There is something about black and white movies that mesmerizes me ...perhaps the emotions are better captured...The Last Picture Show even though released in 1971 was shot in black and white...it is one of the most beautiful movies i have ever seen..it is the coming of age story of a small dusty town in Texas,or it is a microscopic look at the lives of the citizens...set in 1951..the Last Picture Show consists of one the finest ensemble casts ever put together on screen...it includes future stars ( Ellen Burstyn,Jeff Bridges and a gorgeous Cybill Sheperd in her film debut...the movie is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Larry Mcmurty published in 1966...
We are witness to friends bonding,betrayal between them,Loneliness which creeps in middle aged women...being recognized among peers...virginity issues...progression...Sam the Lion ( played by Ben Johnson) represents the traditional values of the sleepy town...while on the other hand Sonny and Duane represent the modern generation...but the character i loved the most was Ruth Popper ( in a beautifully rendered performance) as the neglected wife of the high school football coach who has an affair with Sonny ( Timothy Bottoms in an Oscar winning role)...
The Last Picture Show is the portrait of an era gone by...Peter Bogdanovich's best work to date...the entire cast is fabulous including Ellen Burstyn ( credits include The Exorcist,Requiem for a dream)...winner of two Oscars...again humiliated at the 1972 Oscars...one of the greatest movies of all time...
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