Last Summer (1969)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Frank Perry

Writers:

Evan Hunter (novel)
Eleanor Perry (writer)

Release Date:

10 June 1969 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

It was a summer of shared friendship... and lost innocence.

Plot:

During summer vacation on Long Island, three young people--a girl and two guys--become so close that they form a sort-of threesome...

Plot Keywords:

Bare Butt | Shampoo | Topless | Coming Of Age | Date Rape

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 3 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Barbara Hershey	...	Sandy
Richard Thomas	...	Peter
Bruce Davison	...	Dan
Catherine Burns	...	Rhoda
Ernesto Gonzalez	...	Anibal
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Conrad Bain	...	Sidney (uncredited)
Lou Gary	...	Town Hood (uncredited)
Andrew Krance	...	Town Hood (uncredited)
Eileen Letchworth	...	Dan's mother (uncredited)
Wayne Mayer	...	Town Hood (uncredited)
Maeve McGuire	...	Younger woman (uncredited)
Ed Stevlingson	...	Sidney (uncredited)
Peter Turgeon	...	Mr. Caudell (uncredited)
Ralph Waite	...	Peter's Father (uncredited)
Lydia Wilen	...	Waitress (uncredited)

Directed by
Frank Perry

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Evan Hunter		novel
Eleanor Perry		writer

Produced by
Sidney Beckerman	....	producer
Alfred W. Crown	....	producer
Joel Glickman	....	associate producer
Emanuel L. Wolf	....	producer
Frank Perry	....	co-producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
John Simon

Cinematography by
Enrique Bravo
Gerald Hirschfeld

Film Editing by
Sidney Katz
Marion Kraft

Art Direction by
Peter Dohanos

Costume Design by
Theoni V. Aldredge

Production Management
Phillip M. Goldfarb	....	production manager (as Phil Goldfarb)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Terence A. Donnelly	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Nathan Boxer	....	sound
Chuck Federmack	....	sound
Dan Sable	....	sound editor

Camera and Electrical Department
Ron Zarilla	....	second assistant camera

Other crew
Julia Tucker	....	script supervisor

Production Companies

• Alsid Productions
• Francis Productions

Distributors

• Allied Artists Pictures (1969) (USA) (theatrical)
• Centfox (1969) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (1969) (UK) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Italia (1969) (Italy) (theatrical)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1970) (France) (theatrical)
• Suomi-Filmi (1973) (Finland) (theatrical)
• José Fuster Candel (1976) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. Pictures (1990) (USA) (all media)

Other Companies

• Berliner Synchron  German dubbing

Runtime:

95 min | Sweden:97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | UK:X (cut) | West Germany:12 (f) (re-rating) | West Germany:16 (f) (original rating) | France:-18 | Finland:K-15 (new rating: 2001) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:R | USA:X (original rating) | Italy:X (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Bay Shore, Long Island, New York, USA

Company:

Alsid Productions

Trivia:

Based on a novel, the character of Dan was originally called David in the book but was changed for the movie, probably because director Frank Perry -- then best known for his film David and Lisa (1962), also about troubled teens -- wanted to avoid suggestion he was making a sequel/prequel about same character.

Goofs:

Continuity: After the guys meet Sandy, when they take the thing out of the bird's beak, Sandy's hair changes its position considerably between takes.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Indie Sex: Teens (2007) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Temptation, Lust & Laziness

Catherine Burns's Oscar nomination

If you write screenplays, don't miss Catherine Burns's "speech" about her mother in Last Summer - a more powerful, evocative use of single-character dialogue in a film probably doesn't exist. While I enjoyed the rest of the film, it couldn't match this moment, and it's easy to see why CB was nominated for an Oscar.