Stand Up Guys

Val has spent 28 years in prison for a killing that was never meant to happen, and now he is out. His old friend Doc, who once ran with him, is there to meet him, and together they collect Hirsch, the third member of their crew, from the retirement home where he now lives. The three men set out to enjoy Val's first night of freedom, revisiting old places and getting into trouble the way they used to.

What Val does not know is that Doc has been given an order: he must kill Val before ten the next morning or lose his own life. Doc spends the night trying to find another way out while keeping Val occupied, and the hours run down. The film is set in Los Angeles and mixes crime and comedy around this dilemma of loyalty.

Stand Up Guys was directed by Fisher Stevens, the first of the four features he has directed, from a screenplay by Noah Haidle. Al Pacino plays Val, Christopher Walken plays Doc and Alan Arkin plays Hirsch, with Julianna Margulies, Addison Timlin and Vanessa Ferlito in supporting roles.

The production had a budget of 15 million dollars and took about 5 million worldwide, a weak return. On IMDb it holds 6.4 from roughly 60,000 votes, while on TMDB it sits at 6 from about a thousand. The critics' rating stands at 5.1 from 104 reviews, below what audiences gave it.