Last Dance (1996 film)

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Last Dance
Movie poster
Directed byBruce Beresford
Written bySteven Haft
Ron Koslow
Produced bySteven Haft
Starring
CinematographyPeter James
Edited byJohn Bloom
Music byMark Isham
Production
company
Distributed byBuena Vista Pictures Distribution
Release date
  • May 3, 1996 (1996-05-03)
Running time
103 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$41 million
Box office$5,939,449 (USA sub-total)

Last Dance is a 1996 crime drama thriller film directed by Bruce Beresford and starring Sharon Stone, Rob Morrow, Randy Quaid and Peter Gallagher.

Plot[edit]

Cindy Liggett (Sharon Stone) is waiting on death row for a brutal double murder she committed in her teens, 12 years earlier. Clemency lawyer Rick Hayes (Rob Morrow) tries to save her, based on the argument that she was under the influence of crack cocaine when she committed the crime of which she was found guilty and that she is no longer the same person she had been at the time of the murder. However, her death sentence is carried out. The films ends with Rick on a trip to India after Cindy's execution.

Cast[edit]

Production[edit]

Last Dance was filmed in Nashville.[1]

Critical reception[edit]

The film was largely ignored at the box office, and suffered in comparison to the 1995 film Dead Man Walking, which was an Academy Award-winning drama whose treatment of the death penalty theme was still fresh in the minds of audiences.[2]

Last Dance received negative reviews from critics. It currently holds a 30% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 23 reviews, with an average rating of 5.2/10.[3] Sharon Stone was nominated for a Razzie Award for Worst New Star (as the new serious Sharon Stone) for this film and Diabolique, where she lost to Pamela Anderson for Barb Wire.

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times felt the film handled "potentially powerful material thoughtfully" and made a "good showcase for Stone". However, he pointed out that the film suffered from the "inescapable misfortune" of being following too soon after the "unquestioned masterpiece" of Dead Man Walking. In comparison, Ebert felt Last Dance "comes across as earnest but unoriginal".[4] James Berardinelli of ReelViews also felt Dead Man Walking was "far superior". He felt Last Dance was a "less compelling tale" and "a little too safe", with "a little too much manipulation and melodrama". He praised Stone as giving the "most impressive performance of a rather lackluster career", but criticized Morrow as "leav[ing] something to be desired". He concluded that Last Dance is "perfectly watchable, and even worth a marginal recommendation, [but] in comparison to Dead Man Walking, it feels diluted."[5]

Janet Maslin of the New York Times praised Stone's "stellar presence and surprisingly intense performance" in the film, describing her "dead-end role" as the film's "lifesaver". However, she was critical of the overall film, stating: "...soon the story begins taking sentimental turns, and even Ms. Stone's startling ferocity gets buried in sludge."[6] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone was critical of the film and concluded: "Last Dance is a prison melodrama that embraces all the cliches that Dead Man Walking artfully dodged. Last Dance acts tough, but its heart is pure soap opera."[7] Desson Howe of The Washington Post was also critical of the film, suggesting that the film "isn't quite "Dumb Blonde Walking", but that satirical slur isn't so far off the mark". He described the film as "formulaic" with a "strangely distancing" emotional effect.[8]

Barbara Shulgasser of the San Francisco Chronicle described the film as "simplistic, puerile rubbish", adding that Stone needed to "start picking difficult material if she really wants to become an actress".[9] Edward Guthmann of the same newspaper felt the film had "able" direction and acting, but that Dead Man Walking was "far superior". He praised Stone's performance, but added: "The moments when Last Dance doesn't gloss over Stone's character are the best, and they make you wish the movie had been restructured." He described the film as an "earnest, unremarkable addition to the Hollywood canon of prison movies".[10] Anne Billson of the UK newspaper The Telegraph felt Stone "emerges from this enterprise with a certain amount of dignity", unlike Morrow, who is given "a wilfully unsympathetic role". She described the film as providing the "usual compendium of clichés".[11]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Movies Filmed in Tennessee". www.tntrivia.com. Retrieved 2020-12-26.
  2. ^ "Last Dance (1996) - Trailers, Reviews, Synopsis, Showtimes and Cast". AllMovie. Retrieved 2013-05-01.
  3. ^ "Last Dance (1996)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  4. ^ Ebert, Roger (May 3, 1996). "Last Dance Movie Review & Film Summary (1996)". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved May 1, 2013 – via RogerEbert.com.
  5. ^ Berardinelli, James. "Review: Last Dance". Reelviews.net. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  6. ^ Maslin, Janet (May 3, 1996). "Last Dance". The New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  7. ^ Travers, Peter (May 3, 1996). "Last Dance | Movie Reviews". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  8. ^ Howe, Desson (May 3, 1996). "'Last Dance' (R)". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  9. ^ Shulgasser, Barbara (May 3, 1996). "Stone loses a step in "Last Dance'". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  10. ^ Guthmann, Edward (May 3, 1996). "'Last Dance' Trips Over Wasted Chance / Death Row drama misplays Sharon Stone's role". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  11. ^ Billson, Anne (24 August 1996). "Dead woman outstaying her welcome". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 23 November 2010. Retrieved 1 May 2013.

External links[edit]

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