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The Last Detail


THE LAST DETAIL

An imaginative and often uncompromising screenplay and some charismatic lead performances are the primary ingredients of an underrated gem from 1973 called The Last Detail, that takes a sometimes jaded look at how life in the military can affect people individually while never crossing that line between the military and the rest of civilization.

Based on a novel by Darryl Ponicscan, this is the story of two officers from Naval Shore patrol named Buddusky and Mulhall ("Mule" to his friends) who have been assigned to escort a young prisoner named Lawrence Meadows to a naval prison in Portsmouth, where he is to serve an eight year sentence. Technically, the assignment only requires two days but Buddusky and Mule have been given five. Buddusky, believing Meadows is getting a raw deal, decides to utilize this road trip to give him a real last hurrah before he gets locked up.

Robert Towne's Oscar nominated screenplay is the driving force behind this salty adult adventure that puts three complete strangers in very close proximity to each other with nothing in common but their being sailors and how a methodical but believable bond develops between the men even though Buddusky and Mule's differing views regarding their mission keep them apart to a point. There are other gray areas here...it's never really clear how Meadows feels about what he did, but there seems to be a guilt there that makes it seem silly when Buddusky and Mule worry about him trying to escape after one dismal attempt on a crowded train. I also like the way the screenplay hints at backstory for the characters that isn't really addressed, but we keep hoping that they will be. Early on, we learn that Buddusky has been referred to as "Badass" for most of his life and you know he is the way he handles himself, but you always are curious as how he got that way.

Director Hal Ashby has mounted a riveting episodic drama that employs some elaborate location filming but mostly works because of the three powerhouse performances in the leads. Jack Nicholson lights up the screen with his blistering Buddusky, which earned him a Best Actor Oscar nomination and Randy Quaid has never been better as young Meadows, a performance which earned him a supporting actor nomination. Otis Young manages to hold his own as Mule, never allowing these actors to blow him off the screen. There are several future stars-to-be in the supporting cast, including a blink-and-you-miss-it cameo by original SNL cast member Gilda Radner, two years before SNL's premiere, but it is Nicholson and Quaid's interpretation of this layered screenplay that makes this cinematic road trip sizzle.