The Last American Hero

1973
PG
1h 35m

IMDb RATING

6.4/10

2.2K

YOUR RATING

Jeff Bridges and Valerie Perrine in The Last American Hero (1973)

A young hellraiser quits his moonshine business to try to become the best NASCAR racer the south has ever seen.

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28 Photos

Motorsport Drama Sport

A young hell raiser quits moonshine running to try to become the best NASCAR racer the South has ever seen.A young hell raiser quits moonshine running to try to become the best NASCAR racer the South has ever seen.A young hell raiser quits moonshine running to try to become the best NASCAR racer the South has ever seen.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.4/10

2.2K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 win

Kyle Kingman
(as William Smith II)

Gregory Walcott

Cleve Morley

Tom Ligon

Lamar

Ernie F. Orsatti

Davie Baer
(as Ernie Orsatti)

Erica Hagen

Trina Kingman

Jimmy Murphy

Spud
(as James Murphy)

Lane Smith

Rick Penny

Garland Atkins

TV Reporter
(uncredited)

John Samuel Brawley

Joe Casper
(uncredited)

Bob Cole

Marshall Collins
(uncredited)

Lewis Compton

Track Announcer - Martinsville
(uncredited)

Director
- Lamont Johnson
Writers
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
The movie depicts Junior's father as being arrested for producing moonshine. In reality, it was Junior himself that was arrested and sentenced. In 1956, federal tax agents found Johnson working at his father's moonshine still in Wilkes County; they arrested him. Many local residents believed the raid was done in revenge for the agent's inability to catch Johnson delivering moonshine on local highways; this is depicted in the movie when we see the local law enforcement busting up his father's still. Junior Johnson was convicted of moon-shining and was sent to prison in Chillicothe, Ohio. He served 11 months of a two-year sentence.

Goofs
When the movie starts, Junior is driving a Mustang with a police band radio but there is no antenna on the car that would work on police band frequencies.

Quotes
Elroy Jackson Sr.: [about working in the saw mill] It didn't seem to worry most of the boys. They put in their time, looking ahead to payday. But not me. That paycheck wasn't money, it was a bill of sale. Three months of that, back to whiskey. It's been hard on your ma, but damn foolishness to one person is breath of life to another.

Connections
Featured in Precious Images (1986)

Soundtracks
I Got A Name
Sung by Jim Croce
Lyrics by Norman Gimbel
Music by Charles Fox

User reviews24

Review

Featured review

10/10

This film reveals how bad the Hollywood action movie has become 30 years later.

I watched this movie today on AMC and loved it. I don't know how well the film was received upon release, but in light of the current Hollywood narrative for action movies, Last American Hero deserves appreciation. It should definitely be considered an American classic.

The movie is a docu-drama based on the few years in the life of Junior Johnson, a famous stock car racer. A young Jeff Bridges brings the main character to life with a great performance, inspired and entertaining. The supporting cast is also excellent with Gary Busey as the brother and Valerie Perrine as the love interest.

All the elements of a great movie that time forgot: thrilling racing scenes, three-dimensional characters, humor, a complicated plot, and so on.. It's a shame that action movies today don't sacrifice some of the explosions, blood, and high-tech props for the type of entertainment and engrossment that Last American Hero delivers.