There is always something harsh about aging, especially when pertaining to women. As example, when I reached my 40s, the thing that bothered me was not the typical onset of wrinkles, added cellulite, or grey hairs. But instead it was that people no longer asked what my life plans were. It’s as though they thought, ‘Oh, you’re here now, and this is how you ended up.’ The same can’t be said about the twenty-something who still has not only many years to go but still holds the ‘possibility’ that he or she will develop into someone important. Perhaps it is the mystery of youth—the guesswork that goes into wondering about the success a young child will achieve (or receive) in life. But once that child ages, the situation is not so interesting anymore.

Gia Coppola’s The Last Showgirl is a film about aging, sadness, and dreams. It’s about those who still live in the hope that there is more to come in life, yet to live forever in hope and possibility requires, to an extent, one to lie to one’s self. Pamela Anderson plays Shelly, a 57-year-old Las Vegas Showgirl who has performed in the Razzle Dazzle show since the 1980s—or 30 years. She loves what she does, however when her manager informs her that the show will be closing, she is devastated. This is all she knows. Now what? […]