, I'm sure there's more what I've listed above. Feel free to add!
"I only buy things with even-numbered price tags. I'm an economist."
-Ray Owens, a veteran American police officer that has worked on the force for many, many years, is a heavily accented non-American. Seriously, they couldn't have just called him "Ray van Owen" or something? This is an unnecessary oversight.
So you believe that someone with an accent can't have a Western surname?
-At one point, you see the big baddie do a J-turn in his Corvette. Cool move! It's too bad you see what speed he's doing right before the maneuver: 200 mph. Do you know what happens when you pull the handbrake and violently jerk the steering wheel at 200 mph? You die. They could've just as well not shown the spedometer in this scene.
It's just a movie, something like that was made to look cool - of course there's no way something like that can be done safely on a highway, however it is important to remember that professional circuit racing was part of Cortez's family history, as they made reference to it in the movie.
-two small-town cops in their twenties think it prudent to have a firefight with fifteen obviously well trained, armed-to-the-teeth gangsters.
They were not aware they were armed. They saw the big bright light and investigated. They tried to fall back when they saw how serious the situation was.\
-ten minutes after one of these young coppers dies, everybody's fine and laughing. Yes, laughing.
It wasn't a very serious or loud laugh.
-Arnie, the veteran officer, easily convinces four untrained deputies to take out an enemy that has just butchered about a hundred highly trained SWAT guys, FBI agents and cops.
There were only 2 untrained deputies, the other 2 were trained. Plus 1 was able to handle a magnum and owned a gun museum and the other served in Iraq and Afghanistan - I'm pretty sure gun fighting isn't too fat-fetched for them.
-Forest Whitaker's character would be fired in minutes for gross incompetence. Also, he's a total douche. He starts yelling at an unknown sherriff even though Arnie's obviously telling the truth and has just lost a young guy in a huge firefight.
He didn't yell at Arnie, he was informing him of the seriousness of the situation. What was incompentent about that? I think you'll find many people in that situation would've handled it in a similar way.
-If the villain is really as bad as they say he is, they would've drone missiled the crap out of that Corvette, hostage or no. He's the most wanted drug pusher in the world, just took out an army of cops, and is obviously not going to stop. One woman would be acceptable collateral damage.
And exactly how are they to catch it? The Helicopter wasn't fast enough to catch it, as was referenced, and if they were to use a fighter jet to bomb the *beep* out of a highway, can you imagine the crap that whoever instigated it would cop?
-Nobody seems to actually LIVE in the small town.
They were all away for the football game on that weekend.
-the dialogue is so obviously written down, that whenever the characters speak, you get pulled out of the movie. No young adult says "I'm going a little stir crazy" to a lifelong friend.[/quote[She was referencing the coffee she was stirring... why wouldn't anyone say that? I would!
[quote]-a cop would never deputize an obvious paranoid schizophrenic for some weapons. Seeing as the law is irrelevant in that town anyway, he could've just seized the weapons.
He couldn't seize the weapons as he had a permit for them, and a license for the museum. If he wanted to use the ammunition to take on the bad guys firepower, he had to bargain with him, and I'm sure you'll find that police bargain with criminals to get help from them, so why not bargain with a civilian?
_________________________________ Steven Seagal Fan Club President
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Wait, I'M clutching at straws? You're kind of missing my point (and the first sentence of my original post): I don't mind suspension of disbelief, nor do I mind stupid stuff. What I can't stand is when a movie sets up its rules, and then blatantly ignores them.
Let me give you an example: the car acrobatics that are pulled off in Fast & Furious 6 are basically impossible, but, through the script and previous films, it is established that these guys are near superhero-level drivers. Therefore, when something ridiculous happens, you can say: "hey, but they can powerslide up an entire parking garage and parkour an entire city; is it really that odd that this particular ridiculous thing is happening?"
Another example: the technology that Batman has is impossible, even though Gotham is based in "our reality". However, passable scientific explanation (improbable though it might be) is given as to how his gadgets could theoretically function, and it is explicitly mentioned that Bruce has unlimited funds, once again making the situation at least plausible.
Now, let's look at The Last Stand: it is asserted that this sleepy town police force isn't very good at its job (and that's putting it lightly: they're *beep* terrible). This can be seen when the young male officer touches various items in an obvious crime scene, or when he neglects to try a front door when trying to enter a house. Both officers have no idea what to do. So: these cops are VERY inexperienced.
Ten minutes later, they encounter a veritable army of baddies. Any retarded potato could see that their Glocks are no match for fifteen guys with automatic rifles, yet they try to engage anyway. Then, when the lights get turned off 'cause the bad man literally yells "KILL THE LIGHTS", the male officer, who is shot at the moment, somehow deems it safe to run from cover. He then gets shot again.
Above example is one of complete narrative incompetence. Below, you'll find one more.
The Corvette. OH, the Corvette. Early on, it is made abundantly, annoyingly clear that this thing is fast as hell. Which is fine! However, it is not alleged that this thing can defy all laws of physics, like gravity and conservation of momentum. Nor is it mentioned that this movie world has different laws than our world. Therefore, the manoeuvres that the drug dealer pulls are impossible. A j-turn at 200 miles per hour. driving over 200 miles per hour on Arizona back roads. C'mon.
Do you understand what I'm trying to say? If you want to make something this stupid, the premise has to match that stupidity. Your commentary is mostly nitpicking ("it was only a short laugh?" Really?) and mostly incorrect.
"I only buy things with even-numbered price tags. I'm an economist."
So what you're saying is that you're happy for a movie to be fake, as long as everything remains in proportion. Doesn't that defeat the purpose of the movie being... fake?
_________________________________ Steven Seagal Fan Club President
Why would that defeat the purpose of it being fake? Seriously, I would like an explanation, 'cause logically, your assumption makes no sense whatsoever. What I've said multiple times now, is that I (and many, many others with me) don't like it when movies break their own rules that they've explicitly set up. Bulletproof Monk is a good example of this: early on in the (terrible) movie, it is established that the monk can float. The final fight scene shows him hanging precariously off the side of a building. Why would that be dangerous IF HE CAN FLOAT? The Last Stand does this multiple times: setting up a specific "rule", and proceeding to disregard it almost instantly. That is no fun.
To put this in contrast, I love The Expendables as a ridiculous action movie. Why? Because these people are supermen. That is established from the get-go, and whatever they do makes sense in the movie's world.
"I only buy things with even-numbered price tags. I'm an economist."
I disagree with some of what you said, and believe the movie follows its own logic relatively well.
For example, these people are bad cops and they make the bad decision of trying to be the hero and taking on these (presumably) highly trained cartel members. One of the people (the one who was shot) was talking before about how he wanted to go where the action was (L.A.) to "make a difference." He wanted to be a hero and he died for it.
I would also contend that Cortez was also implied to be a superman behind the wheel, too. Forest Whittaker's character pretty much said so in one scene, saying how he had been racing cars for much his life and going so far as to actually complimenting Cortez on his driving.
Don't you want to become one with me? To be of one mind and body?
It is called internal logical consistency. Seriously. If you get owned, then just have the good graces to leave in peace. A last parter that weak is sad.
-Ray Owens, a veteran American police officer that has worked on the force for many, many years, is a heavily accented non-American. Seriously, they couldn't have just called him "Ray van Owen" or something? This is an unnecessary oversight.
I agree. I wanted Rick Moranis for the Part. But Seriously its Arnold Schwarzenegger Movie. Don't think about it so much. Just shut your brain off and enjoy.
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It has probably been mentioned somewhere else in the comments but how does Arnold's red car constantly catch up to the villain's suped up vehicle? Does it have teleportation abilities or something?