The Last Castle (2001)

I liked this one so much I bought it.  I really couldn't tell you why.  It's not my usual fare at all but something about it was extremely appealing to me.  I think it will be one of those comfortable movies that I can throw on while doing chores or homework where I can walk away and come back with it just playing in the background.  Originally posted 07 Jul 2013.    This was my 4th of July movie.  I felt it was appropriately patriotic.

General Eugene Irwin (Robert Redford) pleads guilty to disobeying a direct order and is sentenced to 10 years in the Castle, a military prison run by Colonel Winter (James Gandolfini).  Winter is initially obsequious at having such a distinguished war hero in his facility, albeit under reduced circumstances, but when Irwin unwittingly offends him, Winter reverts back to his original stance that prisoners are sub-human and best treated as living pawns.  After witnessing some of the abuses of power, Irwin starts pulling the men together and giving them back their fractured sense of self. 

This might be the youngest I've ever seen Mark Ruffalo in a movie.  I found that to be noteworthy, but his performance didn't shine for me as much as underrated character actor Clifton Collins, Jr.'s.  That guy has been amazing in every role I've seen him in, and I can all but guarantee you won't be able to picture his face when you read his name.  You will recognize Robin Wright in a very small role as Irwin's daughter.  Not sure why but actors take roles for reasons I don't understand all the time.

As most, if not all of you, are aware, James Gandolfini passed away recently.  I have to say, I am unfamiliar with most of his work.  I never watched The Sopranos and most of his other roles were indies or supporting bigger names.  He was a physically imposing man in real life, but the way he played COL Winter was as a small, petty individual, seeming to shrink in on himself.  Even the way he ate a sandwich made me think of a kid eating alone at lunch, shoulders hunched as though expecting bullies.  It was a compelling portrait of a character whose meanness and vindictiveness were better suited for a physically smaller, slighter man. 

The movie itself is pretty standard fare, Renaissance Man in Leavenworth if you will.  It's more entertaining than it has a right to be with plenty of action sequences and a thread of humor.  Definitely worth a watch.