Last Picture Show (1971)

"The Last Picture Show is a masterpiece.  Paul D. Zimmerman, Newsweek
"None of [Bogdanovich's] films stand up to The Last Picture Show...  The Motion Picture Guide

Editor's Note Director Peter Bogdanovich (MASK, PAPER MOON) brings Larry McMurtry's bittersweet novel of life in a small, sleepy Texas town in the early 1950s to the big screen. This coming-of-age tale, shot in haunting black-and-white by cinematographer Robert Surtees (THE GRADUATE, OKLAHOMA!), focuses on best friends Sonny Crawford (Timothy Bottoms) and Duane Jackson (Jeff Bridges) and their relationships. Duane is dating the beautiful but fickle Jacy Farrow (Cybill Shepherd), a good girl who is looking for a little excitement. Shy Sonny, meanwhile, is carrying on an illicit affair with a coach's wife, Ruth Popper (Cloris Leachman), a sad, plain woman whose only joy appears to be the stolen moments they share. By delving into the intertwining lives of the town's diverse residents, the film masterfully explores issues of love, loneliness, innocence lost, and disillusionment. The closing of the town's only cinema serves as both a physical and metaphoric backdrop to the characters' lives. A favorite of critics, the film was nominated for eight Oscars, earning one for both Leachman and Ben Johnson, whose portrayal of the town's father figure, Sam the Lion, is utterly masterful. Model-turned-actress Cybill Shepherd shines as Jacy in her film debut, which also features Ellen Burstyn as Jacy's mother, Lois. Bogdanovich also directed the sequel, TEXASVILLE (1990), which featured most of the original film's cast.

	Cloris Leachman
	Cybill Shepherd
	Ellen Burstyn
	Jeff Bridges
	Ben Johnson
	Timothy Bottoms
	Larry McMurtry - Based on Novel By
	Peter Bogdanovich - Director
	Bert Schneider - Executive Producer
	Stephen J. Freidman - Producer
	Peter Bogdanovich - Screenplay
	Larry McMurtry - Screenplay

Set in a small Texas town in the early 1950s, this beautiful, understated film studies the lives, loves, dreams, and desperation of several townsfolk as they come to terms with imminent change. Based on the novel by Larry McMurtry, this critically acclaimed film is directed by Peter Bogdanovich. USA Today
"...[Filmed] in glorious black and white..." -- 4 out of 4 stars 04/05/1991 p.3D

Total Film
"...The most mournful of all American youth pictures....It offers a peculiar pocket of time..." 08/01/2003 p.128

Premiere
"[A] stark black-and-white drama about a fading small town in the 1950s....Perhaps director Peter Bogdanovich's finest hour." 12/01/2005 p.190

Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide 9 of 10
Brilliant study of life in small Texas town during 1950s, and how characters' lives intertwine, from Larry McMurtry's novel (he and Bogdanovich wrote the script). Oscars went to Johnson and Leachman for sensitive performances, but entire cast works at same level. Beautifully photographed in black & white by Robert Surtees. - Leonard Maltin

The Motion Picture Guide 10 of 10
Bogdanovich is a very talented director... None of his films stand up to The Last Picture Show when it comes to dramatic flair and authenticity. In this...he captures the era so accurately that the viewer can feel the hopelessness of living in a dying Texas town that is destined to atrophy as the slow wave of modernism destroys what once was and will never be again... Bridges and Bottoms are the stars of the local high school football team... Bridges is aggressive and Bottoms is sensitive and the two complement each other as best friends (just as the black and white film complements the storytelling)... Many emotions are stirred in The Last Picture Show, emotions that have been forgotten in the wake of spacemen and the near-porno sex and patriotic blood lettings seen today. It's a little story, episodic, but it lives and breathes with more power than any Darth Vader or Rambo or Rocky. This movie is about humans, not ray guns or robots, and will continue to touch audiences whenever and wherever it is seen... The Last Picture Show could have been a tawdry, sleazy soap opera but [Bogdanovich] kept a tight rein on matters and presented it as a slice of life that has all but disappeared.