The Last Detail
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Henry Calvert, John Castellano, Luana Anders, Michael Chapman, Nancy AllenBrand: Sony
Primary Contributor: Nicholson, Jack
Primary Contributor: Quaid, Randy
DVD: 2 Sides, Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); Portuguese (Subtitled); Georgian (Subtitled); Chinese (Subtitled); Thai (Subtitled)
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen, 1.85:1
Running Time: 103 minutes
DVD Release Date: 1999-12-14
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Sony Pictures
Movie Reviews of The Last Detail
Movie Review: A surprisingly insightful look at the burdens of self imprisonment...
Summary: 5 Stars
One of those iconic 70's films we all need to see at least once in a lifetime; `The Last Detail' is a buddy film that really transcends its genre and becomes so much more than generic. Sporting a slew of finely tuned performances, `The Last Detail' is exciting, entertaining and rather insightful; a poignant look at the mental prison's we live in and the innate desire to break free, if only for a little while.
When Seaman Larry Meadows attempted to steal forty dollars from a charity he never expected that he'd wind up with an eight year prison sentence. That's exactly what happened though, and soon this eighteen-year-old virgin finds himself in the hands of Billy Buddusky and Mule Mulhall, whose last detail is to transport this youngster from his base in the south to the Maine prison where he'll serve out his time. When Billy and Mule find out the details behind this young man's sentence, and hear of the fact that he is so inexperienced in life itself, they take it upon themselves to give him a taste of the good life (or the sinful side of life) before he's locked away.
Behind the fa?ade of what appears to be nothing more than a nicely crafted road trip movie lays a very intelligent look at the burdens carried by those living in their own private prison. While Meadows finds himself facing actual incarceration, it becomes apparent that his current state reflects all too well the mental state of Billy and Mule, both of whom long to be free. They are prisoners to their own lifestyle, desperate to break out and they see this sudden rendezvous as a way for them to let loose and embrace the freedom they so long to achieve.
The performances given by the three leads are all tender, controlled and complete; each one adding a different layer to the films emotional core. Otis Young give a very quiet and almost weary performance, capturing the responsible side of the party very nicely. He's cautious and concerned, yet when he lets loose he starts to realize what it is he really wants out of his life. Randy Quaid (who received a deserved Oscar nomination in the WRONG category) captures the naivety of his character perfectly. I'm so happy John Travolta didn't get this part. Quaid's able to weave in this young mans every emotion, from his fears to his joys as he embraces life for the very first, and seemingly very last time. Standout here though is without a doubt Jack Nicholson, who turns in one of his finest performances of all time. He gives Billy such a complete set of emotions, capturing his unruly side without ever losing his genuine humanity. There is always a glimmer of his internal turmoil, even when the sarcasm is rolling off his tongue at breakneck speeds.
Those who claim this to be Nicholson's best performance are not that far off (I still consider his `About Schmidt' turn to be his ultimate best).
Proving itself entertaining from beginning to end and sporting the right amount of poignancy, `The Last Detail' is a very engrossing and utterly unforgettable movie experience.
Summary of The Last Detail
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Ent Release Date: 05/13/2008 Run time: 103 minutes Rating: ROvershadowed by his high-profile leads in such '70s landmarks as Five Easy Pieces, Chinatown, and One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest, Jack Nicholson's remarkably complex turn in this raucous yet ultimately somber road movie also remains his most underrated. As the snarling, hedonistic, but emotionally lost Navy lifer Billy Budduskey, Nicholson teams with fellow sailor "Mule" (Otis Young) on a seemingly simple duty of escorting a naive thief (Randy Quaid) from the Norfolk naval base to the brig in Massachusetts. Though polar opposites--Mule is hard-nosed Navy, while the first image of Budduskey shows him asleep in a chair, tattered and tattooed, gripping a near-empty bottle of cheap wine--both sailors learn that the 18-year-old will lose eight years of his life for a petty theft, and agree to cram his lost years into one booze-, sex-, and drug-infested (lost) weekend. From bizarre religious ceremonies to drunken nights in New York brothels, the two sailors provide all the sins they can think of, while their charge, Meadows, appears to go along just to please his escorts. The older sailors are definitely having more fun, essentially projecting all of their own lost freedom onto Meadows. The young sailor's ultimate doom mirrors the daily prison lived by both Budduskey and Mule, and director Hal Ashby hangs a decisive air of bleakness and claustrophobia over screenwriter Robert Towne's profane humor. When the question of whether to let the poor teenager escape ultimately arrives for the two sailors, the final decision is relatively pointless: in or out of prison, all three men are trapped by the Establishment and their own lost free will. --Dave McCoy
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