Alien Resurrection (1997)
RT Audience Score: 39%
Awards & Nominations: 7 wins & 21 nominations
Last Action Hero has most of the right ingredients for a big-budget action spoof, but its scattershot tone and uneven structure only add up to a confused, chaotic mess
Last Action Hero is like a pizza with all the toppings – it’s got action, satire, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. While some critics may say it’s a bit of a mess, I say it’s a deliciously fun ride. The movie pokes fun at all the classic action movie tropes, while still delivering plenty of explosions and one-liners. Plus, who doesn’t love a good meta moment? Last Action Hero may not be a cinematic masterpiece, but it’s definitely worth a watch for any action movie fan looking for a good time.
Production Company(ies)
Charles K. Feldman Group Warner Bros.,
Distributor
Columbia Tristar, Columbia Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Wide)
Filming Location(s)
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong sci-fi violence and gore, some grotesque images, and for language
Year of Release
1997
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:DTS Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:2h 11m
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Language(s):English, Spanish
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jun 18, 1993 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 7, 1997
Genre(s)
Action/Comedy
Keyword(s)
starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Austin O’Brien, Charles Dance, F Murray Abraham, Art Carney, Frank McRae, directed by John McTiernan, written by Zak Penn, Adam Leff, Shane Black, David Arnott, action, comedy, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Jonathan Rosenbaum, David Ansen, Owen Gleiberman, Adam Mars-Jones, Tom Hibbert, James Berardinelli, Tony Black, Allison Rose, Alex Maidy, Mike Massie, Quentin Curtis, PG-13, magic ticket, Jack Slater, Benedict, John Practice, Lt Dekker, Frank, produced by John McTiernan, Stephen J Roth, Columbia Tristar, Columbia Pictures
Worldwide gross: $161,376,069
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $300,818,042
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 501
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 32,804,585
US/Canada gross: $47,795,658
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $89,094,971
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 806
US/Canada opening weekend: $16,474,092
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $30,709,040
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 444
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $75,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $139,806,065
Production budget ranking: 245
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $75,285,566
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $85,726,411
ROI to date (est.): 40%
ROI ranking: 1,198
Austin O’Brien – Danny Madigan
Charles Dance – Benedict
F. Murray Abraham – John Practice
Art Carney – Frank
Frank McRae – Lt. Dekker
Director(s)
John McTiernan
Writer(s)
Zak Penn, Adam Leff, Shane Black, David Arnott
Producer(s)
John McTiernan, Stephen J. Roth
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
7 wins & 21 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (51) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (20) | Rotten (31)
It’s nothing new that the makers of Last Action Hero don’t have a clear notion of what separates movies from life, but the makers of the other summer blockbusters aren’t any better versed in reality…
June 2, 2022 | Rating: 2/4
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
Last Action Hero loses control of itself.
November 8, 2018
David Ansen
Newsweek
TOP CRITIC
The director has to boost the realism of his staging in a rather self-defeating manner. It begins to look, not that he’s having it both ways, trading on what he mocks, but that he has painted himself into a corner.
November 14, 2017
Adam Mars-Jones
Independent (UK)
TOP CRITIC
September 7, 2011 | Rating: D
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
This is an attempt to be both a high-octane actionfest and a satire on such films, the result of which is the weirdest concoction: the metaphysical blockbuster.
January 1, 2000 | Rating: 3/5
Tom Hibbert
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
The pulse-pounding, sizzling pull of a Die Hard is absent.
January 1, 2000 | Rating: 2/4
James Berardinelli
ReelViews
TOP CRITIC
Last Action Hero hasnt quite yet become one of those cult movies we venerate and, yknow maybe we should. It does have, within its bones, just a little bit of magic.
April 12, 2022 | Rating: 3.5/5
Tony Black
Cultural Conversation
There are a few men who could take in the role of Jack Slater, but Schwarzenegger embodies the physical and mental acumen of a last action hero.
May 19, 2021 | Rating: 3.5/5
Allison Rose
FlickDirect
I am happy to say that not only does Last Action Hero hold up well almost twenty years later but it remains one of the most underrated movie concepts of all time.
May 4, 2021
Alex Maidy
JoBlo’s Movie Network
Every action film trope is satirized, every manly catchphrase is mocked, and the overuse of senseless violence and random explosions is parodied to no end.
September 14, 2020 | Rating: 7/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
It’s turned out to be a beef- chicken-anchovy-and-jam sandwich: the ingredients cancel each other out, and become indigestible. By offering us everything, they’ve given us next to nothing.
December 6, 2017
Quentin Curtis
Independent on Sunday
The divergent puzzle pieces do not often fit together terribly well, in spite of their potential.
October 9, 2014 | Rating: 4/10
J.C. Maçek III
PopMatters…
Plot
The saga continues 200 years after Ripley sacrificed herself for the sake of humanity. Her erstwhile employers long gone, this time it is the military that resurrects the one-woman killing machine through genetic cloning to extract the alien from within her, but during the process her DNA is fused with the queen and then the aliens escape. Now Ripley must decide where her allegiance lies.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
NA
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