1971 Movie
Dir. Peter Bogdanovich · United States of America · English
A sobering portrait of a bygone era
These days, most coming-of-age films tend to have a comic or hopeful tone to them. It’s hard being a teenager, but the kids persist. There’s always something or someone to live another day for. The Last Picture Show doesn’t share that upbeat outlook. Set in 1951, at the outbreak of the Korean War, the teenagers we follow are still curious and ambitious like most young people, but they’re surrounded by jaded adults in the middle of nowhere in Texas. The Last Picture Show captures the truth of the ‘50s—when films were epic and gay, most people (especially those far from big cities and coasts) were just trying to get by and see where they fit in a fast-changing world. TVs were moving into technicolor, but life was still black and white. As dreary as it sounds, The Last Picture Show is a moving watch. Anyone who’s dared to dream of a life beyond their reach will have their heart twinge at the doom and desire this film (and this decade) evokes.
High school seniors and best friends, Sonny and Duane, live in a dying Texas town. The handsome Duane is dating a local beauty, while Sonny is having an affair with the coach's wife. As graduation nears and both boys contemplate their futures, Duane eyes the army and Sonny takes over a local business. Each struggles to figure out if he can escape this dead-end town and build a better life somewhere else.
"It's plain and uncondescending in its re-creation of what it means to be a high-school athlete, of what a country dance hall is like, of the necking in cars and movie houses, and of the desolation that follows high-school graduation."
— Pauline Kael
"An excellence to revel in, this potent and searing work is gritty, drab and painfully accurate memory of coming of age in the early 50's in a windswept Texas town."
— Judith Crist
In the ghost town of Anarene, Texas, Duane (Jeff Bridges) and Sonny (Timothy Bottoms) get through tedious days by driving around, chasing girls, playing pool, and watching movies at the local theater. The film follows them as they come of age against the backdrop of wartorn America and an apathetic small town.
Watching this today, it’s hard not to be struck by the stars this film gave rise to: Jeff Bridges, Cybill Shepherd, Ellen Burstyn, and they’re not even the ones who won the awards when the film first screened.
It’s sad, but in a poignant and nostalgic way, rather than a depressing way.
Oscars
2 wins · 6 noms
Cannes
1 nom
Berlin
1 nom
Golden Globes
1 win · 4 noms
BAFTA
3 wins · 3 noms
DGA
1 nom
WGA
1 nom
Nat. Board of Review
3 wins
NYFCC
3 wins · 3 noms
Renee Cuisia is the lead curator at A Good Movie to Watch. In her spare time, she likes to watch K-dramas and analyze them to death. She's also seen You've Got Mail one too many times but is still convinced it's one of the greatest films out there.
Comments