Texasville [VHS] (1990)

If you have seen The Last Picture Show, a stone classic, you will at least be mildly curious about the film Texasville, which revisits the characters thirty years on. So the question is whether that second film is worth risking a few quid on. I'd say yes, even if it falls far short of Bogdanovich's earlier achievement.

This may not be entirely the director's fault. The focus in this sequel is more squarely on Duane (Jeff Bridges); the saga of the troubled Sonny (Timothy Bottoms) is reduced to a subplot. I have read, however, that there is a director's cut, not currently available on DVD, which adds about half an hour to the running time and makes the connections between this film and Picture Show more explicit; apparently the studio edited various references for a more standalone movie, presumably for commercial reasons. It may be, therefore, that the Timothy Bottoms - Chloris Leachman relationship is explored more fully in that version; certainly such traces of an ancient flame as can be glimpsed here are moving, especially at the end.

But there are two aspects of Texasville which can't be laid at the door of the studio. One is that the cinematography lacks the poeticism of the earlier film (shot in black and white); the other is that a fair amount of the dialogue sounds too ... well, talky. There is a particularly clunky passage about how the spirit of childhood carries on. A judicious bit of editing at the script stage might have helped. You only have to think about the moment at the dance in Picture Show where the briefest of exchanges gives you Duane's relationship with his father to remember how economic that film was.

In its present state, at least, Texasville is best viewed as a footnote to the earlier film. There are all sorts of resonances: the former waitress, Genevieve, isn't given much to do and she (or the actress) appears infirm, but simply to see her endure is heartening. And Duane first meets Jacy again swimming in the lake where Sam the Lion used to watch her mother swim. If you loved The Last Picture Show, then seeing the characters again is a poignant experience even if the second film doesn't match up to the first. Editing? The source material - whether McMurtry's novel or the screenplay? Perhaps it's as simple as saying that the complexities of middle age are simply less interesting than the possibilities of youth, but I do hope the director's cut is eventually released on DVD.

Although not well received by the critics, this sequel to The Last Picture Show is actually an excellent film.

Laced with explicit and tacit references to the old days, it rekindles that unique atmosphere meticulously created by Bogdanovich in the original. There are many contrasts, though. This film is set in summer amid stifling heat while its forerunner was icy cold, with the wild Texas wind howling away. the overall feel of the film is similarly hot and potent, a far cry from the desolation of the original.

The characters have moved on too yet many of their traits persist. Duane uncertain, Sonny looking like a lost soul, still seeing his own last picture show in his mind and Jacy elegant yet austere. Lester is still still awkward, and is now a manic banker.

Beautifully shot this really is a commendable effort to continue the story, albeit decades on. The spirits of Benny and Sam the Lion live on.

Complete contrast in so many respects from 'The last picture show' yet enough falls into place to achieve continuity. A cleverly conceived balance which avoids the often corny 'Part 2'.

Jeff Bridges fits his role hand in glove, Cybill Shepherd comfortably maintains her position as the female magnet.

If you want a portion of Texas life in the raw, watch it.