The Last Picture Show

Translating a novel to a movie can be a daunting situation, especially when the source matter is so well-written. I finished reading Larry McMurtry's The Last Picture Show a few weeks ago and having loved the book, added Peter Bogdanovich's 1971 adaptation to the Netflix queue. I'm as guilty of it as anyone sounding like a snobby reader with that condescending "Oh, the book was much better than the movie," so imagine my surprise when the movie was as good, if not better, than the novel.

In the typical sense, Picture Show doesn't have a plot, or at least a straightforward, linear plot. Character storylines are laid out and then intertwined as we learn more about them and their exchanges, interactions and relationships. It's three main characters that carry the bulk of the story, three Texas teenagers in their senior year of high school in the tiny town of Anarene, population 1,131 in 1951. First, there's Sonny (Timothy Bottoms), kind of a quiet kid who's an athlete but not the star, who's popular but not the most popular. Next is his friend Duane (Jeff Bridges), the designated 'cool guy' in town. He's the star athlete and he's dating the prettiest girl in town, Jacy (Cybill Shepherd). Jacy is the ideal girl, or so it seems, the one all the guys want to be with, and of course, she knows this and drives everyone wild.

Almost going through the motions of senior year, Sonny starts to have an affair with Ruth Popper (Cloris Leachman), the basketball/football coach's wife, a plain woman who feels completely ignored by the world. Meanwhile, Duane and Jacy's relationship starts to strain thanks in great part to her manipulation of anyone and everyone around her. At it's most basic, that's the movie but there's so much more here. My summary doesn't do it justice. Bigger picture, it's one of the best movies to ever deal with growing up. Sonny, Duane and Jacy are all trying to figure out who and what they are, going about it in completely different ways. It's never easy and often you end up with your heart broken, something Bogdanovich never shies away from showing.

Made in the early 70s as the general tone of movies started to shift, Picture Show is a movie that feels like a classic Hollywood film but with a 70s message of a story set in 1951-52 Texas, if that makes sense. It's heavy on sex but never gratuitiously, some scenes are just awkward to watch not because it's handled poorly, but because that's what the characters are going through. Because of that, parts of the movie are heartbreaking. In his novel, McMurtry truly brought this cast of characters to life, something Bogdanovich did here. None of them are perfect, far from it, but for the most part I cared about these characters, especially Sonny.

What helps pull this off is the casting with mostly relative newcomers in the leads. How Bottoms wasn't nominated for an Oscar for his part escapes me. Having made just one other movie, the 20-year old actor delivers a believable, always moving performance of a Texas teenager trying to figure out who he is and where he belongs. I guess going up against The Godfather had something to do with that lack of nomination. Earning a nom for his supporting part, Bridges is a good counter to Bottoms' Sonny. Duane isn't the easiest character to like, but their friendship is a real one. And making her screen debut, Shepherd is sexy and smart as Jacy, a young woman who knows what kind of power she can have over people, just not how to use it all the time.

Bringing the movie up a notch from really good to great is the cast behind the three young leads. Leachman won the best supporting actress Oscar, and deservedly so. The female parts in general are across the board strong. Ellen Burstyn as Jacy's mother Lois is dead on, a preview of what her daughter could become 15 or 20 years later. Lois is stuck in a life where she's bored, looking for almost any sort of excitement. Part of her wants to see Jacy go through the same thing, part of her wants to change. Eileen Brennan is Genevieve, a waitress in the town diner who becomes a surrogate mother of sorts for Sonny.

Right alongside Sonny though, the best role here is from Ben Johnson, and yes, I'm biased because the real-life cowboy is one of my all-time favorite actors. Like Leachman, Johnson was nominated and won an Oscar for his performance, here as Sam the Lion, the owner of the pool hall, the diner and the movie house. He's getting up there in years and misses the good old days. It's a smaller part, maybe a handful of scenes, but one that's not easily forgotten. The DVD special features talked about how Johnson hated dialogue, but two of his most memorable parts are remembered for just that. If you ask me, he won the Oscar because of this scene. The other's in Bite The Bullet, which I reviewed a few months back. Just another great part for a very underrated actor.

Directing only his second movie, Bogdanovich leaves his mark all over the movie. Shooting in black and white at the recommendation of Orson Welles, Bogdanovich made the right choice. There's a washed-out, blank feel to the on-location shooting in Archer City, Texas, here's the opening. Another choice, to not use a soundtrack other than songs playing in the background, keeps the movie flowing like you're there with the characters, no overbearing score to distract you from what's on the screen. Bogdanovich has a touch with the camera, shooting almost as a documentary filmmaker in just his second film.

The DVD is an oddity for me after far too many reviews of discs with the movie and a trailer and nothing else. Filmed in black and white, a perfect choice for the story, the widescreen presentation looks great. Special features include a 12-minute interview with Bogdanovich, a 64-minute making of documentary, a theatrical re-release featurette running about 6 minutes, and the original trailer. I can't build this movie up enough, it's as moving and effective as all films should be.

The Last Picture Show (1971): ****/****