The Last Picture Show: A Look Back

The Last Picture Show: A Look Back (1999)

*** (out of 4)

Good, if somewhat dry, documentary about the making of THE LAST PICTURE SHOW. Director Peter Bogdanovich is joined by cast members Jeff Bridges, Cybill Shepherd, Eileen Brennan, Ellen Burstyn, Cloris Leachman and Frank Marshall as they take a look back at the making of the classic film. The majority of the 64-minute running time is devoted to Bogdanovich who talks about everything from picking up the book, being unhappy with several attempts at the screenplay, to the casting, various production issues and then the reception that the film got once it was released. Going through this documentary you'll certain feel as if you know everything that you could possibly know. Bogdanovich certainly has a laid back approach when it comes to the way he speaks but he's as entertaining as usual. You have to at least give him credit for being himself and constantly being honest. He talks openly about his affair with Shepherd, having to cut the picture down and there's even a great story about how he had to call John Ford to get Ben Johnson to agree to do the picture. Shepherd talks about her work on the film including how she had no experience and she also talks about the nude sequence and what she tried to get the director to do before she did it. Bridges talks about how he got the part and Leachman talks about her shock when she was told she got an Oscar nomination. Just about every aspect of the production is covered and as is the case often, it's fun seeing the cast members as they are today and their thoughts about their work.

This was a fascinating little-more-than-an-hour documentary of the making of The Last Picture Show as recounted by director Peter Bogdanovich and his cast members Jeff Bridges, Cloris Leachman, Ellen Burstyn, Eileen Brennan, Cybill Shepard, and Frank Marshall who in addition to having a small part was also the location manager. All have fascinating stories to tell. Bogdanovich himself seems to speak softly part of the time, so much so I found myself having to rewind the DVD of this particular movie extra more than a few times to understand what he was saying. I'll just now say I highly recommend The Last Picture Show: A Look Back if you're really interested in the tales behind-the-scenes of this particularly important film.