F.T.W. (LAST RIDE) (director: Michael Karbelnikoff; screenwriter: story by Mickey Rourke & Mari Kornhauser/Mari Kornhauser; cinematographer: James L. Carter; editor: Joe D’Augustine; music: Gary Chang; cast: Mickey Rourke (Frank T. Wells), Peter Berg (Clem Stuart), Lori Singer (Scarlet Stuart), Rodney A. Grant (Bucky Miller), Frank P. Costanza (Sheriff Whitlock),John Enos (Joe Palmieri), Aaron Neville (Snake), Brion James (Sheriff Rudy Morgan); Runtime: 100; MPAA Rating: R; producer: Tom Mickel; Hallmark Entertainment; 1994)
“The downer thriller is a good fit for Mickey Rourke to try out his black cowboy hat, his western accent and do his usual quirky characterization of an anti-establishment character.”

Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz

Michael Karbelnikoff(“Mobsters”) directs from a story by Mickey Rourke & Mari Kornhauser. It’s about a hard-luck cowboy and the wrong choices he makes, when all he desires is live out his cowboy dream and ride free under the beautiful country blue sky.

Former rodeo rider Frank T. Wells (Mickey Rourke) is released from a Wyoming prison after serving ten years for manslaughter, where he was framed. Frank was attacked in a Cheyenne bar by a jealous knife-attacking husband and his wife changed her story, as a result his self-defense plea was rebuffed. Returning to his shack in Montana, wanting to buy a ranch and settle down, Frank goes to the local rodeo and wins a bronco event. Near his shack, Frank meets the troubled outlaw bank robber on-the-run, Scarlet Stuart (Lori Singer), who was the getaway driver in a bloody heist that saw 4 cops killed. In a motel shoot-out with the sheriff’s department, Scarlet’s over-protective psychopathic killer brother Clem (Peter Berg) and an accomplice named Joe (John Enos) are killed. A jittery Scarlet escapes with the bank money, and becomes Frank’s lover. Before she was involved in a forced incestuous relationship with her jealous brother.

The title is derived from a hand tattoo on Scarlet, which stands for Fuck the World. These are the same initials as Frank T Wells, which leads Scarlet to believe they were destined to be together. Trouble is Scarlet chooses to help her bronco rider boyfriend out of his economic oits by going on armed robbery sprees of convenience stores.

The downer thriller is a good fit for Mickey Rourke to try out his black cowboy hat, his western accent and do his usual quirky characterization of an anti-establishment character. It was too static, predictable and tedious for me to keep my eyes glued to the screen throughout, as I preferred looking at the scenic Big Sky scenery than at the unlikeable struggling mismatched outsider couple.

REVIEWED ON 10/8/2013 GRADE: B-

Dennis Schwartz: “Ozus’ World Movie Reviews”

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