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
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