The Hitchhiker (TV Series) Last Scene (1986) User Reviews

The Last Scene

[Scarecrow-88 · 6/10 · 4 July 2012]

Celebrated director Paul Verhoeven has some fun poking at the low budget movie industry, with this early episode of the HBO series The Hitch-Hiker, about a first-time director, once an actor, trying to break into the movies in his new position, his sleaze thriller produced by a demanding lawyer (who quit his job to make it as a producer, expecting money not art, success financially not great filmmaking) expecting dividends. Stuck with an actress hired for her tits, Leda (LaGena Hart), director Alex Nolan(Peter Coyote) needs for the final scene of the movie to "be hot", so he must try to find a way to inspire a better performance than what is currently conveyed on camera. So the murderer with a blank white face mask, carrying a switchblade knife, spying from an apartment window across the street, whispering menacingly, "I am watching you", ripped right from the script of the movie starts stalking and pursuing Leda…could art be imitating life? Yeah, this is basically an insider episode, so wonderfully 80s, with the conclusion having Leda turning the tables on the one responsible for terrorizing her into performing better on camera, this all taking place inside one of those costume-themed New Wave bars. Really predictable, which I think hurts it a bit, with a less-than-spectacular performance from LaGena who perhaps was hired the same way as her character. The episode opens with Leda having sweaty sex with some dull hunk so you know this is a HBO series. I look forward to the series going forward as I did watch this as a teenager, but I do kind of wish my return to The Hitchhiker was a better episode. Love the synth theme and the way the titular character introduces and closes the series similar to Rod Serling of The Twilight Zone.

A decent episode.

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 25 June 2012]

Aspiring filmmaker Alex Nolan (Peter Coyote) is getting his big break, with a film about a creepy stalker, but things aren't going too smoothly. His money man, Paul (Tom Heaton) is putting lots of pressure on him to produce a hit, and everything hinges on the acting abilities of the leading lady, Leda Bedell (the very sexy and sweet LaGena Hart) to deliver the goods for the final scene. Unfortunately, Alex just can't seem to properly motivate her, but what does put her in a very serious place is believing that somebody really is pursuing and terrorizing her. This American television credit for Paul Verhoeven, who went on to make "RoboCop" the following year, is generally agreeable entertainment, if nothing really special. It does work in the traditional way of portraying movie making on film: where does the "reel" end and the "real" begin? As the Hitchhiker himself (Page Fletcher) says, this whole business is all about the trickery, and how well Verhoeven knows it. The episode is stylishly shot, and its suspense and thrills are pretty good. Coyote is quite engaging in the role of the director with a lot on his hands, and he has some fine chemistry with the delightful Hart, a bubbly blonde who proves herself to be resourceful and not the stereotypical blonde bimbo. It becomes quite enjoyable to watch as our main character turns the tables on her tormentor and ultimately delivers the performance that she's capable of. All in all, 'Last Scene' is fun in the sexy and violent style of the series, getting off to a nicely steamy start and providing us with a delicious denouement. Seven out of 10.

The launch of director Paul Verhoeven

[Stevieboy666 · 6/10 · 26 May 2019]

Last Scene appeared in the UK on VHS along with two stories from season 2 under the title Dead Even. This is the middle segment and while it is an enjoyable short story combining horror, revenge and sex I have to say that is wasn't quite as good as either Face to Face or Lovesounds. If you like slasher movies that focus more on suspense than gore then this should please.

fairly generic, yet still watchable

[movieman_kev · 4/10 · 30 June 2007]

Alex Nolan, a first time director is trying to get the most out of a young inexperienced actress, Leda Bedell (LaGena Hart), when he's under pressure to get the last scene of a horror film just right. Meanwhile, she's apparently being terrorized by the same madman who's in the movie she's making. The abundant horror clichés as well as Hart's wooden acting make this not as good as it could have been, but thanks to Verhoeven's direction it still remains watchable, if generic. This is one of the episodes that can be found on Volume 1 of the US release of the Hitchhiker (why they couldn't just release season sets like Canada is beyond me). It also has optional commentary by Director Paul Verhoeven wherein he chooses to tell a personal story about himself instead of the actual show on display, thus making it much more entertaining if you're a fan of the director.

Eye Candy: LaGena Hart gets topless

My Grade: C-

Weird and sexy entry in "The Hitchhiker" series. It shows that sometimes those bothered have the last laugh!

[blanbrn · 9/10 · 18 January 2007]

"Last Scene" is without a doubt one of my favorite and most memorable episodes from the HBO series "The Hitchhiker". This episode from the beginning gives off such a sexy feel and has suspense and intrigue to the end, plus the way it's done showing dark and shadowy scenes makes it much more enjoyable. The story is very interesting it involves a suspense film director(Peter Coyote) who will go to any lengths to make a killer project even if it means trying to frighten his beautiful female lead to death! LaGena Hart does a fine job here as a typical blond beauty just trying to make a living acting. The frights and scares are common clichés from the man with a mask, dark shadows, to voices and whispers over the phone. Just anything to get this young lady in the right mood for the final scene! Yet after the last scene the old stereotype about blonds is proved wrong as the party shows this actress is smart and sassy by showing her real actions with the last laugh! Overall "Last Scene" is one of the best episodes of this series with plenty of lust, chills, thrills and fun.

Cool and entertaining episode

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 7 April 2011]

Ambitious first-time film director Alex Nolan (a fine and convincing portrayal by Peter Coyote) is having trouble eliciting a good and believable performance out of lovely, but inexperienced lead actress Leda Bedell (well played by luscious blonde knockout LeGena Hart). Alex decides to use unorthodox methods to coax better and more credible acting from Leda for the crucial final scene of the horror movie they're both working on together. Director Paul Verhoeven, working from a clever and absorbing script by Robert J. Avrech, handles the familiar lady in peril premise with his trademark stylish assurance and brings a pleasingly racy European sensibility to the proceedings: Besides the expected spooky atmosphere and a good deal of tension, we also get a pretty hot'n'sweaty sex scene and the obligatory gratuitous tasty bare breasts courtesy of the buxom Ms. Hart. Moreover, Hart makes for a sympathetic and refreshingly smart and resourceful woman in jeopardy who in the inspired conclusion shrewdly turns the tables on her creepy mystery stalker. The polished cinematography by Reginald H. Morris makes neat use of shadowy lighting and gives the show a sharp glossy look. Michel Rubini's classy and shivery score likewise hits the spine-tingling spot. A typically solid and satisfying show.