Stranded at an Arizona rest stop, a traveling knife salesman gets thrust into a high-stakes hostage situation by the arrival of two bank robbers who will stop at nothing to protect their ill-begotten fortune. A film by Francis Galluppi, starring Jim Cummings, Jocelin Donahue, Sierra McCormick, Nicholas Logan, Michael Abbott Jr., Connor Paolo, Alex Essoe, Robin Bartlett, Jon Proudstar, Sam Huntington, Ryan Masson, Barbara Crampton, Gene Jones, Faizon Love, and Richard Brake.

The Knife Salesman (Jim Cummings) stops by a rural Arizona rest stop in Yuma County to refill his gas. Unfortunately, Vernon (Faizon Love), the owner, tells him that the gas pumps are dry, and he is still waiting on the fuel truck to show up. The Salesman asks if there’s another gas station in this area, and Vernon replies that the nearest gas station is 100 miles away. Vernon offered the Salesman to wait at the diner next door, and he’ll notify him when the truck arrives.

The Salesman decides to wait in the car, parking in front of the diner seemingly closed. Suddenly, the Sheriff car pulls over next to his car. The Sheriff, Charlie, (Michael Abbott Jr.) drops off his wife Charlotte (Jocelin Donahue) at the diner. Charlie and the Salesman exchange eye contact, before Charlie drives away, heading to the Sheriff’s Office.

While waiting, with nothing to do, the Salesman turns on the car radio. A news broadcast reports a robbery at the Buckeye Western Fidelity Bank of Arizona. Two men got away with an estimated $700,000. A witness spotted the bank robbers fleeing the scene in a green Pinto with a damaged rear end. Meanwhile, the scene cuts to a flipped-over fuel truck leaking gasoline on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. The cause is unclear, but it appears to have been in an accident. Back at the diner, which is now open, the Salesman changes his mind. He grabs his sample knives case and goes inside.

Inside, Charlotte and the Salesman have a conversation. Charlotte learns that the Salesman is selling knives and he’s on his way to Carlsbad, California, for his daughter’s birthday tomorrow. Charlotte suggests he purchase a piece of the diner’s famous rhubarb pie for his daughter’s birthday. The Salesman agrees to her idea.

Two men, Travis (Nicholas Logan) and Beau (Richard Brake) enter the diner while the Salesman is engrossed in a newspaper crossword puzzle, searching for a four-letter word that means “Take the money and run.” Something jolts his memory back to the radio broadcast he heard earlier. He glances out the diner window and spots a green car matching the description from the radio broadcast – damaged rear end and all. He tells Charlotte about his findings, and she agrees that those two men could be the bank robbers.

Charlotte calls Charlie at the Sheriff’s Office. Charlie’s secretary Virginia answers the phone. But by the time Charlie comes to the phone, Charlotte has already hung up. Virginia suggests Charlie call Charlotte back, but Charlie brushes off the suggestion, asserting that Charlotte probably called to complain about the broken air conditioning.

Back at the diner, Beau points his gun at Charlotte and orders her to hang up the phone. Beau suspects Charlotte already knew that he and Travis are the bank robbers. Beau reveals his plan that since there isn’t enough gasoline in the cars parked outside, he would have to wait until the fuel truck shows up or steal a car from the next customer. Until then, he threatens to kill Charlotte if she doesn’t act normally or tries to do anything foolish.

But Beau’s plan hits a snag. The situation spirals out of control as a steady stream of unexpected arrivals floods the diner. First, there’s Robert (Gene Jones) and Earline (Robin Bartlett), an elderly couple also stranded by the lack of gas. Then comes Deputy Sheriff Gavin (Connor Paolo), oblivious to the tension brewing as he grabs his usual coffee and leaves. Next stroll in Miles (Ryan Masson) and Sybil (Sierra McCormick), a young couple with a mischievous glint in their eyes – they recognize the green Pinto from the news report. Finally, Pete, a regular diner patron with a full gas tank, saunters in, completes the unlikely cast of characters.

Written and directed by American filmmaker Francis Galluppi in his directorial debut, The Last Stop in Yuma County is a high-octane crime thriller. It manages to create an intense atmosphere with a small budget, built upon a deceptively simple premise: a group of people find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. Filled with dark comedic twists and turns, this film establishes Francis Galluppi as a filmmaker to watch for in future projects.

The LAST STOP in YUMA COUNTY premiered at Fantastic Fest on 23 September 2023. The film received a limited theatrical release in the United States on 10 May 2024, by Well Go USA Entertainment.