PHOTO COURTESY ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS

Money and time have a way of eroding things. In “The Last Showgirl,” a lovely and soft-spoken drama directed by Gia Coppola, the casualty is a “dinosaur” of a Las Vegas revue earnestly titled “Le Razzle Dazzle,” a relic of a bygone era at least a decade beyond its best-by date.

Our window into this remote corner of show business is Shelly (Pamela Anderson), a flibbertigibbet turned showstopper who has been on the same stage for 30 years. She’s a believer in the product, frequently noting its spirit of Parisian burlesque and ties to old Hollywood; her devotion puzzles her stage manager and sometimes flame (Dave Bautista), confuses a young coworker (Brenda Song) and confounds her estranged daughter, Hannah (Billie Lourd), who sees the show in its final weeks.

Hannah came expecting to witness a glamorous if racy display of dance prowess; she can’t see the beauty behind the sequins. But as the quiet desperation of an uncertain future rattles the company and their friends — including a remarkable Jamie Lee Curtis as an embittered cocktail waitress — an inescapable reality sets in.

The old ways died, and there was no funeral.

“The Last Showgirl” has been compared to another 2024 success story, “The Substance,” in that both explore the ways fame and fortune are effervescent for women; in 2025, as always, age is still much more than a number in Hollywood (and Las Vegas). But I can’t help but compare it to a much different recent film, the theater-in-prison drama “Sing Sing.” Both “Sing Sing” and “The Last Showgirl” are about people who society is happy to ignore carving out a moment in the spotlight; neither Shelly nor Divine G, the actor-inmate played by Colman Domingo in “Sing Sing,” have any concern for the limitations of their stage.

They simply take it and make it theirs.

While “The Last Showgirl” script, by Kate Gersten, slips into heavy-handedness, Anderson carries the film with a remarkable and often heartbreaking turn. Shelly dashes through a life she is unprepared for with passion and confidence, shaking when provoked but endlessly resilient. It’s a beautiful and unexpected turn from a deeply underrated performer.

My Rating: 8/10