The Last Detail (1973)
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The Last Detail Movie Review
The Last Detail is a 1973 dramedy film directed by Hal Ashby and starring Jack Nicholson. It is one of the best movies of this year.
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“Drop your socks and grab your cocks.
We’re going to a party“
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Following orders of the higher authority, two navy seals are given the task to bring a convict to prison. Hal Ashby was a prominent New Hollywood director and this is by far one of his greatest directorial accomplishments. It’s a film that is both thematically rich and deeply emotional under all that tough exterior.
The movie depicts the mistreatment of Vietnam veterans by the authorities and just how broken these men were back then. The two navy seals are portrayed as having a tough demeanor, but underneath that are these fragile, sad men who lost a lot and who see the world for what it is now – a place where if you don’t fight for yourself, nobody will.
So yes, there is a streak of nihilism present in this film as well as extreme cynicism, but it fits the time period and the themes at hand like a glove, so it was only expected to have this particular tone. But the very depiction of male bravado as just a façade for their many insecurities, fears and heartaches is what makes the movie relatable to most men even today.
Jack Nicholson is known for so many iconic roles throughout his career, but The Last Detail is unfortunately not one of the movies that’s often discussed when people talk about his works. And that’s a shame because this is undeniably one of his greatest performances as he embodied the role of Buddusky tremendously well. He was immaculately cast as this no-nonsense, tough guy that oozes machismo and it’s difficult to imagine anybody else playing this character.
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But the reason why the movie works so well lies in the dynamic between him and Randy Quaid’s Meadows, a guy who he’s supposed to bring to prison, but along the way he wants to make sure that “the kid” has some fun as he will lose the valuable early twenties locked up. He teaches him to be a man and fight for himself and the contrast between this timid and this aggressive man is what made their conversations so interesting.
Randy Quaid was very believable in the role. As for Otis Young, he was also quite strong as Mulhall, the third part of this trio. He got this one great moment with this girl when she failed to understand the horrors of his war experiences, but the problem with his character is that he was sidelined in favor of the other two and he really should have received more development.
The Last Detail is not the most cinematic movie out there, but it does make solid use of its locations. It’s a confined character study that moves things around a bit for sure, but in its visuals it almost looked like a prototype indie movie for better and for worse.
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But Hal Ashby’s directing coupled with phenomenal dialogue, a confident script and excellent pacing made the movie thoroughly engaging. The comedic tone was delightful and there were so many moments here where I definitely laughed as Nicholson’s character is very witty and memorably over-the-top at times. The crassness to his dialogue is particularly appealing and believable.
Hal Ashby’s The Last Detail is an amazing dramedy that deals with the cynicism and hopelessness of this particular era remarkably well. It’s a phenomenally directed, deftly paced and wonderfully scripted movie that also has outstanding humor at times. The protagonist’s machismo was often very funny, but the depiction of these men’s brokenness made the movie quite touching as well. Jack Nicholson was perfectly cast and it’s hard to imagine anybody else playing this role. It’s one of his greatest and most underrated performances.
My Rating – 4.5
This is the seventh film in my th3ee series where I will cover one film per decade that is having an anniversary this year, from 1913 to 2013. Next up is the year 1983 where I chose Trading Places. Keep an eye on that one as well.
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