Pamela Anderson’s career in show business started when she appeared as a Playboy Playmate in 1990. Thanks to her role as a buxom lifeguard in Baywatch and her notorious sex tape with musician Tommy Lee, no one foresaw the possibility she’d ever enjoy recognition as a good actor.

And then came 2024’s The Last Showgirl, a film that managed to elevate Anderson’s reputation. While she didn’t get Oscar recognition for her work, she found herself in the discussion, a notion that seemed impossible to imagine in the 1990s.

After decades as a star in a topless Las Vegas revue, Shelly Gardner (Anderson) needs to find a new path. When the casino’s new owners cancel Le Razzle Dazzle, the aging dancer struggles to figure out what to do.

As part of this journey, Shelly attempts to revive her relationship with estranged daughter Hannah (Billie Lourd). Shelly strives to work through these issues and move ahead with her life.

Like I noted, Showgirl earned Anderson critical plaudits unprecedented for her across her decades as an actor. Did she deserve this praise?

Honestly, not really. While Anderson shows spark at times, she also brings a tonal inconsistency to the part that can throw off the production.

Anderson varies her performance from cartoony ditzy blonde to more serious personality. Some of this makes sense but Anderson veers from one side to the other in a manner that implies she can’t decide which to favor.

This becomes more of an obstacle because all the other actors play their roles straight. Granted, Jamie Lee Curtis’s aging cocktail waitress leans broad as well, but that makes sense given her place in the tale.

Because Showgirl revolves around Shelly’s evolution, Anderson needs to ground the movie. She doesn’t.

It doesn’t help that although Showgirl comes with a story that feels like it should offer a journey of self-discovery, the end product really doesn’t have a lot to it. Part of the film leans toward an homage to a version of Las Vegas now gone.

However, Showgirl mainly delivers a spotty look at how an aging sexpot adapts and deals with various life choices. The story seems inconsistent and it never quite gets into a groove that makes Shelly especially compelling.

Showgirl can feel directionless at times as well. It meanders too much and fails to get to the heart of its subject on a consistent basis.

None of this makes Showgirl a bad movie, as even with its flaws, it keeps us moderately engaged. However, it fails to form into a good character journey, as it remains too erratic to click.

The Last Showgirl appears in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. Shot on 16mm film, the image reflected the limitations of the source.

Sharpness never became especially appealing. Close-ups brought reasonable delineation but anything wider leaned fairly soft.

No concerns with jagged edges or shimmering occurred, and I saw no edge haloes. Print flaws failed to manifest and grain seemed natural, if heavy given the stock involved.

Showgirl opted for a palette that favored a light teal and amber. Though the colors didn’t excel, they seemed acceptable given the visual choices.

Blacks felt a bit inky, and shadows tended to come across as somewhat dense. All of this added up to an image that reproduced the source but still seemed fairly unattractive given the limitations at hand.

Don’t expect a lot from the movie’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack. It brought the kind of low-key mix I expected from a character drama like Showgirl.

This meant a limited soundscape, albeit one that featured music in a moderately engaging manner. Effects lacked much to do, however, as the movie brought light ambience and not much more.

Audio quality satisfied, with speech that came across as acceptably natural, though the lines could seem a little brittle at times. Effects came across as accurate.

Music seemed full and rich. Nothing here impressed but the track suited the story.

Two featurettes follow, and Unreserved spans 15 minutes, 25 seconds. It involves director Gia Coppola and actors Pamela Anderson, Jamie Lee Curtis, Brenda Song and Kiernan Shipka.

They look at story/characters, cast and performances, and aspects of the shoot. "Unreserved" offers a lot of happy talk and not too many insights.

A Conversation with Pamela Anderson and Jamie Curtis (30:23) offers... a conversation with Pamela Anderson and Jamie Lee Curtis. They chat in front of a live audience at a screening of Showgirl.

The actors look at how they came to the film as well as story/characters and production elements. Like the prior reel, this one focuses mostly on praise for the project and those involved, though the ever-chatty Curtis at least offers some amusing anecdotes.

A film that offered a late career boost to Pamela Anderson’s career, The Last Showgirl shows promise. However, it seems too muddled and thin to really work. The Blu-ray brings adequate picture and audio with superficial supplements. Every once in a while, the film threatens to spring to life but it doesn’t stick the landing.