Claysaba Excellent, Without a doubt!!

Dirtylogy It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Sameer Callahan It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Freeman This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

jotix100 A young boy is seen with a gun in between parked cars. It is an intriguing premise. One cannot fail to wonder if it is a real gun, or just a toy one. Evidently the boy, Chook, and his father Kev, are running away from a bad situation at home. They take to the road, making their first stop at Kev's old lover, Maryanne. She wants him out, but Kev convinces her for one more tumble in the sack, for old times sake, before asking for her money.Kev discovers what appears to be an abandoned house. He manages to get Chook inside through an opening in a window. Kev has been telling Chook about their possible Afghani lineage, so when the boy discovers some strange costumes, he believes they are from Afghanistan. Chook also sees a woman that appears to be praying in a room of the house, dressed in a strange costume. The woman tells him she is from India. Kev, surprising them, forces her into submission and proceeds to steal her car and money. Chook's souvenir is her cell phone.Father and son begin a long odyssey traveling through the outback. Kev's only source of getting money is by stealing whatever he can in order for him and Chook to feed themselves. Kev shows a mean streak toward his son. When the boy finds some cosmetics in the car of the Indian lady, he paints his lips and eyes with them. Kev is mortified, beating his son with his belt. It is at this point we get to know the real reason for Kev's running away. In flashbacks we see Max, a friendly man that might, or might not be a sexual predator. Kev's savage beating probably is the cause of his friend's death.Staying in a secluded area, away from the police, Kev tries bonding with the boy, but his cruelty toward his son does not sit well with Chook. As Kev tries to stay away from the police he saw near the camping ground where he and Chook were, they come to the shallow Lake Gairtner, where the father, in a fit of anger, tries to abandon the boy. Chook figures a way out of the ordeal his old man has put him through by using the cell phone to alert the authorities. At the end, Kev has figured he does not want to go to prison again, deciding on a desperate action."Last Ride" made an impression on this viewer. It was directed by Glendyn Ivin and based on a novel by Denise Young. The screen adaptation is by Mac Gudgeon. The director's view of the material translates beautifully in front of our eyes. The result is on a look at a desperate man against the glorious scenery of that part of Australia, most of us do not get to see. The sequence on Lake Gairtner is pure poetry, thanks to the excellent cinematography of Greig Fraser, who continues to show his artistry in every project he is involved with.The film is a tour de force by Hugo Weaving, one of Australia's best actors. His Kev is a cruel man, showing traces of having been sexually abused while in jail. Thus his reaction toward the situation with Max and his horror at his son painted face, something that might remind him of his past. Young Tom Russell holds his own opposite his more experienced co-star. One appreciate Chook's hard look at the life he has led and the abuse from a father that is tough on him. Appearing shortly is the excellent Anita Hegh as Maryanne. John Brumpton is also seen briefly as Max.One can only hope the best to the talented Glendyn Ivin in the future.

zippee This is a coming of age story of two people on a road trip. A man and a boy are elementally bound and separated through their own actions over the course of their intense journey . Each of their choices resonates as a life lesson. Context is revealed in the sparing use of flashbacks: like inexact memories, past acts are recalled in short swirls, and distancing, grainy, TV blue- hues. The characters' more intentional, real-time acts take place in the redemptive, sensually saturated landscape of the Outback. I found Last Ride to be more compelling than anything I've seen this year, with its lean dialogue, stunning cinematography, and great performances. It was so elegantly assembled, that I'm still aghast -this film is a prizewinner in my book. At the same time, I wonder whether I will need to lobby locally, so I can see it on the screen it deserves. It also recalled the more subtle, character-revealing aspects of Thelma and Louise. I saw Little Fish a few years ago, also featuring Hugo Weaving. That that film imprinted on me in a similar way, because it turned out to be an unexpectedly piquant dish. Last Ride is a feast of a film. Bravo, and thank you.

pdelamore I'm loving Australian cinema at the moment. It's showing a side of Australia we never see after years of Crocodile Dundee and Steve Irwin. I loved Kenny and loved Beautiful Kate even more. While I don't think it's quite in the same league as the latter, it's still yet another movie which shows the beauty of Australia's great outdoors.But despite its visual warmth, the backbone of the movie is its dark story. It reveals itself gradually through-out the plot. You will hate Kev (the father), but there will come a point where you will actually come to accept him. Weaving is, as to be expected, solid and his co-star Tom Russell (Chook, the son) looks set to have a great future in the business.It's a very good movie that you should check out if you get the chance. 8/10

Likes_Ninjas90 Last Ride opens with a man named Kev (Hugo Weaving) entering a coffee shop with his young son named Chook (Tom Russell). Kev proceeds to use the bathroom in the shop to cut off some of his own hair. Yet when he also removes the number plate from his car, it becomes more apparent that Kev is determined to conceal his whereabouts and his identity. It is eventually revealed that Kev has murdered someone and is running from the law with his son. Together they endure a road trip across Australia and much of the film is spent dealing with the interplay between the father and son on the road and into the outback. With his short temper Kev is a dangerous and dislikeable man, often violent to both strangers and his son alike. Despite this, he never forgets that he is still Chooks father and continues to try and teach him lessons in life.Based on the novel by Denise Young and directed by Glendyn Ivin, this is yet another quiet and intensive Australian film, driven by a superb performance from its lead actor, Hugo Weaving. The verisimilitude of the character of Kev is derived from the significant detail placed into his appearance. From his tattoos and rugged facial hair, his scars and bruises, Kev is a fearsome looking man and this is further realised when we learn that he has already spent time in gaol. He remains entirely repelling in almost all of his actions. He is both a thief and murderer, with an extremely short fuse for anyone that gets in his way, including his son Chook. His first words to his son as he hands him some change in the coffee shop are: 'I want a burger and a coffee. Get whatever you want.' While seemingly insignificant, this establishes his dogmatic manner and simultaneously the rather uneven way that he caters towards his sons needs. As he strokes Chook's forehead as he sleeps, we understand that there is unusual complexion between the thuggery of prison life still inside of him and the father that he should be. Given how deplorable Kev is at times, it is testimony to the skill of Weaving that the performance remains wholly absorbing. Weaving is a lifetime away from some of the more famous roles he is known for, such as Agent Smith in The Matrix and V from V for Vendetta. It's an outstanding performance. Yet given that our sympathy rests on the shoulders of young Tom Russell's character, one cannot praise his performance enough either. Russell is equally superb in his role, looking and sounding just like an ordinary child, with wants and needs, dragged along through this chaos and far too young to understand the consequences.A great deal of tension in the film is derived not only from how Kev treats his son, but what could result from this later in life. Kev mentions at one point in the film about how his own father left him out in the desert to teach him a lesson and towards the end of the film, as they are crossing a lake, Kev too leaves Chook by himself and drives off. The echo of the stories here reminds us of the way that poor parenting is passed down from father to son. It is impossible not wonder from moments like this, and also when Chook starts shoplifting, whether Chook will become like his dad too. Though the final third of the film is quite slow and ponderous, perhaps fitting with the tranquillity of the landscape, the questions about Chook's future are answered in a very satisfying manner, as we start to see how he rejects his father's ways and begins thinking for himself. These scenes, many of which are beautifully photographed, are also punctured by a powerful climax that many are sure to find extremely moving. It is the credibility of the interplay between the father and his son that lays the platform for the emotion in the ending, without veering into sentimentality.Last Ride is slow burning and intense film, buoyed by two terrific performances. Hugo Weaving deserves many of the accolades that he is surely to receive for this performance and Tom Russell has also shown great potential as well. There are many brutal and confronting moments in this film and the pace is often very slow and ponderous, but the film's ability to surprise the viewer with new information about Kev's past and to develop the characters in an emotional finale remains highly rewarding. It is a really fine film.