Customer Reviews

Last Action Hero: Music From The Original Motion Picture

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Although 'Last Action Hero' was a box-office tanker (I didn't think it was half-bad myself, but that's neither here nor there), it did have a soundtrack that contained some of the most rockin' tunes this side of 'Private Parts'.

Sadly, due to the film's box-office misfortune, the soundtrack usually gets the short shrift as well. An unfortunate thing, because there's more than a few tracks on this CD by some notable names in alternative and metal that rival some of their own better-known licks. 'Angry Again' managed to replace 'Symphony of Destruction' as my fave Megadeth cut. AC/DC's 'Big Gun' sounds a lot like many of their other tunes, but is also memorable. Also good are Alice In Chains's 'What The Hell Have I', and Cypress Hill's 'Cock The Hammer' (it's one of the few Cypress Hill raps I've listened to where they don't mention the use of marijuana!). Tracks by Anthrax and Def Leppard are there to enjoy as well.

So take a chance... you just might be very surprised by how good a soundtrack from a 'bad' movie can be!

'Late...

1993's "Last Action Hero" was our current California governor's (Au-nold!) big-budget, box-office dud about an big-screen action star introduced to the "real world" when a young boy who idolizes him uses a magic ticket as an entry point into his latest film. The soundtrack was a tribute album of sorts to late-80's hair metal as hard rock was continuing is transition into the alternative era. Alice In Chains' dual appearance (the outstanding "What The Hell Have I" and the equally good "A Little Bitter"), Fishbone (the stripped-down riff rocker "Swim"), and even Cypress Hill's track ("Cock The Hammer") lended creedence to music's new rock craze ushered in by Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and AIC themselves.

The remaining bands on here are all straight out of the late-80's, big-hair, hard rock/metal scene and a few shine on their best moments, like Megadeth ("Angry Again"), Queensryche (who blend their sound with Micheal Kamen's orchestra on "Real World", although an argument could be made they were actually a 90's act), Anthrax (their seven-minute hard rock epic "Poison My Eyes"), and Def Leppard (their wonderful acoustic-guitar ballad "Two Steps Behind"). All of these are great tracks that make this soundtrack worth keeping even if the movie (which was good for my liking; my big compliant was it's a bit too long) was a drag at best for most.

I recently did a list of my personal picks for the Top 20 Soundtracks Of The 90's and I gave this one an "Honorable Mention". Why? Tesla's overbearing, echoing title track and Aerosmith's live version of "Dream On" (which was from MTV's 10th Anniversary special), while good, ultimately blew its chance to rank among my Top 20. Nonetheless, the blend of 80's metal and 90's alternative made for such a consistently solid effort, it deserves to be look upon as a potential period piece.

The rock acts that defined the 80's put forth their best efforts and the new faces of the 90's provided a taste of what was to come. Overall, the soundtrack to "Last Action Hero" was an fitting and bittersweet farewell to what has now become our time's most reflected decade and continued alternative rock's growth into its expanded new sound. - DEM -

Key Tracks: "What The Hell Have I", "Angry Again", "Two Steps Behind", "A Little Bitter", "Real World", "Poison My Eyes".

What is it about the late `80s and early `90s pairing crappy action movies with killer hard rock soundtracks? Iron Eagle, Navy Seals and perhaps the mother of them all Last Action Hero.

Featuring artists as varied as classic rock icons AC/DC and Aerosmith to thrash metal heroes Megadeth and Anthrax to hair metal bands Def Leppard and Tesla to alternative acts like Alice in Chains and Fishbone and even rappers Cypress Hill, this soundtrack is a brilliant snapshot of that brief moment when mainstream metal and alternative rock peacefully coexisted (see also: Airheads). It didn't last, obviously, but at least we have relics like this soundtrack.

Of course it helps that the music is (mostly) really good. OK, the Def Leppard track is way wimpy, but the Alice in Chains, Anthrax and Megadeth tracks destroy, Queensryche's "Real World" is pretty epic, and how great is that symphonic version of "Dream On?" If you love late `80s and early `90s hard rock and heavy metal, the Last Action Hero soundtrack is an essential purchase.

This is a great compilation of songs and artists indicative of the era and probably the best movie soundtrack since the early '90's (thus the title of the review) followed closely by the "Judgment Night" soundtrack. I personally love the AC/DC, Megadeth and Cypress Hill songs the most. The live version of "Dream On" is amazing (taken from the MTV music awards, I believe) and the title track by Tesla is a great rocker and should've closed the record, but it is a soundtrack, after all, and not a "real" album. It's great to listen to this and suddenly recall the scenes in which they accompany, especially if you go for a drive and put on "Big Gun" (if you've seen the movie then you know what I mean). Just spend the few bucks Amazon wants for it and enjoy some great tunes from the time just before Rock N' Roll "died".

this is an awesome cd, it is fun and enjoyable to listen to. the best somgs on this soundtrack are all of them

I was glad that I had found this: Last Action Hero-Soundtrack!! Back in the 90s it was one of my favorites! There are excellent bands with poundin songs!! AC/DC. Mega Deth,Queensryche amd more!!!! The cd arrived well in advance of target delivery! Good Quality at a good price! This was the first time I had listened to on cd! Another hard to find music cd from Amazon!!

Not being a heavy metal fan particularly (though I do love Led Zeppelin, and have a soft spot for the classic Megadeth, Faith No More and Metallica stuff) I can't knowledgeably speak to the various debates among the reviewers here as to the best--or worst--metal tracks, so I won't try.

However I am a big Aerosmith fan and was delighted to discover on this CD the absolutely knock-your-socks-off live version of one of my old favorites of their songs, "Dream On".

Does anyone here--aside from the one reviewer who's mentioned it--remember the MTV 10th Anniversary special? I watched that show back in-- '91 was it? '92?-- and was stunned by Aerosmith's performance; most especially I loved the orchestra backing, which gave a powerful song that much more majesty, drama and sweep. (Those of you do who remember may recall MTV replaying that performance as a video clip.)

Someone made the observation that there are too many Aerosmith compilations in existence; much as I love the band I would have to agree. But if there's an upside to product overkill it's that eventually a real gem or two gets released--and in this era of MP3 downloads, where, increasingly, you can pick and choose the tracks you really want, that's saying a lot.

Note: It would have been nice if, in the description of this CD's version of "Dream On", it had been marked as a "live MTV performance" to make its discovery easier for the discerning customer.

Maybe you think that is a weird mix of different kinds of music, but is a good one, I enjoyed all the tracks (and if you like the movie, much better). It's a shame it don't have inlet pages.

I first remember when this album came out and think its sales outnumbered the income form ticket sales. to say the least its a must have for any rock/metal fan out there. its been close to twenty years since i got my hands on this and it still gets a spin every now and then. The bands are well known. so you know what youre in for already. if you like the bands listed, youll like this cd.Last Action Hero: Music From The Original Motion Picture

I bought this soundtrack because it had a lot of big names in it that had recording songs specifically for the film. I love queensryche and Megadeth and was pleased to find that both songs by these artists were just what I'd expect, excellent quality and well produced. Especially the atmospheric 'Real world' by queensryche which was more reminiscent of the later half of their empire album, which in my opinion was queensryche at their best. I have to argue with the people who say that this album sounds too 80s, because it doesnt at all. The bands most popular in the early 90's such as Def Leppard, megadeth, Queensryche and Areosmith are on here because this soundtrack is made in the early 90's! It does boast a lot of early 90's 'hair metal' material, but it also has a mix of more heavier rock with Anthrax and Alice in chains, and a little of alternative rap or something along those lines. Some of the songs aren't great, but overall the album has a good sound to it and is just what you'd expect from an early 90's action movie soundtrack. Megadeth does it again with another hardrocking made for soundtrack effort. Def Leppard also produces a nice acoustic ballard that really shows their musical maturity during the early to mid 90's. Alice in chains were lucky enough to get two songs on there, both of them reasonably good, but a bit of a step away from their earlier stuff. The main theme by telsa really sells the early 90's hair rock image of the album, but really gives a feeling of nostalgia for the film. Buckethead makes a guest appearance on the last track just to top the album off. Its a fairly decent album, but only worth buying if you can get it cheap I think. If your looking for a great hard rocking soundtrack I recomend Bill and Teds Bogus journey soundtrack.