Written by: Larry McMurtry and Peter Bogdanovich (screenplay), Larry McMurtry (novel)
Directed by: Peter Bogdanovich
Starring: Timothy Bottoms, Jeff Bridges, Cybill Shepherd, Cloris Leachman, Ellen Burstyn, Randy Quaid
Rated: R
Plot
In 1951, a group of high schoolers come of age in a bleak West Texas town that is slowly dying, culturally and economically.
Verdict
It's an incredible movie, well crafted and endlessly deep. You could call it slow, and it would definitely be unappealing to many, but it's a work of art. A testament that some movies still hold power to explore issues and capture a moment in life.
Watch it.
Review
Shot in black and white with a washed out look, this looks much older than it is. It opens on a barren street with a teen driving a beat up old car. He's headed to an empty bar where the only thing to talk about is high school football. It's easy to tell he's discontent, desperately wanting to leave the town, but hopelessly stuck.
This is a teen movie before they became sex crazed and raunchy. While this has plenty of both, it's not the focus. It serves to bolster the characters and convey a point. The camera lingers in the moments and you begin to imagine what the characters are thinking, really connecting with them.
It's easy to see that each scene was crafted. It's artful though slow, but that's not bad in this case. Everything is done with a purpose. It's thoughtful and thought provoking while still being a teen movie. I can't help but think of American Pie (1999), it's so incredibly shallow and crass with little else. There's a giant chasm between that and this, and even the teen movies of the '80s.
The Last Picture Show captures a moment, either a memory or scenario you can imagine, where the world should be full of potential, but all you can see are the decaying streets of your home town. None of the roads seem to lead to escape. The pleasures you find are fleeting, only a temporary relief.
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