Mayor Annise Parker does the "Tighten Up" with Archie Bell at the concert Mondaynight.
Photo by Annie Gallay
Yvonne Washington
Braving the cold weather Monday night for Annise Parker's innaugural concert at Discovery Green were a few handfuls of what she called "the intrepid, the hardcore Houstonians."
For those that made it out, the concert headlined by Houston-based acts Mango Punch, Yvonne Washington, Roy Head, Archie Bell and Jennifer Holliday did not disappoint. Yvonne Washington got the crowd going with her wicked humor, and her voice caused as many chills as the weather. Roy Head seemed to have kept warm with a spiked beverage or two (or five), and had the band jumping nervously away from his flailing microphone tricks. But despite (or because of) his sore throat and sometimes rambling intercessions, the man put on a show.
A highlight of the program was Archie Bell doing his famous tighten up, even getting the Mayor herself onstage for a tutorial. My mom saw Archie Bell and the Drells at a fraternity party in college, and swears the man hasn't changed a bit. A close second for favorite number was his duet with Miss Washington; the duo sang "Stand By Me."
By the time the evening concluded with an impressive fireworks display that emitted some serious heat, the crowd had warmed themselves up with some fancy footwork. Thanks to Archie, we couldn't stop dancing.
A variety of actors have had the good fortune of having career resurgences thanks to someone giving them a chance after they passed their prime, including John Travolta after Pulp Fiction, Keanu Reeves after John Wick, and Brendan Fraser after The Whale. Pamela Anderson is the latest actor hoping to be reclaimed thanks to her starring role in The Last Showgirl.
In the meta-story, the 57-year-old Anderson plays Shelly, an aging showgirl at a third tier Las Vegas casino. The show itself, called Le Razzle Dazzle, is on its last legs, and Shelly finds herself at a crossroads, with no other skills or financial means on which to fall back.
While younger showgirls like Jodie (Kiernan Shipka) and Mary-Anne (Brenda Song) are willing to move on to more sexually-suggestive shows, Shelly is only comfortable with the tried-and-true showgirl way. Three other people in her life — estranged daughter Hannah (Billie Lourd), best friend Annette (Jamie Lee Curtis), and stage manager Eddie (Dave Bautista) — seem to help and hurt her in equal measure.
The effectiveness of the film, directed by Gia Coppola and written by Kate Gersten, depends heavily on whether the viewer is willing to accept Anderson, who’s still best known for her role on Baywatch, as a serious actor. If Coppola and Gersten are trying to show a different side of Anderson, they fail; having her play a character with little-to-no makeup and a dramatic arc does not make up for her poor acting skills and a high voice that borders on shrill.
And because the story is so dependent on Anderson — she appears in literally every scene — it never has a chance of becoming interesting or involving. Her character has personal issues that are objectively sad, but any weight that might have resulted from those storylines are lost along the way. She’s not helped by an over-the-top performance by Curtis, who seems to be milking her Oscar from Everything Everywhere All at Oncefor all it’s worth.
Coppola seems to be going for an old-school feel for the film to match the storyline. The film has a weird, unfocused look to it at times, giving the audience visuals that are definitely not high-definition. Whether she’s actually using an old film stock or manipulating the image to make it look like an old film, the effect is the same, with imperfections appearing on the screen often.
Anderson — who earned a nomination for a Golden Globe for Best Female Actor for her role — and Curtis seem to take up most of the oxygen of the film, leaving little to remember from anyone else. Shipka had a breakout movie year thanks to appearances in Twisters and Longlegs, but her role here gives her little to do. The same goes for Bautista, although at least he gets to put on a grey wig and act in a way that doesn’t emphasize his bulky physique.
While actors should never be shunted aside simply because they’ve aged out of an accepted age range, you also have to have the ability to prove you still belong. Anderson can’t get out of her own way in The Last Showgirl, and consequently the film itself never has any dramatic depth, either.
---
The Last Showgirl opens in theaters on January 10.