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The Last Blitzkrieg
This B-quality WWII movie stars Van Johnson as a German soldier recruited to spy on the Americans because of his fluent English. He begins the movie by infiltrating a POW camp and foiling an escape attempt. He is then dropped behind enemy lines during the Battle of the Bulge to disrupt the Allies and prepare the way for the German advance. The message of this film seemed to be that there were millions of Germans who were good and decent people who didn’t want war either. Which is true, but this movie is mediocre at best. The acting is horrible and there is no combat until the last 30 minutes. And the ending is just plain unreasonable. 2.5 action rating
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The Last Frontier
This is by no means a bad western. In fact, most would call it a classic. It is however, a bad action movie. Instead of battle scenes, the film chooses to focus on a fur trapper’s struggle with approaching civilization. When the trapper, played by a visibly aging Victor Mature, pays a visit to a cavalry fort, the officer in command convinces the trapper and his buddies to join up as scouts. With the Civil War raging back east, the cavalry is in need of soldiers out west to control Indian trouble. I’ve always liked Victor Mature, but he’s better when he has a co-star to help him carry the movie. The final battle is pretty good, but for a cavalry movie, this is a snoozer. 2 action rating.
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The Last Hard Men
This Charlton Heston and James Coburn western is one of the better westerns that came out of the late 70’s…which means absolutely nothing. While it does a good job of keeping an old-fashioned western feel (rather than a weird 70’s vibe), it is an unmemorable and disappointing movie. Its main shortcoming is its lack of action. There is a quick fight in the beginning, and another at the end. They are excessively violent, and filmed in slow-motion as if to trick us into thinking the fight scenes are cool. Crap in slow motion is still crap. 2 action rating.
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The Last Stand
Welcome back, Arnold. I'd forgotten how much I missed you. 3.5 out of 5 action rating.
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The Last Train from Gun Hill
See it – A man with high ideals stands alone in a town that’s sitting around, waiting for him to get killed. We’ve seen this premise before with movies like “High Noon” and “3:10 to Yuma.” But each one has a unique plot in its own right, and the similarities that exist are the vital basics that make a western great. In this western masterpiece, Kirk Douglas plays a sheriff who seeks vengeance against the men who murdered his wife. When he tracks them down, he discovers that one of them is his best friend’s son. His friend, played beautifully by Anthony Quinn, owns the town and will do everything in his power to make sure Douglas doesn’t get on the last train from Gun Hill. 2.5 action rating.
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The Last Valley
This is an exceedingly strange movie that blends war with the concept of a utopian society. It takes place in Germany during the Thirty Years War. War and plague have ravaged the entire country, except for one small hidden valley in the mountains. When a small band of soldiers, led by Michael Caine, discover this valley, they decide to join with the villagers in order to co-exist. Eventually, they must defend the valley from outsiders. The two main battle scenes that take place during the film are pretty good, but they are few and far between. Also, this film would have been better if it was made before 1970. The director decided to focus on religion rather than war. Although religion was the conflict that started the Thirty Years War, it is portrayed in a fanatical way that only the 1970’s could offer. 2.5 action rating
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The Last Wagon
This movie is a delightful little romp, but unfortunately “delightful” doesn’t usually make for a great action movie. This Richard Widmark film is more of an adventure movie than a western. After a wagon train is massacred by Apaches, an outlaw comes to the aid of the survivors (most of them women and children). But this movie is exceedingly cheesy, and may as well have been made by Disney. Danger awaits around every corner, but there aren’t really any major battle scenes. This disappointing adventure-western should have been a lot better. 2 action rating.
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Law Abiding Citizen
See it -“I’m gonna bring the whole diseased, corrupted temple down on your head. It’s gonna be Biblical.” This is basically an excessively violent version of “A Time to Kill,” and honeslty its more of a thriller than an action movie. But action buffs won’t be disappointed. Gerard Butler tries to teach Jamie Foxx a lesson by killing off everyone involved in a court case that failed to bring justice to his wife and daughter’s murderer. The only question is – how is he doing it from inside prison? 3 action rating
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The Law and Jake Wade
See it – This is one of the best westerns you’ve never heard of. It stars Robert Taylor and Richard Widmark, but this is really Widmark’s movie. He is devilishly charming and witty in the bad guy role he perfected. This is a very well-made, high quality western. It has a great script, and it is intriguing from start to finish. There are a couple gunfights, an Indian battle, and one of the more clever finishes you’ll see in an old-school western. 3.5 action rating.
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Lawman
See it – This is a good Burt Lancaster western, but it is a bit cliché and the ending might ruin it for you. Lancaster plays the stereotypical “hard-nosed” lawman. Robert Ryan co-stars as the stereotypical “washed-up” sheriff who is owned by the stereotypical wealthy and powerful cattle baron. The story itself is very similar to parts of other westerns such as “The Proud Ones” and “Firecreek.” But if it’s action you want, it’s action you’ll get. There are 4 pretty good gunfights, each better than the one before it. The final showdown is one of the bloodiest and most senselessly tragic endings you’ll see in a western. 3.5 action rating.
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The Left Handed Gun
2 action rating
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Legion
3 action rating
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Lockout
3.5 action rating
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The Lone Ranger
2.5 out of 5 action rating
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Lone Star
This fictional retelling of events surrounding the annexation of Texas into the union turned out to be a much more exciting western than I expected. In fact, I’ll go as far as saying that this is the closest Clark Gable ever got to doing a real action movie. There is action aplenty, but the overall quality of the movie isn’t the best. It’s the story of two groups of Texans who have strongly differing opionions on annexation, and are willing to die for it. There are several battles, but the plot is not historically accurate and is a bit ridiculous to be honest. Still, it isn’t a bad western. 3 action rating
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Lone Survivor
3.5 out of 5 action rating
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The Longest Day
See it – One of the best war movies ever made, and perhaps the greatest cast ever assembled…period. Watch Robert Mitchum and Jeffrey Hunter storm Omaha Beach. Watch Henry Fonda lead the landing on Utah Beach. Watch John Wayne and the 101st Airborne march to St. Mere Eglise. And watch Robert Wagner and the cliff assault at Pointe du Hoc, which is one of the best battle sequences ever filmed. The events surrounding D-Day are all relived on an epic scale. A timeless action movie that you’ll never get tired of watching. 4.5 action rating
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Looper
2.5 action rating
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The Losers
3 action rating
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Lost Command
See it – This isn’t a great war movie, but it’s a pretty good action movie. Anthony Quinn leads French commandoes against a band of rebels in the Algerian War for Independence. The title is a bit misleading. It’s not about a group of men who have gotten “lost” behind enemy lines. It’s about Quinn’s character, who loses command of his unit after a campaign in Middle China, and is given one last chance in Algeria to redeem himself. Willing to do anything to complete his mission, Quinn and his men eventually become anti-heroes. The story doesn’t flow particularly well, but the action and adventure is definitely there. 3.5 action rating
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