The Last Picture Show (1971)

Excellent product

I really enjoyed watching this movie. It was in excellent condition and arrived in a timely manner. I had forgotten that Cloris Leachman was such a great actress. December 21, 2008

Outstanding movie

In the dried-up old town of Anarene, Texas, there's not much for boys to do but chase girls and play pool. High school seniors Sonny (Timothy Bottoms), his best friend Duane (Jeff Bridges), and Jacey, the prettiest girl in town (Cybil Shepherd), start to grow up and make some decisions about their future.

I absolutely loved this movie. The windy, dusty town felt familiar and even cozy by the end of the movie, and the good ol' folks living in it seemed like neighbors. Bottoms, Bridges, and Shepherd are wonderful (and young!) as the kids, all of them giving sympathetic, memorable performances. Ben Johnson plays the nicest man in town and Cloris Leachman is a lonely married woman; they both won Best Supporting Oscars playing very real and vulnerable characters.

The movie is directed at a leisurely pace so we can absorb the small-town atmosphere; Anarene became full of interesting people with hopes and dreams. This is indeed a timeless classic that will appeal to those who like character-driven stories about ordinary people. Highly recommended. December 20, 2008

3 stars out of 4

The Bottom Line:

Although a bit slow, The Last Picture Show is a rewarding character-based drama which features a number of fine performances and elegant direction.
December 20, 2008

Cinema in Paradise

So, was Cinema Paradiso in part inspired by Bogdonovich's masterpiece? Well, Analene, Texas sure aint Paradise. But it's a fabulous, timeless piece of art that doesn't wear, inspite of, or because of its tender appraisal of universal themes. I know the personell involved proceeded to further work, but how many of them could profess to anything superior? Certainly not Bottoms or Bogdonovich. The special features film tied to this edition under review, with its in-depth focus on a refective director, expresses the very special chemistry that occured on the shoot between the crew. It clearly translates onto the screen. Having lived in such a desperate environment in the 1960s, in the semi-arid mallee region of Australia, the story, the characters, the very town,almost building for building, even the lake, were replicas of McMurty's script. No wonder I love the guy's writing. And Bogdonovich too must have lost himself in it also, to have gone this deep, this committed. October 16, 2008

The Peyton Place of the South

Anyone who buys the Mayberry image of Southern small town life will be greatly shocked after watching this movie. Anarene is definitely no Puritan utopia. The town's residents include adulterers, sex-obsessed teenagers, and even a pedophile, who happens to be the minister's son. This film just goes to show that you cannot always believe what's on the surface. Few films expose small town hypocrisy better than this one, while at the same time treating the characters with respect. This difference is what sets this film about from the typical teenage sex comedies, which are not worthy to be mentioned in the same sentence as this cinematic classic.

The performances are all outstanding, but the performances of Ben Johnson and Cloris Leachman are especially noteworthy. It is not difficult to figure out why both won Oscars for their roles. No one but Ben Johnson could have played Sam the Lion. Even John Wayne couldn't have pulled it off. Cloris Leachman's dramatic scenes made you forget that she was a regular on the Mary Tyler Moore show. May 17, 2008

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