The Last Showgirl: Film Review
After taking time out from Hollywood for many years, Pamela Anderson makes a major comeback with her revelatory turn in The Last Showgirl.
In Gia Coppola‘s drama, she plays a 57-year-old Las Vegas showgirl named Shelly, who has performed in the revue Le Razzle Dazzle for 30 years. While everyone around her can see that the show is now woefully outdated, Shelly still adores it just like she did in the 1980s. Naturally, she is distraught when she learns that the show is closing due to declining ticket sales. She has to figure out who she is and what her future looks like without the show.
Shelly is a very complicated person who makes a lot of selfish choices. She seems quite delusional like she is still riding high on the heyday of Le Razzle Dazzle – when the showgirls were treated like Vegas icons – even though the attitudes towards it have changed radically. She put the revue before everything, including her own daughter Hannah (Billie Lourd), and now she’s left wondering if she made the right decision dedicating 30 years to the show. Watching them try to reconnect after an estrangement was my favourite aspect of the story.
I can think of nobody better than Anderson to play Shelly. She can relate to the character’s difficult relationship with the entertainment industry. Shelly was hired for her youth and beauty in the 1980s and now she can’t compete with the young dancers auditioning in Las Vegas. I wouldn’t go as far to say Anderson deserves awards but it is the best she has ever been and I’m thrilled about this comeback.
The supporting cast also deserves a shout-out. Jamie Lee Curtis is transformative as Annette, a former showgirl turned cocktail waitress who is being edged out by younger replacements. She is trying to cling to her job but doesn’t seem welcome there anymore. Both of their situations felt so desperate and sad and I really felt for them.
I also loved Dave Bautista in a rare dramatic role as the revue’s producer Eddie. He shows off a completely different side to himself as this caring, sensitive soul. More of this from him, please! Former child stars Brenda Song and Kiernan Shipka were also brilliant as Shelly’s co-stars Mary-Anne and Jodie, who see her as a mother figure.
The showgirl costumes – archival pieces by Bob Mackie and Pete Menefee – are stunning and harken back to another era. These shiny and sparkly costumes are juxtaposed with a grittier view of Las Vegas and grainy film quality. I didn’t love the camera work though; there were too many annoying lens flares and soft-focus or out-of-focus shots.
The Last Showgirl is a wonderful showcase for Anderson and Bautista but I wasn’t won over by the story.
In cinemas from Friday 28th February
Rating: 3.5 out of 5.
