Movie Review – “The Last Ride, A Story of Hank Williams”
It seems like once or twice a year we get word of one of these country-relevant movies coming down the pike, but then we have to wait with bated breath for what seems like forever for the actual release because the movie makers must muck through the process of finding the right distribution channels. When the flicks are finally released, we tend to find out why such unfortunate delays belabored the release process, because despite strong casts and the best intentions, the small budget reveals itself in a less than appealing final product. Such seemed to be the case for the Ray Wylie Hubbard-written Last Rites of Ransom Pride movie starring Dwight Yoakam and Kris Krisstofferson, who also appeared in Bloodworth; another film beleaguered with distribution issues and bad reviews.
What neither of those movies had was the strength of a true to life story like The Last Ride. Based loosely around the last 48 hours of the life of Hank Williams, The Last Ride takes you on the ill-fated road trip beginning in Alabama, and ending in West Virginia where Hank Williams passed away on New Years Day, 1953. Though Hank’s name is never spoken in the movie, it’s taken as a given that you know who he is, and what fate awaits him. Hank is played by Henry Thomas (the kid from ET), who has the nearly-impossible task of portraying a man who lives larger than life in the mythos of American music. Though Henry’s visage and tones never quite meet your imagination of a living and breathing Hank Williams, by the end of the film you begin to connect with the emotions that the film portrays, and the emotions Hank must have felt on that fateful trip whether you believe Henry Thomas to be an accurate portrayal of Hank Williams or not.
Those looking for a period piece where every detail of Hank’s final days on earth is laid out with impenetrable accuracy will miss the point of this movie. In many respects Hank Williams is not the main character, it is Silas Combs (Jesse James), Hank’s 19-year-old driver and travel companion. But there are little nuggets of interesting Hank Williams history embedded throughout the movie that the learned Hank Williams fan will pick up on and enjoy. And despite a small budget, director Harry Thomason did a heck of a job scrubbing out any and all anachronisms in the movie, leaving the viewer smack dab in 1952 right before New Years.
The relationship between these two lost souls—the superstar on death’s door and the confused young man—is the centerpiece of The Last Ride. But moderate writing that generally lacked any true, gut-punching lines, and a few low budget distractions like the projected back window of a car ride instead of actual footage from a moving car somewhat saddle this movie from reaching the full potential of portraying the moments with the true weight of the actual events. Hank and driver Silas Combs are thrust into numerous scenes along the way meant to expose internal dialogues about the characters, but aside from a few special moments, they tend to be too short and feel too contrived to render any serious aid to your ability to suspend disbelief.
But as the movie progresses and Hank’s health deteriorates, The Last Ride delivers some truly poignant moments that evoke the heaviness of the situation evolving in the characters. Silas Combs shares a brief, but intimate moment with Kaley Cuoco (Big Bang Theory) on New Year’s Eve. At one point Hank looks out from the back of his powder blue Cadillac and sees a group of very young boys passing a liquor bottle and smoking a cigarette, and seems to identify with the tragic narrative that he’s slowly becoming the final outcome of. Though these moments may take a little too long to develop in the movie, they make The Last Ride at least worth the 100-minute investment for people whose personal histories hold the name “Hank Williams” in high regard.
The soundtrack is handled mostly by other artists covering Hank Williams songs, with some contributions of other non-Hank artists here and there. Though this may irk some Hank fans, they should understand that with small budgets and the prohibitive costs of the licensing of original music, using actual Hank songs may have been financially impossible. Aside from the central story surrounding Hank Williams, this doesn’t really feel like a musical movie as much as an exploration into the human condition told through a historical interpretation.
Though the Hank Williams story is one of the most intriguing American tragedies in history, it remains woefully untapped by Hollywood and the rest of the movie industry in an era that seems to be anemic in engaging narratives. Though The Last Ride makes some headway in helping to cover the Hank Williams storyline, and specifically his final days, it leaves the viewer a little wanting, while that one definitive film that rises to the mystique of Hank Williams himself remains elusive.
1 1/4 of 2 guns up.
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June 9, 2013 @ 9:25 am
Nice review I will either rent it or see if it is on netflix. I also want the soundtrack!
June 9, 2013 @ 9:46 am
Good review. I still look forward to seeing it, but with tempered expectations.
June 9, 2013 @ 10:56 am
I enjoyed the movie. And I think most will enjoy the movie. But I think tempered expectations is probably the best way to approach it if you want to enjoy it.
June 9, 2013 @ 11:27 am
It feels like I first saw the trailer for this 3 years ago. Looking forward to finally checking this out, great review.
Though based on some of the things you’ve said I imagine “Hank Williams: The Show He Never Gave” remains the definitive film portrayal of Hank for now.
It’s an absolute must see.
January 13, 2023 @ 4:35 am
The best movie of hank Williams sr is your chest in heart brill
June 9, 2013 @ 4:34 pm
A good and fair review. I enjoyed it as well. I don’t feel my money or time was wasted; however, as you described it was not life altering. After waiting so long, I think I over hyped it. Usually, in low budget films the acting is so bad I can barely stand watching it, but the acting was average. I just never pictured Hank acting quite like Henry Thomas portraits him. From everything I’ve read about him, I never thought him to be rude, especially at first to Silas Comb, like in the movie. And I didn’t think his grammar was as good as it was in the movie. Overall, a solid movie that I will watch again.
June 9, 2013 @ 5:10 pm
I thought the girl from big bang theory was good as the gas station owner
June 10, 2013 @ 10:29 am
That’s an accurate review. I did like how they depicted the driver to not know who Hank was..Kaley Cuoco is the hottest Chick on t.v. in my opinion.
June 12, 2013 @ 2:11 pm
As I type this comment, I’m looking out of my 6th floor office window in downtown Montgomery over at the Hank Williams Museum. And less than a mile away, Hank and Audrey are both laid to rest at Oakwood Cemetary.
June 18, 2013 @ 5:11 am
The wife and I watched it. It’s not a bad movie.
I kind of enjoyed the way they kept his name out of it
until he started telling the driver Silas that his name was Luke.
Ahhh. What a great name. Luke the Drifter. Anyone who knows anything about
Sr. it should make them smile a little while he tells the driver that.
I thought it was a pretty good movie, they could have made it a little more about Sr. And the actual last ride, but the fact of the matter is no one really knows what happened in that Cadillac on that night.
I’ve read stories of it being a shot of morphine that did him in, and others that say it was because of the drinking. That part will always be a mystery.
I guess what I’m trying to say is go watch it. You won’t be disappointed.
Just my 2 cents.
Aj
July 28, 2013 @ 2:55 pm
We loved this movie and it made us want to know more about Hank Williams and do some of his music. … was so hungry to see him preform in this and see real footage but I guess that would have taken even longer for it to be released! and that would not do the real Hank justice to have someone try to emulate him accurately.
We believe it is an accurate depiction of a man in pain and living on pain med…but think about alcohol and what it does in freezing temp. deadly! combined with lack of food.
We would also like to have known more about the driver, like when he found the songs and did he marry the girl? I find it suspcious that the driver just died and then this fianlly get released?!
Regarding Hank:Want to know what the story is behind his loves and his children, all of them.
December 19, 2013 @ 11:04 am
I finally got around to watching this film, and I have to say that I’m really disappointed. The acting wasn’t very good overall, and the casting choices were not very convincing. The juxtaposition of the modern sterile camera work with the ’50s styling combined with the acting gave it a “hallmark movie” feeling. All that said, the Hank Williams scripted in this film didn’t really relate at all to the Hank that I’ve read about in various biographies.
-Alex
April 6, 2014 @ 1:18 am
It was a good movie Kaley Cuoco was great hope she dose more movies
Michael Armstrong
December 26, 2024 @ 1:02 am
My husband and his 1950 Buick were extras in this movie.. he is behind Hanks Cadillac in one of the driving scenes. My husband had a very good time working in the movie and gad nice things to say about tge cast and crew.