The Last Movie Star (2017)
*** (out of 4)
Burt Reynolds plays Vic Edwards who is basically a version of himself. In the movie Vic finds himself being invited to a Nashville film festival, which he thinks is a grand finale to his career. What he doesn't realize is that it's a very low-rent festival ran by some young fans of his and it turns out to be an event where he really gets to question of the of choices that he made with his life.
THE LAST MOVIE STAR wouldn't be Reynolds' final film but there's no question that it's a rather fitting way for the actor to do go. This here would be an April release and the actor would be able to do a lot of press for it before his death that September. If you're a fan of the legendary actor then you're going to get a lot of the nods that are in the film including some clips used from DELIVERANCE and SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT. This film certainly has a fair number of flaws but there's no question that it allows Reynolds a time to shine.
There's no doubt that the movie is quite depressing and especially considering most will be watching it after Reynolds' death. I watched it a couple weeks afterwards and there's no question that you'll be rather depressed watching it as it's clear the star was playing himself and also dealing with a lot of personal issues. You can't help but watch the film and be somewhat depressed as Reynolds talks about getting old and and having to face the end broke and alone. It's even more depressing hearing him talk about the bad choices that he made throughout his career.
Writer-director Adam Rifkin certainly knows his star very well and his tender direction perfectly captures what it must be like growing old and having to look back at your life with some regret as well as some happiness at what you were able to do. Of course, the main reason to watch this is for Reynolds performance and he is actually quite great here. Playing yourself is never an easy thing to do and it was great getting to see the star get to shine one more time. Ariel Winter does a nice job with her role as the sidekick and Clark Duke was also good as is Chevy Chase in his couple scenes.
THE LAST MOVIE STAR isn't exactly original as there have been many other movies with fading stars coming to terms with the end of their careers. I'd say the film also owes a little to SCENT OF A WOMAN but with that being said, Reynolds' shines once more so fans of his will want to check this out.
*** (out of 4)
Burt Reynolds plays Vic Edwards who is basically a version of himself. In the movie Vic finds himself being invited to a Nashville film festival, which he thinks is a grand finale to his career. What he doesn't realize is that it's a very low-rent festival ran by some young fans of his and it turns out to be an event where he really gets to question of the of choices that he made with his life.
THE LAST MOVIE STAR wouldn't be Reynolds' final film but there's no question that it's a rather fitting way for the actor to do go. This here would be an April release and the actor would be able to do a lot of press for it before his death that September. If you're a fan of the legendary actor then you're going to get a lot of the nods that are in the film including some clips used from DELIVERANCE and SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT. This film certainly has a fair number of flaws but there's no question that it allows Reynolds a time to shine.
There's no doubt that the movie is quite depressing and especially considering most will be watching it after Reynolds' death. I watched it a couple weeks afterwards and there's no question that you'll be rather depressed watching it as it's clear the star was playing himself and also dealing with a lot of personal issues. You can't help but watch the film and be somewhat depressed as Reynolds talks about getting old and and having to face the end broke and alone. It's even more depressing hearing him talk about the bad choices that he made throughout his career.
Writer-director Adam Rifkin certainly knows his star very well and his tender direction perfectly captures what it must be like growing old and having to look back at your life with some regret as well as some happiness at what you were able to do. Of course, the main reason to watch this is for Reynolds performance and he is actually quite great here. Playing yourself is never an easy thing to do and it was great getting to see the star get to shine one more time. Ariel Winter does a nice job with her role as the sidekick and Clark Duke was also good as is Chevy Chase in his couple scenes.
THE LAST MOVIE STAR isn't exactly original as there have been many other movies with fading stars coming to terms with the end of their careers. I'd say the film also owes a little to SCENT OF A WOMAN but with that being said, Reynolds' shines once more so fans of his will want to check this out.