The Last Picture Show : Other movies similar to this?

Other movies similar to this?

Movies that have a similar feel, about day-to-day life in small-town America. Or simply movies that are about life in a semi-rural place. The only one that comes to mind right now is the movie "Hud" from 1963. It's got a similar feel, and it also happens to be in black-and-white.

What other movies are similar? I'd prefer movies made within only the last 40 or 50 years.

Re: Other movies similar to this?

"To Kill A Mockingbird" (1962)is about a small town with a similar set of older characters, though no teenagers.

"The Chase" (1966) is a great film about conflict in a small town with Marlon Brando, Jane Fonda, Robert Redford, Angie Dickinson, etc. etc.

"The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" (1968)is a great movie about characters in a small town with Sondra Locke and Alan Arkin.

"American Graffiti" (1973) A couple of high school grads spend one final night cruising the strip with their buddies before they go off to college. Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard.

"Breaking Away" (1979) (one of my favorites) is about High School age young men who are not college bound and are contemplating spending the rest of their lives in their small town. Stars Dennis Quaid in one of his early films.

"Over the Edge" (1979) (one of my favorites) New Grenada is a planned community set in the desert where there is nothing for the kids to do, save for a rec center - which closes at 6 PM. The parents, in their zeal to attract industry to their town, have all but neglected their children. As a result, the kids begin to create their own entertainment, which involves vandalism, theft, and general hooliganism.

"Americana" (1983) (one of my favorites) is a great film about a Vietnam Vet returning to his small town where he no longer fits in at all but his childhood sweetheart is still there. David Carradine and Barbara Hershey.

"Tender Mercies" (1983) A broken-down, middle-aged country singer gets a new wife, reaches out to his long-lost daughter, and tries to put his troubled life back together. Robert Duvall, Tess Harper.

"Hoosiers" (1986) is a great film about a basketball coach in a small town, before it was a cliche. Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey.

"This Boy's Life" (1993) The story about the relationship between a rebellious 50s teenager and his abusive father. Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert Deniro, Ellen Barkin.

"Dancer, Texas, pop 81" (1998) was kind of fun - Four friends from the small Texas town of Dancer are graduating from high school and are planning to move to L.A. after graduation, taking the population of Dancer down to 77 from 81. All other 77 residents feel threatened by their decision and decide to spoil their plans by all means possible.









Re: Other movies similar to this?

Great list. Thank you

Re: Other movies similar to this?

yw. just a few I've liked... Saw another great old movie today - Smile (1975.) Satire on beauty pageants in a small Californian town. Real slice of vintage Americana and funny, too.

Re: Other movies similar to this?

Well, Hud is also based on a Larry McMurtry work, I believe it's "Horseman, Pass By." I love his writing, and most of the movies based on it, the exception being Terms of Endearment. Couldn't get into that movie!

Re: Other movies similar to this?

Junior Bonner (1972)
All the Right Moves (1983)
What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)
Varsity Blues (1999)
Young Adult (2011)

Re: Other movies similar to this?

L.I.E.
Fifteen-year-old Howie loses just about everything and everyone in the space of a single week, but ends up finding himself in the process. His mother has just died. His father, a building contractor, can barely keep tabs on his young girlfriend, let alone his own son. Thusly, the teen must navigate his adolescence virtually unsupervised. Floating towards an ill-behaved existence, Howie and his crowd begin robbing houses in the middle-class neighborhoods off the Long Island Expressway. Together, he and his best friend Gary break into a place belonging to an old guy named Big John, a local man who is a respected pillar of the community. When Big John fingers Gary for the crime, Howie learns that his pal has been leading a secret, dangerous but also alluring double life. Subsequently, we also discover that Big John has secrets of his own.

Re: Other movies similar to this?

"American Graffiti", in a number of respects was similar to The Last Picture Show, in that it was about 1950's teens in a small California town, on their last night together, before one of their buddies leaves for college back east.

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