The Last Picture Show

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The Last Picture Show

R

1971

1h 58m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

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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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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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

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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

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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

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

An American classic in every sense.

Rated: 4/4

Nov 19, 2023

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Jack F

Interesting movie. A rare type of movie with edgy content especially for how old it is. Could NEVER be made today.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

11/17/25

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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

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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

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Stephen C

Success in 1 hour and 58 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Starring Jeff Bridges as Duane Jackson!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/07/25

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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

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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

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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

The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Never You Mind, Honey

2:13

The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Broken Bottle

2:11

The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - The Death of Sam the Lion

2:03

The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Going to Mexico

2:06

The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Jacy the Virgin

2:12

The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Sam the Lion

2:09

The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - School Spirit

2:00

The Last Picture Show: Official Clip - Billy's Bloody Nose

2:00

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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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