DVD Review - The Last Train (El Ultimo Tren)

This little gem of a film was directed by Diego Arsuaga. It takes place in Uruguay (I can tell you that there isn't a huge film industry in this country) and is based on a true story.

Jimmy Ferreira (Gaston Pauls) owns the last 19th century train in the country and now a powerful Hollywood studio wants to buy it to use in a film. Some Uruguayans are very proud of this fact but there are those who are not so pleased. A group of elderly members of Friends of the Railroad decide to take matters into their own hands. Some members actually "kidnap" the train in the hopes of getting it out of the country. The kidnappers include the radical Pepe (Federico Luppi), the practical Professor (Hector Alterio) and the forgetful Dante (Jose Sorano). Also along for the ride is Guito (Balaram Dinard) who is only a child but wants to be part of something big. There is a makeshift sign on the outside of the train that says "Our heritage is not for sale."

As expected, Ferreira is frantic and the police are fuming. An all out effort is made to capture these bandits. But that is not so easy. The elderly men are very sly and know how to trick the people who want to catch them.

The film is about a theme that is dear to me. It is about how against all odds the underdogs will fight against the big guys. Despite the fact that greed has taken over the world there are still some people who will rally against it. Every day giant corporations want to destroy things that many of us hold dear. But we have to try and stop this no matter how hard it gets. This theme plus the marvelous acting, especially from Luppi and Alterio, and the sharp direction make this a very worthwhile film for people to rent. And I do hope that many of you will get to see this wonderful film on DVD.