The Last Detail

Starring:Nancy Allen, Luana Anders, Henry Calvert, John Castellano, Michael Chapman, Pat Hamilton, Jim Henshaw, Jim Horn, Clifton James, Carol Kane, Don McGovern, Derek McGrath, Kathleen Miller, Michael Moriarty, Jack Nicholson, Randy Quaid, Gilda Radner, Gerry Salsberg, Otis Young
Studio: Sony Pictures
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com essential video
Overshadowed by his high-profile leads in such '70s landmarks as Five Easy Pieces, Chinatown, and One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest, Jack Nicholson's remarkably complex turn in this raucous yet ultimately somber road movie also remains his most underrated. As the snarling, hedonistic, but emotionally lost Navy lifer Billy Budduskey, Nicholson teams with fellow sailor "Mule" (Otis Young) on a seemingly simple duty of escorting a naive thief (Randy Quaid) from the Norfolk naval base to the brig in Massachusetts. Though polar opposites--Mule is hard-nosed Navy, while the first image of Budduskey shows him asleep in a chair, tattered and tattooed, gripping a near-empty bottle of cheap wine--both sailors learn that the 18-year-old will lose eight years of his life for a petty theft, and agree to cram his lost years into one booze-, sex-, and drug-infested (lost) weekend. From bizarre religious ceremonies to drunken nights in New York brothels, the two sailors provide all the sins they can think of, while their charge, Meadows, appears to go along just to please his escorts. The older sailors are definitely having more fun, essentially projecting all of their own lost freedom onto Meadows. The young sailor's ultimate doom mirrors the daily prison lived by both Budduskey and Mule, and director Hal Ashby hangs a decisive air of bleakness and claustrophobia over screenwriter Robert Towne's profane humor. When the question of whether to let the poor teenager escape ultimately arrives for the two sailors, the final decision is relatively pointless: in or out of prison, all three men are trapped by the Establishment and their own lost free will. --Dave McCoy

The Last Detail
Average customer rating:

Good character study and great to see some famous faces pop up

The last Holidays before the dark years!

Ashby and Nicholson

A Forgotten Gem of Nicholson's Career

another good nicholson film

The Last Detail
Starring: Nancy Allen , Luana Anders , Henry Calvert , John Castellano , and Michael Chapman
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Art House & International | Genres | DVD | Video
General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video
General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video
Allen, Nancy | ( A ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Anders, Luana | ( A ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
James, Clifton | ( J ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Kane, Carol | ( K ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Moriarty, Michael | ( M ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Nicholson, Jack | ( N ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Quaid, Randy | ( Q ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Radner, Gilda | ( R ) | Actors & Actresses | Stores | DVD | Video
Ashby, Hal | ( A ) | Directors | Stores | DVD | Video
All Sony Pictures Titles | Sony Pictures Home Entertainment | Studio Specials | Stores | DVD | Video
General | Foreign & International | Stores | DVD | Video
( L ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B000022TS6
Release Date: 1999-12-14

Amazon.com essential video

Overshadowed by his high-profile leads in such '70s landmarks as Five Easy Pieces, Chinatown, and One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest, Jack Nicholson's remarkably complex turn in this raucous yet ultimately somber road movie also remains his most underrated. As the snarling, hedonistic, but emotionally lost Navy lifer Billy Budduskey, Nicholson teams with fellow sailor "Mule" (Otis Young) on a seemingly simple duty of escorting a naive thief (Randy Quaid) from the Norfolk naval base to the brig in Massachusetts. Though polar opposites--Mule is hard-nosed Navy, while the first image of Budduskey shows him asleep in a chair, tattered and tattooed, gripping a near-empty bottle of cheap wine--both sailors learn that the 18-year-old will lose eight years of his life for a petty theft, and agree to cram his lost years into one booze-, sex-, and drug-infested (lost) weekend. From bizarre religious ceremonies to drunken nights in New York brothels, the two sailors provide all the sins they can think of, while their charge, Meadows, appears to go along just to please his escorts. The older sailors are definitely having more fun, essentially projecting all of their own lost freedom onto Meadows. The young sailor's ultimate doom mirrors the daily prison lived by both Budduskey and Mule, and director Hal Ashby hangs a decisive air of bleakness and claustrophobia over screenwriter Robert Towne's profane humor. When the question of whether to let the poor teenager escape ultimately arrives for the two sailors, the final decision is relatively pointless: in or out of prison, all three men are trapped by the Establishment and their own lost free will. --Dave McCoy

Customer Reviews:

Good character study and great to see some famous faces pop up.......2006-08-11

I had been looking forward to seeing this movie for a number of years and finally got a chance to see it. Will say this... Jack Nicholoson is in great form in this movie. This was the movie he made before "Chinatown" and he still had all that pent up power we had seen in "Five Easy Pieces" and would see even more of in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" in 1975.
Good chemistry between Nicholoson and Otis Young as well as young Randy Quaid (very innocent and captivating).
Look for Gilda Radner (Saturday Night Live) to appear very quickly in a Nichiren Shoshu scene in New York.
And Carol Kane as a young cat house prostitute who beds Mr. Quaid.
Great interaction between the actors but the plot falls short. Maybe that's just how the novel was, but was hoping for a bigger dramatic ending.

The last Holidays before the dark years!.......2006-03-01

Two veterans Navy men are assigned to escort a very young sailor who committed a terrible mistake: to try to make of his own Forty bucks. Both of them have pity for this marked boy and decide to have a good fun before the final act.

This a smart road movie that will allow us to know why Hal Ashby and Robert Altman were the most irreverent filmmakers at those Ages, showing us some dramatic angles of the life.

Memorable performances of Nicholson and Randy Quaid.

Ashby and Nicholson.......2005-11-11

Ashby could almost be named one of my favorite directors for Harold and Maude alone. In fact that's the only other movie I've seen of his. Whatever the case, it was fantastic and so of course I was excited when, upon viewing the opening credits to this film, I saw he directed it. Add Jack Nicholson and this was a sure-fire hit for me.

Well, not exactly. While it is pretty well done and has an interesting story, and is also really funny (okay, okay, VERY funny), it doesn't really seem to add anything especially significant to either Ashby's or Nicholson's works. Nicholson is basically himself, the humor isn't particularly in the same vein as Harold and Maude, and Ashby doesn't seem to have improved much as a director, but that can be forgiven as it was immediately proceeding Harold and Maude and wasn't made that far after.

But enough of the negative stuff. This movie is really, really funny, and the best part about its humor is that it doesn't seem to fall into any particular vein of comedy like "dark humor" or "slapstick" or the like, but more of just a straightforward silliness that's willing to go right where it needs to for a laugh. Sometimes the jokes get a little predictable, but during those times it seems the predictability of the humor kind of helps it along.

It's about 3 Navymen, one who seems to be a kleptomaniac and is being sent to jail for stealing forty dollars from a Navy charity fund, and the two others that have to take him there. One, played by Nicholson, recognizes both the innocence of the kleptomaniac and the frustration of his partner, so carries them along on a journey to have as much fun as they can while they can.

Everyone did pretty well, and it's a real joy to watch. I'm going to have to watch it some more before I comment definitively on the ending, because it seems to a point to be sort of a cop-out way of tying everything together, but I can't quite be sure.

--PolarisDiB

A Forgotten Gem of Nicholson's Career.......2005-11-03

After viewing FIVE EASY PIECES and EASY RIDER, it became clear to me that I needed to sit down and examine Jack Nicholson's career in the early 1970s. So, when I was given the opportunity to view THE LAST DETAIL, I jumped at the chance. The plot is simple. Two Navy "lifers" (Otis Young and Jack Nicholson) are given an assignment to escort a prisoner (Randy Quaid) up north to a prison. The prisoner has been given 8 years for attempting to steal $40, a rather harsh punishment. Along the way, Nicholson takes to Quaid's character (who is eighteen and completely inexperienced) and decides to show him a good time before he has to enter prison. The rest of the movie is a Mark Twain adventure: a series of intense episodes that take place as they make their way North on trains and buses.

THE LAST DETAIL is a profoundly sad film. Despite the revelry and "good times" that these three men share, the film is haunted by the prison sentence and the "detail" that the two lifers must carry out. Randy Quaid does an excellent job at playing a completely naïve boy. He has never experienced anything in his life and Nicholson becomes his father, complete with abuse and affection. Nicholson's performance is electrifying, as always, and he manages to give this profane script the energy it needs. The character he creates has all of the complexities of real person and he manages to make it look easy at the same time. The film's success lies in its exploration of each of its three principle characters. Each one of them is blindly following suit, carrying out orders, all the while being torn by a desire for freedom and a sense of duty.

One odd thing about the film is the score: upbeat march music and drumline snare work. The music often fails to match the mood of the film, causing me to wonder if it is supposed to be satirical. Even if it is, I think it could have been executed better. The music should be in concert with the film and I felt jarred by the snare drums at several moments.

THE LAST DETAIL is not a film that gets much press, but I think it is interesting and worth a look. Jack Nicholson was on fire during this time in his life and it shows in this film.

another good nicholson film.......2005-10-15

this is the story of two navy lifers who are given an assignment of transporting an 18-year old,for a petty theft,to prison.one of the lifers feels pity for the kid and decides to show him a good time before he has to serve his 8-year sentence.the prisoner it turns out has not experienced much and the 2 show him what he's missed all within a 5-day period.jack nicholson puts in yet another great performance,while otis young and randy quaid put in credible performances.other people make appearances like carol kane as a prostitute and look for a gilda radner before her saturday night live days,in a brief apperance.this is a very good film but i wouldn't say it were great,for no particular reason other than it not being that interesting of a story nor a film that i would want to watch over and over again.it definitely is worth seeing though,at least for nicholson fans.