The Last Picture Show

Apparently, this is one of Dawson's (as in Creek) favorite films and, since the lad obviously possesses great film sense (being an avid Jaws fan), I thought I'd give this a try. And I've been wanting to see it for ages.

Made in 1971, the film focuses on a very small Texas town in the early 1950's and the lives of the teenagers who inhabit it. The picture house actually has a very small role to play in the film and it is certainly not the bittersweet coming-of-age movie I had imagined. Large parts of the film centre around the stunningly beautiful Jacy Farrow (a superb Cybill Shepherd) and the trail of destruction she leaves in her wake as she entices the lads of the town (and some of the men) with her siren-like ways.

A number of famous actors and actresses are in this (Jeff Bridges, Randy Quaid, Ellen Burstyn, brilliant as always, Ben Johnson (also excellent, but departs too early), Shepherd) but the standout performer is the less heralded Timothy Bottoms who, along with Shepherd, will probably find himself high up my list for 1970-1974. Bottoms excels as Sonny, the naive but very decent hero of the film and he delivers an emotional and wide-ranging performance as a very ordinary guy. I personally believe that it is very difficult to play normal or ordinary and Bottoms does it exquisitely. Spellbinding.


All in all, this is an expansive, thoughtful human drama which I know I'll be returning to. I feel more emotional about it, and about its characters, this morning than I did last night. The black and white cinematography is also excellent, delivering an authentic and very claustrophobic atmosphere despite the wide skies and open spaces over and around the town. I won't go into the story lines confronted by each of the characters, it would be better to discover them for yourselves and, despite the obvious presence of cliches, they speak of universal human themes that I'm sure most of us recognise.

As they say about houses, viewing comes highly recommended.

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