The Last Boy Scout (1991)

Director: Tony Scott

Cast: Bruce Willis, Damon Wayans, Taylor Negron, Danielle Harris, Halle Berry

Country: United States

Production Company: Silver Pictures

Rating: R

Run Time: 105 minutes

As I watched this film, I kept saying to myself, "Man, I miss the early '90's. Man, I miss awesome action films like this. Man, I miss when Bruce Willis had hair." Even though everyone who worked on this film clearly gave 100%, I would chock up the bulk of the success of this film to Shane Black's script. He knows how to write the heck out of a good character driven action movie. All of the lines are memorable and awesome, the characters are fully fleshed out and given time to breathe, and the action scenes, while sparse, are extremely memorable and worth waiting for. Shane Black is an action fan's dream come true when it comes to the screenplay.

The Last Boy Scout is about Joe Hallenbeck (Bruce Willis), a former Secret Service agent who is now a heavy drinking private eye detective. He is hired to protect a stripper named Cory (Halle Berry) who is also dating former football star James Hix (Damon Wayans). However, Cory is tragically gunned down in front of James and Joe. The two than have to work together to figure out why she was murdered and end up discovering a large scandal connected with the football industry in the process. 

Bruce Willis plays the character of Joe Hallenbeck with such natural grace you might mistake the character and Bruce Willis to be one and the same. Joe Hallenbeck is clearly inspired by hardboiled noir characters who are always down on their luck, smoking a cigarette, and packing a gun. Willis is such a fantastic actor. He balances being self aware, sexy, hilarious, and awesome all in one film. I don't believe his character ever once gets scared when a gun is pointed at him either. Instead, he starts making some fat momma jokes or laughs in the face of his enemies. Joe Hallenbeck is a guy you do NOT mess with.

Touching Bruce Willis is a big mistake in this film.

Shane Black's dialog is just incredible. The best way to describe his dialog is if Tarantino wrote Arnold Schwarzengger one liners. That means the script is ripe with cursing and awesome one liners. The Last Boy Scout could have easily been another action packed '90's film with decent characters and memorable violence. Shane Black's script on the other hand actually takes a lot of time to develop and define its characters. The entire second act is essentially character building. Therefore, The Last Boy Scout retains the bloody violence and explosive aspects of your typical action film while remaining an overall good film as well.

Shane Black clearly loves to write buddy films. From Lethal Weapon, to The Last Boy Scout, to Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, buddy films owe their life to Black. The buddy pair in this film is Bruce Willis and Damon Wayans. I personally am not a fan of the comedy that any Wayan Bros. usually associates themselves with. However, Damon Wayans is very good in this film. He could have easily been turned into a humorous sidekick character like Chris Tucker in the Rush Hour films. 

Instead, Damon Wayans plays a fully defined character with a tragic back story. Whenever he and Willis exchange insults or quips with each other, it feels natural. The relationship is not forced at all. Therefore, the film takes its time establishing the buddy relationship of these two guys. I also realized that both characters used to be on the top of the world (Willis an ex-Secret Service and Wayans an ex-football player) and are now trying to make a comeback one way or another. Once again, fantastic buddy pairing and writing by Mr. Black.

I don't think any other screenshot in the film tops this.

The Last Boy Scout has a small amount of action in it. However, when the action does arrive, your mind will be blown. Much like Brian De Palma's Scarface, The Last Boy Scout is a case of quality over quantity. Every kill, explosion, and gunshot is completely unforgettable. All of the action scenes have great set up and are wonderfully executed from both an editing and visual stand point. The sound design of the gun shots are flawless as well. The first shootout in particular blew my mind. Watching Bruce Willis run down a sidewalk and fire a Desert Eagle and a revolver in slow motion is just pure action movie gold.

It is also worth mentioning that the film was directed by the late Tony Scott. He directed many great action and suspense thrillers from the 1980's into the early 2000's. Now that I have seen The Last Boy Scout, I believe that it sits nicely next to his other action classics: Top Gun, Beverly Hills Cop II, True Romance, and Man on Fire. He clearly knew how to craft a fine action film and was truly one of the great American action directors. May he rest in peace.

And may the quality of films attached to the Wayans family R.I.P.

This film has a wonderful cast of eighties and nineties character actors who can't go without mentioning: Taylor Negron (Fast Times at Ridgemont High), Danielle Harris (Halloween 4 and 5), James Gandolfini (The Sopranos), Bruce McGill (Cliffhanger), and even an early appearance by Halle Berry (X-Men). Taylor Negron is especially menacing as the lead villainous henchman of the film. He also gets to say the absolute best line exchange in the entire film.

"Is there a problem fellas?" - Police Officer

"Yes officer there is a problem. This gun has too many bullets in it." BANG! - Taylor Negron

The film also makes interesting commentary on the football industry. I don't know if Shane Black had a beef with football, but the industry is definitely not painted in a positive matter. James Hix is a former football player who was kicked from the industry because of sports gambling. Because of his injuries, he has taken to pills and drugs in order to cope with the pain. This is definitely a slam on the controversial topic of football players being brain damaged from playing such a harsh and hard hitting game.

Willis channels his inner John Woo.

The Last Boy Scout is just an awesome action film. It tells an interesting story, has great dialog, delivers on sparse but memorable action, and features one of Bruce Willis' absolute best action performances. Thanks to the likeable characters and hilarious script, The Last Boy Scout can also be enjoyed by non-action fans as well. If you are a fan of film noir and witty but down on their luck protagonists, this is the film for you. Besides, how many action movies blend a football movie with a buddy movie and wrap it all up in a nice action packed bow?

Rating: 8/10 - Entertaining, violent, and great. Highly recommended and a must see for action fans.