Upon reading Cloris Leachman's recent obituary, I was definitely curious about "The Last Picture Show" and why her performance, as well as this entire movie, are so revered. I'd scarcely even heard of it, so I enthusiastically looked forward to seeing this alleged masterpiece.
I was only four years old when this movie was released, and I suspect 1971 America found it to be completely shocking, provocative, artistic, and groundbreaking upon its release. Fifty years later, however, it merits a resounding "meh."
It is a very dark tale, conveying the ennui and misery of small-town (very small town) Texas in the early 1950s. Everything is sex, sex, sex, and none of it good. The lead character has a sordid affair with a coach's forty-year-old mentally ill wife. An intellectually disabled teenager is forced into a pitiful encounter with an obese prostitute. A ravishing Cybil Sheppard seems to devour everything and everyone, and none of it is appealing. A minor character, for no apparent reason, tries to kidnap and molest a toddler. How's that for entertainment?
But in the end, because it's so dark and lurid, this is one of those Hollywood sacred cows that will be worshipped for all eternity. It's worth viewing just to see these remarkable actors (Jeff Bridges, Timothy Bottoms, Cloris Leachman, and the stunning Cybil Sheppard among others) as they were 50 years ago, but don't buy into the hype. I'm sure this made heads explode in 1971, but unfortunately, there is nothing special about this movie.
I was only four years old when this movie was released, and I suspect 1971 America found it to be completely shocking, provocative, artistic, and groundbreaking upon its release. Fifty years later, however, it merits a resounding "meh."
It is a very dark tale, conveying the ennui and misery of small-town (very small town) Texas in the early 1950s. Everything is sex, sex, sex, and none of it good. The lead character has a sordid affair with a coach's forty-year-old mentally ill wife. An intellectually disabled teenager is forced into a pitiful encounter with an obese prostitute. A ravishing Cybil Sheppard seems to devour everything and everyone, and none of it is appealing. A minor character, for no apparent reason, tries to kidnap and molest a toddler. How's that for entertainment?
But in the end, because it's so dark and lurid, this is one of those Hollywood sacred cows that will be worshipped for all eternity. It's worth viewing just to see these remarkable actors (Jeff Bridges, Timothy Bottoms, Cloris Leachman, and the stunning Cybil Sheppard among others) as they were 50 years ago, but don't buy into the hype. I'm sure this made heads explode in 1971, but unfortunately, there is nothing special about this movie.