''The Last Outlaw'' is a 1993 American

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

television film starring

Mickey Rourke Philip Andre "Mickey" Rourke Jr. (; born September 16, 1952) is an American actor and former boxer who has appeared primarily as a leading man in drama, action, and thriller films. During the star of the 1980s, Rourke played supporting roles i ...

, Dermot Mulroney,

Ted Levine Frank Theodore Levine (born May 29, 1957) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the roles of Buffalo Bill in the film '' The Silence of the Lambs'' (1991) and Leland Stottlemeyer in the television series ''Monk'' (2002–2009). Le ...

Daniel Quinn Daniel Clarence Quinn (October 11, 1935 – February 17, 2018) was an American author (primarily, novelist and fabulist), cultural critic, and publisher of educational texts, best known for his novel ''Ishmael'', which won the Turner Tomorrow ...

, Gavan O'Herlihy,

Keith David Keith David Williams (born June 4, 1956) is an American actor. He is known for his signature deep voice and commanding screen presence in over 300 roles across film, stage, television, and interactive media. He has starred in such films as '' T ...

, John C. McGinley, and Steve Buscemi, along with a variety of other known actors, which has since become a

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among

Western genre The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...

fans. It was

directed Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

Geoff Murphy Geoffrey Peter Murphy (12 October 1938 – 3 December 2018) was a New Zealand filmmaker, producer, director, and screenwriter best known for his work during the renaissance of New Zealand cinema that began in the second half of the 1970s. His s ...

and written by Eric Red. It was initially broadcast on HBO on October 30, 1993.

Introduction

The story follows a band of former

Confederate soldiers The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

who were part of a cavalry unit that had fought during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

, with few surviving to its end. Their commander, Graff, had once been a heroic and staunch supporter of the southern cause, but after losing his family he became cold hearted and ruthless. His second in command is Eustis, whom Graff has trained since 1861 on the strategies of leadership and combat command, right down to knowing exactly how many rounds of ammunition each of his soldiers has. The film centers around the relationship between Graff and Eustis, and the irony of Eustis turning on Graff due to Graff making a decision that Eustis disagrees with, and which mirrors a decision Eustis is also forced to make himself as a commander later.

Plot

When the war ends, the cavalry unit commanded by Graff makes the decision to stay together, and turn outlaw. They begin committing

bank robberies Bank robbery is the criminal act of stealing from a bank, specifically while bank employees and customers are subjected to force, violence, or a threat of violence. This refers to robbery of a bank branch or teller, as opposed to other bank- ...

, and are successful due to their experience and tactics. Local citizens and lawmen are no match for them. However, when a robbery goes horribly wrong, resulting in the unit being shot up badly, with Loomis badly wounded, they find themselves pursued by Marshal Sharp, who is capable and respected. Graff makes the command decision to kill the injured Loomis so that he won't delay their escape. Eustis objects, and when Graff strikes Eustis then moves to shoot Loomis, Eustis instead shoots Graff. Graff falls out of his saddle and rolls down a hillside; thinking he is dead, Eustis takes command and leads the band toward

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, with the

posse Posse is a shortened form of posse comitatus, a group of people summoned to assist law enforcement. The term is also used colloquially to mean a group of friends or associates. Posse may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Posse'' (1975 ...

still in pursuit. Marshal Sharp and the posse come upon the slightly wounded Graff, and take him prisoner. With Graff in chains, they continue their chase. Eustis sets up an

ambush An ambush is a long-established military tactic in which a combatant uses an advantage of concealment or the element of surprise to attack unsuspecting enemy combatants from concealed positions, such as among dense underbrush or behind mo ...

and several posse members are killed. During the chaos Graff kills Marshal Sharp. Now leaderless, the remaining men decide to return home. Banker McClintock reminds them that they will receive no reward money if they leave. Graff suggests that anyone who stays should take the reward share of those who leave; the men ask if that includes the share of those who were just killed. McClintock reluctantly says yes. With Graff now their leader, they set up an ambush. Graff shoots and kills Philo. A member of the posse tries to cut off Philo's trigger finger for a trophy. Graff puts his gun to the man's lips and tells him that because Philo was one of his (Graff's) men, everyone will show the proper respect. Wills grabs the stolen money off Eustis' horse and rides back to leave it for the posse, believing this gesture will end the chase. When McClintock rides up to the spot on the hill where Wills leaves the money, Graff follows and throws both the money and the banker off the cliff. He then fires his guns to make it seem like there has been a shootout with the outlaws, and he tells the posse the situation had been a trap. Graff stands by as the posse engages in an internal shootout over what to do next. While Potts is giving Wills a beating for his action concerning the money, it becomes clear that the deed did not 'save their skins', as Lovecraft spots Graff and his remaining riders coming toward them. Eustis and Graff meet in an isolated saloon, but no peace is brokered. Graff says that Eustis owes him 'everything.' Potts challenges Eustis' ability as a commander, but Eustis beats him in a fist fight. As the outlaws continue trekking to Mexico, Graff shoots Loomis from a hilltop. The others take cover behind rocks, but Loomis is left in the open; Graff tortures him, shooting him in different parts of the body every few seconds. Finally, Eustis is forced to put Loomis out of his misery. Later, the remaining outlaws encounter Graff almost as if he is a ghost, keeping them off-balance and nervous. During one of these encounters, Graff shoots Wills' horse. Wills rides with Lovecraft, but the horse cannot take the weight. Eustis decides it is necessary to leave Wills behind. Wills waits for the posse and stands his ground as long as he can, killing a couple of them before he is killed. The three left briefly split up to investigate the whereabouts of Graff and his gang. Lovecraft chances upon Graff, who gives him extra ammunition, telling him he will be spared if he kills Eustis. When they reunite and Eustis gives Lovecraft ammunition to load his pistol, he finds that Lovecraft already has a full chamber. Eustis, knowing that Lovecraft did not have a full six rounds left, realizes that Lovecraft has betrayed him. However, when Eustis presses for Lovecraft to do what Graff sent him to do, Lovecraft is overwhelmed with fear and guilt, and commits suicide. Eustis and Potts make for the Rio Grande, but as they are about to cross, Graff shoots Potts through the gut. Eustis makes a lone, final stand against the posse. He gets hit, but kills all of them except Graff. The two draw, and Eustis is faster, but his gun is empty. As Graff approaches, Eustis shoots him with a pocket

derringer A derringer is a small handgun that is neither a revolver nor a semi/ fully automatic pistol. It is not to be confused with mini-revolvers or pocket pistols, although some later derringers were manufactured with the pepperbox configuration. ...

, which Graff had not counted on. Eustis crosses into Mexico, the last outlaw.

Cast

as Graff * Dermot Mulroney as Eustis *

as Potts * John C. McGinley as Frank Wills * Steve Buscemi as Boris Philo *

as Lovecraft

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Last Outlaw, The 1993 television films 1993 films 1993 Western (genre) films 1990s English-language films American Western (genre) films Films directed by Geoff Murphy Films scored by Mason Daring Films shot in New Mexico HBO Films films Western (genre) television films 1990s American films