The Last Showgirl

Director:Gia Coppola

Writer:Kate Gersten

After nearly forty years performing at the Razzle Dazzle. Vegas showgirl, Shelly (Pamela Anderson), has her life turned upside down when she finds that the show is too close.  Another slice of “old” Vegas, replaced by the shiny and new. What’s next for her, the others in the show and those around it who find the sands of time catching up on them?

This is a film that has had some mixed reviews, which rather surprised me, because I loved The Last Show Girl. Gia Coppola has delivered a warm hearted and touching look at life and the fight against age and change. It is lit up by a wonderfully nuanced performance by Pamela Anderson, who deserves all of the high praise it is has had.

But it’s not only Anderson which shines. there is also a fabulous performance from Jamie Lee Curtis, as Annette a cocktail waitress with a gambling habit. They are strongly supported by Dave Bautista, who brings plenty of heart to Eddie, the show’s stage manager.

And heart is the word at the centre of the film. This is a gentle bit of storytelling. It’s all about Shelly and the choices she made to pursue a career she loves. Even if the career is not what she believes it to be, a point brutally made to her later in the film. She tackles how it has affected her relationships, including with her daughter (Billie Lourd). She has a charming idealistic view of the world, ignoring the tatty edges and inevitable march of time and its cruelty. But what Anderson delivers, is a beautiful character full of heart and a downtrodden charm, that makes you care.

It’s also well shot, using Vegas’s, backstreets and the tired bits of the city, that are being removed and replaced along with the Showgirls it was once famed for.

The Last Showgirl is a touching look at the inevitable march of time. It revolves around a fabulous Pamela Anderson performance, who is full of understated grace and charm. The story is melancholic as its characters desperately look to hold on to a version of a past, that to the outside eye never existed. A beautifully told tale.