1971 anti-westernRating: 18/20
Plot: An ambitious businessman moves into a growing town in the American Northwest with the hopes of opening up his own brothel/gambling facility/eatery. A high-class and business-savvy prostitute comes along and makes him a proposition. Together, they open up and operate the finest house o' whores (The International House of Whores) them parts had ever seen. All's good until Wal-mart sends some of its thugs to buy out McCabe. After they make him a few offers that he can refuse, they move on to Plan B that involves sending a halfbreed in a goatskin coat, a giant, and a kid to kill him. Oh, snap!
Love this movie. The Cohen soundtrack (really, just three repeated songs), the poetic violence, the writing, the acting, the continually evolving set (the town was built as they filmed), the atmosphere. It's all great. There are only a few movies I can think of that have such a consistent tone--the colors, the impending sense of doom, a damp heaviness. I'm reminded of last year's There Will Be Blood actually, both with that consistent tone and the themes involving business, religion, and drinking milkshakes. Both Warren Beatty and Julie Christie were great, but I also love all the typical fringe characters who brought nuances and texture to the little brown town. As expected, Altman drops the American western on its head, and the result is something that left me speechless. Knowing Altman can do no wrong, I think I need to give second chances to Brewster McCloud and maybe Gosford Park.
I found your review funnier than the movie (love the Wal-Mart analogy). This is a very fine western, but I think 18 is a little generous. It has a very 70's feel (not a good thing) and I have never cared for the washed-out color, school of cinematography. I know this will not endear me any more than bashing David Lynch, but I do not believe Altman walks on water (well, maybe now he does). This is certainly better than "Nashville", but then most movies are. OK, now I'm just goading you.
ReplyDeleteYeah, them's more fightin' words.
ReplyDeleteYou didn't like Nashville? What's wrong with you? That, M.A.S.H., The Player, McCabe, Short Cuts, 3 Women, The Long Goodbye, and Prairie Home...all 16+. I'll have to see the one with 'Jimmy Dean' in the title and 'Vincent Theo' which I liked when I saw them a long time ago but don't remember all that well. Even Popeye was pretty cool! Ok, that's stretching things.
I don't mind if people don't like Lynch or Altman. Especially Lynch. I've always suspected that Altman's an acquired taste, but I imagine you've seen enough to have a firm opinion. Lynch is the type of guy the majority of people just aren't going to like.
The 70's is one of the best decades for movies, and most of the great movies of that decade have that 70's feel.