YMMV / Last Man Standing (1996)

• Complete Monster: Hickey is the scarred, emotionless enforcer of Doyle. Dreaded even among the hardened criminals forming Jericho's population and rumored to have murdered his own father and torched the orphanage he was sent to, Hickey makes his first on-screen appearance slaughtering the men of rival boss Strozzi men and the corrupt Mexican chief they are dealing with, then tricks the border guard into thinking he's surrendering before shooting him dead. A cheerful accessory to Doyle's ongoing war with Strozzi, Hickey personally captures "John Smith" after he releases Doyle's charge Felina to safety and, with a serene expression on his face, oversees the brutal torture of Smith. Near the climax of the film, Hickey participates in an outright massacre of Strozzi's hideout where most of his men are burned alive or shot dead—with Hickey gunning down Strozzi himself—and even the eventual death of Doyle himself fails to garner any reaction out of Hickey. A loose cannon just as evil as his boss and lacking any of his redeeming qualities, Hickey is feared even on his own side and is every bit the walking nightmare many claim him to be.
• Magnificent Bastard: The man known as "John Smith" stops in the border town of Jericho, comprised of two feuding bootleggers. After his car is destroyed by Doyle's gang Smith coincidentally stares at Felina, Doyle's woman, and kills Doyle's top gun before being hired by Doyle's rival, Strozzi. Smith works for Strozzi, charms, and sleeps with Strozzi's mistress Lucy, while simultaneously working within Doyle's ranks, playing both sides for profit. After Lucy is hurt, Smith cuts all losses, telling Doyle that Strozzi has taken Felina hostage after Smith freed her, leading to Strozzi being killed. Hickey finds out about Smith's ploy, tortures him, and Smith lures in and kills Doyle and Hickey before leaving Jericho. Using his ruthless wit, John Smith is a man of focus who plays all sides, turning obsessions into leverage while using his wit for a quick buck.
• One-Scene Wonder: Ken Jenkins, playing Texas Rangers Capt. Tom Pickett, appears in only one scene outlining how the law cannot abide there being two gangs in Jericho and how he and the Rangers intend to crack down on the matter (heavily implied to be lethal, frontier-justice style) if it's not resolved in some form in ten days. He carries the scene with understated but clear menace.
• Retroactive Recognition: The town prostitute is played by Leslie Mann, who would later go on to star in Judd Apatow comedies.
  • Also, Fredo Strozzi and Giorgio Carmonte are played by Ned Eisenberg and Michael Imperioli. Imperioli has moved on to many big things, such as his most memorable role in the "Sopranos" series, while Eisenberg became a familiar face for his recurring role as a defense attorney in the "Law & Order" franchise, playing different defense attorneys in both the original series (James Granick) and the SVU spin off (Roger Kressler.) He even played a leading role in the Criminal Intent spin off. Ironically, Imperioli also ended up playing one of the lead detectives in the original series for a time.
  • The Texas Ranger is played by Ken Jenkins, who became very well known to audiences for his role as the snarky Dr. Bob Kelso in "Scrubs."