Last Night at the Alamo

I think the same elements that have made "King Of The Hill" a hit comedy are present in this cult film masterpiece. Just as there are everyday-life characters that closely resemble Hank Hill, Dale, and Boomhower, there are real people much like Cowboy, Claude, Ichabod, and the rest of the gang who like to hang out at the Alamo. It is this realism of the characters that makes "Last Night At the Alamo" so good.

This film brilliantly plays more like a documentary than a feature film, and it is shot in black & white. The use of live sound as opposed to overdubs also lends to this documentary-type feel. "Last Night At the Alamo" is very unique in that regard.

The acting was superb, especially Lou Perry as Claude. Sonny Carl Davis, most well-remembered as the jerk businessman who demands a refund from Brad Hamilton in "Fast Times At Ridgemont High", was excellent as the charismatic Cowboy Regan. Furthermore, Steve Mattila turned in a memorable performance as the annoying Ichabod.

Eagle Pennell may have captured the most realistic portrayal of blue-collar Texas ever. Because of this in my opinion, this film ranks right up there with greatest Texas films of time like "Giant", "the Alamo", "Urban Cowboy", and "the Last Picture Show".

This hard-to-find gem is more than a slice of Texas, it's a slice of America. It's the final night of the local loser hangout, shot as if you just walked in the place and hung out for an hour and a half. I really wonder how much of the film's dialogue was actually scripted and how much was adlibbed. There are some truly funny one-liners early on (Mostly by "Claude"). The non-stop profanity does get a little unrealistic and the ending was sort of unsatisfactory, however, what we have is a film containing most of the elements of a truly classic independent film. Sort of a po' man's "Last Picture Show". Seek it out.

Having not watched "Last Night at the Alamo" in about fifteen years, I decided to revisit it last night. My remembered impression of the movie was quickly confirmed. This is perhaps the most realistic, true to life film I have ever seen. The seedy bar characters and their character development is terrific. You have the henpecked husband, the immature boyfriend, the veteran drunk, the bar bully, the quiet guy, a few bar trollops, and the legendary "cowboy" who everyone seems to idolize. The beauty of all this is everything is played out in real time, so it is like you are really there, sitting on a barstool, watching the goings on. - MERK

I was lucky enough to catch this on the Independent Film Channel, thinking it was a different film entirely. Within a few minutes, I was engrossed.

It seemed from the very beginning that I was watching real people, not actors; that someone was just filming what happened to be going on. The fact that several of the actors have no other credits besides Last Night At the Alamo bears out this theory.

These are real people with real jobs, real lives and real problems. You can go to any dank bar in America and find exactly the same people you're watching, here, and they'll act exactly the same way. They come in, tell lame stories, posture for each other, and get drunker and stupider as the night goes on.

The byplay between Cowboy and Claude was interesting; it felt like a seduction, at times. It would have added a new dimension to the film if Cowboy had actually been trying to put the moves on his friend, but the filmmakers copped out on that one.

As more and more characters showed up at the bar, I started to think that Cowboy didn't even exist, and I'd been suckered into a drunken version of 'Waiting for Godot'. When he did show up, I immediately began to wonder exactly why he was so popular with the patrons - and believe me, there's a guy like that in EVERY bar.

It's difficult to describe the rest; the concept was so simple, it boils down into very few words. It looks like this film hasn't been released to the home market, yet, so I'll have to keep my eyes open and tape it, next time it comes around. I suggest you do the same.

This film was simply great. It has so much realism it seems almost unreal. Yeah, not a lot happens but it's a great character study. The way in which we get to see the characters exposed is amazing. Take for example Cowboy. He's a hot shot that everyone seems to like (except Steve). Everyone admires and looks up to him. Then we see him come undone. Cowboy knows he's a loser and now their taking the last thing that he cares about away from him. The way it was shot in black in white definately sets the tone for the film. It's a depressing drama in which everything falls apart for just about all of it's characters. However, we're left with the feeling that nothing that happened that night will matter in the morning. This is a typical night at the Alamo...