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The Last Picture Show

Play trailer Poster for The Last Picture Show R 1971 1h 58m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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98% Tomatometer 115 Reviews 89% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
High school seniors and best friends, Sonny (Timothy Bottoms) and Duane (Jeff Bridges), live in a dying Texas town. The handsome Duane is dating local beauty, Jacy (Cybill Shepherd), while Sonny is having an affair with the coach's wife, Ruth (Cloris Leachman). As graduation nears, both boys contemplate their futures. While Duane eyes the army and Sonny takes over a local business, each boy struggles to figure out if he can escape this dead-end town and build a better life somewhere else.
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The Last Picture Show

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Critics Consensus

Making excellent use of its period and setting, Peter Bogdanovich's small town coming-of-age story is a sad but moving classic filled with impressive performances.

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Critics Reviews

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Paul D. Zimmerman Newsweek The Last Picture Show is a masterpiece. It is not merely the best American movie of a rather dreary year; it is the most impressive work by a young American director since Citizen Kane. Oct 26, 2023 Full Review Elston Brooks Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com Clearly, the outstanding performance comes from Cloris Leachman, as the dowdy, pathetic coach's wife, who will settle for love -- any kind of love... She is tremendous, and totally unforgettable. Oct 26, 2023 Full Review Jan Dawson Sight & Sound Bogdanovich, keeping his audience in a suspended state of compassionate amusement, illuminates boredom from within and without and makes it entertaining. Oct 26, 2023 Full Review Kathy Fennessy Video Librarian Magazine If the sequel is a mixed success, The Last Picture Show, particularly in this restored version, holds up like gangbusters. It's truly one of the finest films ever made about small-town America. Rated: 4.5/5 Apr 17, 2024 Full Review Scott Nye Battleship Pretension The key arc that all three of its young protagonists – Sonny (Timothy Bottoms), Jacy (Cybill Shepherd), and Duane (Jeff Bridges) – go through is the realization that they have the power to hurt other people. Nov 28, 2023 Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy An American classic in every sense. Rated: 4/4 Nov 19, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Laurian D I can tell this is a good movie but this kind of small town portrayal doesn't resonate as much with me as an European as it does with Americans. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 08/26/25 Full Review Patrick C What a wonderful achievement. Visually quite beautiful with exceptional cinematography, this is the kind of film that you know is working its way into your all time favourites list even before you've finished watching it for the first time. Full of excellent performances and sensitively directed by Peter Bogdanovich, I can't recommend it highly enough. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/03/25 Full Review Stephen C Success in 1 hour and 58 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Starring Jeff Bridges as Duane Jackson!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/07/25 Full Review Allen A The last picture show was one of a kind viewing entertainment. It was raw yet sensitive. It was innocent and it was authentic. Truly a unique and memorable work of art. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/13/25 Full Review Ken K Americans often have a hard time watching films based on emotion and character. The Last Picture Show is as dry as the desolate Texas town it portrays. It is a startling incursion into the depths of the psyche of small town rural America, a slowly dying entity in the emergence of shopping malls and McDonalds across the nation. Sex has been described as the thread of the film and criticized as lust, but it is reallly the symbol for the desperation of connection, from Jacy's need for staus, to Ruth's cry of lonliness, to the boys seeking of self, confidence and sense of worth. Rarely has an American film pulled back the covers on the bankruptcy of the American Dream, the ones left behind. This is what lies underneath the glamor of "SharkTank", the 30,000 desperate rejected for the 80 that make it to the show. Citizen Kane explored this as did The Godfather. This film, not an easy watch, is of that rank. It is a classic. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/09/25 Full Review Sue M This film is not worth watching. It's all about sex, lust, infidelity, lust, and cruelty. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 01/26/25 Full Review Read all reviews
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Cast & Crew

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Peter Bogdanovich

Director

Timothy Bottoms

Sonny Crawford

Jeff Bridges

Duane Jackson

Cybill Shepherd

Jacy Farrow

Ben Johnson

Sam the Lion

Cloris Leachman

Ruth Popper

Movie Clips

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The Last Picture Show

The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Never You Mind, Honey The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Never You Mind, Honey 2:13 The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Broken Bottle The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Broken Bottle 2:11 The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - The Death of Sam the Lion The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - The Death of Sam the Lion 2:03 The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Going to Mexico The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Going to Mexico 2:06 The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Jacy the Virgin The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Jacy the Virgin 2:12 The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Sam the Lion The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Sam the Lion 2:09 The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - School Spirit The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - School Spirit 2:00 The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Billy's Bloody Nose The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Billy's Bloody Nose 2:00 View more videos

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The Last Picture Show

The Last Picture Show (1971) The Last Picture Show (1971) The Last Picture Show (1971) The Last Picture Show (1971) A scene from the Columbia Pictures release "The Last Picture Show." A scene from the Columbia Pictures release "The Last Picture Show." A scene from the Columbia Pictures release "The Last Picture Show." A scene from the Columbia Pictures release "The Last Picture Show." A scene from the Columbia Pictures release "The Last Picture Show." A scene from the Columbia Pictures release "The Last Picture Show." View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis High school seniors and best friends, Sonny (Timothy Bottoms) and Duane (Jeff Bridges), live in a dying Texas town. The handsome Duane is dating local beauty, Jacy (Cybill Shepherd), while Sonny is having an affair with the coach's wife, Ruth (Cloris Leachman). As graduation nears, both boys contemplate their futures. While Duane eyes the army and Sonny takes over a local business, each boy struggles to figure out if he can escape this dead-end town and build a better life somewhere else.
Director
Peter Bogdanovich
Producer
Stephen Friedman
Screenwriter
Peter Bogdanovich, Larry McMurtry, Larry McMurtry
Distributor
Columbia Pictures
Production Co
BBS Productions, Columbia Pictures
Rating
R (Nudity|Language|Sexuality)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 1, 1971, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
May 25, 2010
Runtime
1h 58m
Sound Mix
Mono
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