The Last Showgirl
The Last Showgirl
Stars: Pamela Anderson, Jamie Lee Curtis, Dave Bautista, Brenda Song, Kieman Shipka, Billie Lourd and Jason Schwartzman
Director: Gia Coppola
Scriptwriter: Kate Gersten
Composer: Andrew Wyatt
Cinematography: Autumn Durald Arkapaw
High Frequency Entertainment/Roadside Attractions
Rated: R
Pamela Anderson has gotten herself quite a film role as Shelly, a showgirl who has been in the same show for years and years. Never wants to move on, just stay there. The stage is about to be kicked from under her, as the show is closing and, alas, Shelly has nowhere to go. So busy on stage and not paying attention to a real life that is in plain sight around her, she slowly goes into a kind of shock. What to do when the clock is ticking so close to the end and you can’t find what is on the other side. Anderson does a fine job and it is almost a one-woman film, except for Jamie Lee Curtis, as Annette, who semi-retired from the same show years ago and supports herself with small show gigs on the side. The two ladies revolve around each other as hope (Shelly) and hope-almost-gone (Annette.) Just who will be the Last Show Girl? There is a third person in this group, and that is Dave Bautista (Eddie). Yes, he of wrestling fame and now acting. Watch how he fits into the plot, and, also, Billy Lourd (Hannah) who is Shelly’s daughter. This is a square box with each character being a faltering side.
We begin with Shelly (Anderson) and her show of 30 years, which should continue into the future. Alas, the place is closing and what to do? Too old to audition anywhere? Get a job as a (gasp) waitress? Shelly goes to her friend, Annette (an innovative Jamie Lee Curtis) who quit the show years ago and now almost makes a living by gambling and being a waitress. Shelly doesn’t see her daughter, Hannah (Billie Lourd) much at all, and when the girl appears, what to do with her. There is a tender scene between Billie and Eddie (Dave Bautista), who always seems to be there for Shelly. We get to see what happens backstage with the girls and their costumes, and putting themselves in front of the crowd, performance after performance. It gets so that you always seem to be onstage all the time, even in real life. It never goes away. Watch this when Annette is in action to help Shelly through the idea of the show closing. It closed a long time ago for Annette and shows on her face, a slow slide downhill. The future is Hannah, but can the women get away from their own inhibitions to help someone going into a future of her own?
The acting here is good and the talk between Jamie Lee Curtis and Pamela Anderson is well handled, but Curtis seems to have a harder edge on her character and you want to see more of her. Life as a showgirl is flattering to the ego when men admire you, but after the show is over, what then? Home to a small apartment while the other side goes to a luxury suite or mansion?
Music by Andrew Wyatt fits right into the scenario and the main song from the film is sung by Miley Cyrus and written by Cyrus, Wyatt and Lykke Li. It is “Beautiful That Way.” Autumn Durald Arkapaws cinematography gives us the ups and down of being on stage and backstage where there isn’t a second to spare.
All in all, “The Last Showgirl” is a film of living too long in one dream and when the end of the dream of coming, is there another dream behind or just plain life. The stage is a greedy place for those who want to display themselves, and when the display is finished, what then? Silence can be deafening.
Three Tocks
Copyright 2025 Marie Asner
