Even Christopher Walken, introduced as a bizarre villain (or is that redundant?) with a scarred face, a gravelly voice and an ever-present Tommy gun, fails to deliver because he doesn't have anything witty to do. (Their first encounter is the film's best scene, but nothing else lives up to its promise. The dry-as-a-bone dialogue is more prone to posturing, as when Willis says, "Everybody ends up dead — it's just a matter of when.")

Anachronistic to a fault, but without enough humor or inventive action to might make the proceedings palatable, "Last Man Standing" is probably what Hill considers a man's movie. That is, people get beat up, the villains are all blown away in a barrage of bullets and a semibad man finds some modicum of redemption in the end.

Hill's uneven career has produced some highly entertaining pictures ("The Long Riders," "The Warriors," "48HRS."), and some that are pretty awful ("Red Heat," "Johnny Handsome," "Brewster's Millions").

Sadly, after all these years, Hill still hasn't learned that stylstic cinematography (the film is sepia tinted, without any real colors showing through), explosive violence and big stars are not enough.

"Last Man Standing" is rated R for considerable violence and gore, along with some sex, nudity and profane language.