| Last Summer | |
|---|---|
Barbara Hershey, Bruce Davison and Richard Thomas in a scene from Last Summer filmed on Fire Island. |
|
| Directed by | Frank Perry |
| Written by | Eleanor Perry |
| Starring | Catherine Burns Barbara Hershey Bruce Davison Richard Thomas |
| Music by | John Simon Collin Walcott |
| Studio | Alsid Productions |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Release date(s) | June 19, 1969 |
| Running time | 94 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Last Summer is a 1969 coming-of-age movie about adolescent sexuality. Director Frank Perry filmed at Fire Island locations: the stars of the film are Catherine Burns, Barbara Hershey, Bruce Davison and Richard Thomas. The memorable performance by Burns brought her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress, and she won a Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award. Given an X rating when first released, Last Summer was given an R rating after edits to a scene depicting rape. The cut version is the one seen in the videotape release.
Eleanor Perry's screenplay was based on the novel by Evan Hunter, published in hardcover by Doubleday (1968) and paperback by Signet (1969). The film follows the random activities of four teens during a summer on Fire Island. Rhoda (Catherine Burns) is shy and overweight and targeted for teasing by the others. As sexual tensions increase, the more experienced and dominant Sandy (Barbara Hershey) encourages Dan (Bruce Davison) and Peter (Richard Thomas) to rape Rhoda.
The film had a soundtrack LP (Warner Bros.-Seven Arts WS 1791) of the score composed by John Simon and Collin Walcott. Heard on the soundtrack: John Simon (piano), Collin Walcott (sitar, tamboura), Aunt Mary's Transcendental Slip and Lurch Band (rock band), Cyrus Faryar (voice), Buddy Bruno (voice), Ray Draper (tuba, voice), Electric Meatball (rock band), Henry Diltz (banjo, voice), Bad Kharma Dan and the Bicycle Brothers (motorcycle gang).
|
||||||||||||||