Intcatinfo A Masterpiece!

Matrixiole Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

SanEat A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Ginger Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

Spikeopath The Last Mile is directed by Howard W. Koch and adapted to screenplay by Milton Subotsky and Seton I. Miller from the play of the same name by John Wexley. It stars Mickey Rooney, Frank Overton, Michael Constantine and John Vari. Music is by Van Alexander and cinematography by Joseph Brun.The Death House is the cell block where nine inmates await their dates with the electric chair. Some of the guards delight in tormenting the condemned men, one of whom is Killer John Mears (Rooney), and he's had enough...Already made in 1932 with Preston Foster in the starring role, Howard Koch's 59 version of The Last Mile taps into the film noir zeitgeist of the time and unleashes a film of great power.Essentially played out on one set, there was a danger that this could have been too stage bound as a production, but not a bit of it, the tight confines of the shoot are just perfect for the thematics of the story. Pic begins with imposing title credits, an animated drawing of "Old Sparky" accompanied by shards of Van Alexander's Jazz "N" Blues musical score. We are then locked up with the convicts of "The Death House", sharing their fears, their anger and their regrets, the constant glances towards "The Door" at the end of the block akin to catching a glimpse of "The Grim Reaper" spying on you.For the first two thirds of the piece the makers ask for our patience as they build characters and atmosphere, gently ratcheting up the tension with every claustrophobic frame. Prison stories were ready made for film noir purveyors, offering great opportunities for the cinematographers to utilise the steel bars for psychologically shadowed impact, and Joseph Brun does that excellently here, even managing to extend the cell shadows over the smug guards, the inference is that they too are locked up in this place of abject misery.The air of fatalism mixes with the sweat of the men and drips down the cell walls, we are left in no doubt that this powder keg is about to be ignited, and when it comes it comes with the thunder, producing a last third of kinetic cinema of throat grabbing proportions. To which Koch and his team deliver a film noir coup de grace. Rooney leads the way with his performance of a seething John Mears, it's not over acting as some critics of the time suggested, it's a full on commitment to the portrayal of the incarcerated male who literally has nothing to lose and has had enough of being taunted. The other actors around him inevitably pale into his shadow, but they also put much emotion into their respective roles, very much so.An under seen and under valued prison noir, The Last Mile should be sought out by anyone with a bent for such films. 8.5/10

RoughneckPaycheck Man I didn't know what I was in for when I sat down to watch this brutal little gem. This portrait of a doomed attempted prison break from a death row cell block hits very hard, and it left me shaking my head in stunned silence.I'm not surprised to learn from other reviews here that this story began its life as a stage play; most of the action takes place on one set, it features an ensemble cast with multiple meaty roles, and the first half of the film works at a deliberate pace with longer takes and scenes than are conventionally cinematic. It walks a thin line, how to get across the agonizing boredom of being in such a lockup, without becoming boring itself? The answer is to spread dialog around, and to give a lot of weight to mundane events, magnifying tensions and emotions. It gives the excellent cast a lot of room to create, if not exactly sympathy, at least an understanding of where the characters are coming from.The second half (or maybe final third) of the movie is an altogether different animal, as the ticking timebomb of Mickey Rooney's John Mears explodes into violent retribution. Mears is a complicated character, an atheist and maybe a nihilist, but he cares deeply about his fellow death row inmates. Rooney's performance is AMAZING and dominates this section of the film. Also excellent are Clifford David as the youngest man on the row, next scheduled to be executed, and Frank Overton as Father O'Connors, the priest who gives the condemned men their last rites. His character shows tremendous courage as events spiral into bloodshed; he has a lot more backbone than the guards, who for the most part are sniveling, cowardly, sadistic creeps.And as others have noted, the jazz score is outstanding, dynamic, punchy, and powerful. It maybe calls attention to itself a little too much, but it's wildly effective in underlining and slapping exclamation points on events throughout the film.In short, terrific.

Peter Eckhardt (adhoc2004) Saw this movie when it came out in 1959, left a lasting impression. Great group of actors. A little short timewise but a great movie all the same. Have only seen once since then and that was some time ago. Hopefully they'll put it out on DVD if they haven't already.

Spence-28 This is a very grim, hard hitting, even brutal film about a death row break that goes awry. It's black and white photography keeps it from being dated. Mickey Rooney is excellent as the twisted, yet strangely sympathetic lead. One of the first movies to portray the psychological desolation of death row. It is also quite poignant.