AshUnow
This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.
Siflutter
It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.
Lidia Draper
Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.
nilesswenson-12076
Amferene, TX is a dull town in 1950. The houses are spread out you may never see your neighbors at home. The main drag makes it look like the town is dying. Not much goes on there so the young and young at heart are obsessed with sex.Cybill Shepherd is the prettiest girl in town, manipulative and an opportunist, but she desires more despite being limited by her lack of passion. She finally gets deflowered by the town stud and who is also her mother's occasional lover and he turns out to be as passionless as she is. Jeff Bridges is the future town stud if survives Korea. Tim Bottoms is the dependable kid the coach sends to his lonely wife (Cloris Leachman) who seduces him and fears that he will outgrow her. Ben Johnson is the mentor to the boys and has a past with Ellen Burstyn, Sheppard's mother. His death signals the end.Filmed in glorious B & W the dusty streets are a metaphor that the town needs to modernize besides paving the streets. Great performances and Eileen Brennan could stand a young suitor as Amferene needs fresh blood.
George Redding
In this 1971 Columbia Pictures Peter Bogdanovich-directed screen version of the novel written by Larry McMurtry, I could not see enough reasons to justify it being nominated for any top award, though I will qualify that to an extent: Timothy Bottoms, Jeff Bridges, Ben Johnson, Cloris Leachman, and the beautiful and drawing icon Cybil Shepherd were very capable in their individual roles. Also, an excellent job was done with the nostalgia effects, and since I entered the first grade in 1952-the year Jo Stafford's song "You Belong to Me" was one of the number one hits of the year-I did receive an adequate idea of what the early '50's was like in many ways, so I do think this was a great film from that standpoint.It was appropriate that the movie was filmed in black and white, for it indicated a basic fact about movies of that era: most movies were filmed in black and white, and thus there was a scarcity of movies filmed in color at that time. The story line was simple: a small Texas town is dying, and toward the end two boys go to the last picture playing in the local movie theatre.But where was the plot? There basically was none. Concomitantly, where was the substance? Young people go skinny-dipping and have their big fling at sex. The movie was something of a collage, since too many pieces (brief scenes representing different types of persons, different ideas being represented) were simply thrown together. There was no plot present. Therefore, for the Best Picture of the Year award it hardly qualified.
g-bodyl
The Last Picture Show is a very poignant coming-of-age story set amidst a dying Texas town, culturally and economically. That adds a sadness to the story. A sadness about changing times and the new way of life replacing the old way of life. That is a recurring theme in the film. I loved the use of black and white photography, which helps those themes. The film explores many things all teens go through such as exploring their sexuality, keeping friendships intact, graduating high school, and moving on to the next stage of life. The film explores all of those very well. The film is set in a town where everyone knows each other, which in turn enables the viewers to get to know the characters better.Peter Bogdanovich's film has a plot that is hard to describe, other than to say it is about growing up in a town that weeps of the past. Sonny Crawford is the main character here. He was a co-captain of his football team along with his best friend Duane. Sonny just broke up with his rather tasteless girl, while Duane dates the hottest girl in town. Sonny enters an affair with the middle-aged wife of the football coach, thus showing how far this town can get you.The film has many fine actors in it. Timothy Bottoms does an underrated job as Sonny. I really loved Jeff Bridge's performance as Duane, the guy who seems to have it all. Other performances to keep an eye on are Ben Johnson as the fatherly figure and most important man in town, Sam the Lion. And Cloris Leachman as Ruth, the wife Sonny has an affair with. She has quite a few powerful scenes.Overall, The Last Picture Show is a better film than I expected. A beautiful, poignant film about the pains of growing up. The tone is often bitter and sad. We don't often see happiness in the picture, from beginning to end. But we see our characters make most of their lives and that is what matters. All of the sad moments or in other words, the realism influence just how powerful this movie is, set against the 1950's Texas background. There are many great scenes, but I loved the funny scene involving running away from Texas just to head to Kansas. If you want a movie about growing up, this should be your first film to watch.My Grade: A
grantss
Good examination of 50s rural America, and the death thereof. Interesting character- and relationship-based plot. Direction by Peter Bogdanovich is solid. The black & white cinematography is irritating at first, as you feel that the main characters, in the primes of their lives, deserve colour. However, the B&W becomes more relevant the further into the movie you go.Great performances, from then-unknown actors in their earliest roles: Jeff Bridges, Cybil Shepherd (debut role), Timothy Bottoms (2nd movie). The veterans - Ellen Burstyn, Ben Johnson, Eileen Brennan, Cloris Leachman - are superb too.Only negatives are that the movie drifts a bit in the middle, and it is only the very powerful ending that makes it great. This, and the soundtrack - every song seems to be by Hank Williams. Didn't they have anything else on the radio in 1950s Texas?
