The Last Detail
| The Last Detail | |
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Theatrical poster
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| Directed by | Hal Ashby |
| Produced by | Gerald Ayres |
| Screenplay by | Robert Towne |
| Based on |
The Last Detail by Darryl Ponicsan |
| Starring |
Jack Nicholson Randy Quaid Otis Young |
| Music by | Johnny Mandel |
| Cinematography | Michael Chapman |
| Edited by | Robert C. Jones |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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103 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $2.3 million |
| Box office | $10 million |
The Last Detail is a 1973 American comedy-drama film directed by Hal Ashby and starring Jack Nicholson, Randy Quaid, Otis Young, with a screenplay adapted by Robert Towne from a 1970 novel of the same name by Darryl Ponicsan. The film became known for its frequent use of profanity. It was nominated for three Academy Awards, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Jack Nicholson; Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Randy Quaid; and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium, Robert Towne.
Signalman First Class Billy "Badass" Buddusky (Jack Nicholson) and Gunner's Mate First Class Richard "Mule" Mulhall (Otis Young) are awaiting orders in Norfolk, Virginia when they are assigned a shore patrol detail escorting a young sailor, Seaman Larry Meadows (Randy Quaid), to Portsmouth Naval Prison near Kittery, Maine. Meadows has drawn a stiff eight-year sentence for the petty crime of trying to steal $40 from a collection box of his Commanding Officer's wife's favorite charity. Despite their initial resentment of the detail, the oddly likable Meadows begins to grow on the two Navy "lifers" as they escort him on a train ride through the wintry north-eastern states; particularly as they know what the Marine guards are like at Portsmouth and the grim reality facing their young prisoner. As the pair begin to feel sorry for Meadows and the youthful experiences he will lose being incarcerated, they decide to show him a good time before delivering him to the authorities.
With several days to spare before they are due in Portsmouth, the trio stop off at the major cities along their route to provide bon-voyage adventures for Meadows. However, in Washington, their first endeavor ends in failure when they are denied drinks at a bar as Meadows is too young. Instead Buddusky gets a few six-packs allowing them all to get drunk in a hotel room. When Meadows passes out on the room's only real bed, the other two let him stay there and take the uncomfortable roll-away beds for themselves. In Philadelphia they seek out Meadows's mother, only to find her away for the day and the house a pigsty, cluttered with empty whiskey bottles. They take him ice skating at Rockefeller Center in New York City. Buddusky tells Mulhall, "the kid is 18, he will be out of prison at 26," they take Meadows to a brothel in Boston, to lose his virginity. In between, they brawl with Marines in a public restroom, dine on "the world's finest" Italian sausage sandwiches, chant with Nichiren Shōshū Buddhists, and open intimate windows for each other in swaying train coaches. Meadows pronounces his several days with Badass and Mule to be the best of his whole life.
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