MovieChat Forums > A Prairie Home Companion (2006) Discussion > Essential Altman?

Essential Altman?

posted 17 years ago by bumfrombrooklyn1
18 replies | jump to latest

this guy directed so many films.. and theyre so good! he's added to the long list of directors that prove the academy is full of it. [a beautiful mind??]
I have tried to see as many as possible, but there are just too many for me to keep track. I think I've seen most of the essentials, but I'm probably missing a few.
Could someone help me with a list , of perhaps some of his less known masterpieces that i would have missed?
there really hasnt been one i didnt like, even his John Grisham film I enjoyed. of course i havent yet seen popeye.

what ive seen:
gosford park [my favorite so far], short cuts, the player, gingerbread men, dr t and the women, nashville, mash, prarie home companion
.. 3women and mccabe+mrsmiller are next on my list. what else?

[–] Det_Sipowicz 17 years ago

Bufallo Bill or sitting lessons with the indians staring Paul Newman

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] suckerdwsp316 17 years ago

i think altman is so overrated. he relies too much on his ensemble casts and every movie he's done looks like it could be made by anybody. even some joe smith in kansas. and anyway prairie home is just a recycled version of 'nashville'.

[–] Det_Sipowicz 17 years ago

If anybody can make movies like Altman, Why don't you do it and get such recognition as he had?

[–] suckerdwsp316 17 years ago

I think I will!

[–] andy-405 17 years ago

Nashville, MASH, The Long Goodbye, Gosford Park come to mind as his best films. If you want a movie that ends all nicely tied together with a pink bow on top, then probably Altman is not for you. But he's made some real masterpieces, in my opinion.

[–] crazyscientologist 17 years ago

Don't forget The Player or Short Cuts

[–] Erwin-6 17 years ago

"he relies too much on his ensemble casts and every movie he's done looks like it could be made by anybody. even some joe smith in kansas."

what complete nonsense. he's one of the most authentic & important American directors ever. who also has a great great sense of visual storytelling.

and anyone that knows anything about his films knows that the "ensemble casts" is only one of the many things he did (and did successfully. let's not forget he "influenced" a lot of directors with these ensemble cast films)

Altman just liked to try different things. And wasn't afraid to look for the extremes (such as the 40 people cast of "A Wedding")

but let's name some Altman classics that have NOTHING to do with ensemble casts (or put simpler: they're the opposite of that. very sparse. few characters. little dialogue)

* 3 women
* images
* secret honor
* streamers
* thieves like us
* McCabe & Mrs. Miller

and of course bona fide classics such as
* the long goodbye
* shortcuts
* Nashville
* the player
* California split
* MASH

[–] bumfrombrooklyn1 16 years ago

suckerdwsp316 why the *beep* are you on a robert altman board if you don't like his films? go away. And lonmonster, robert altman is one of the greatest filmmakers that ever lived. The reason why you don't like most of his films is not because they are bad, but because you are an idiot and do not understand them. To put it simply.

[–] bryguypope 16 years ago

My picks would be...

Nashville
McCabe & Mrs. Miller
Short Cuts
3 Women
Gosford Park
A Prairie Home Companion

These are the ones I always find myself coming back to. I'm gradually warming up to Dr. T and the Women. It's definitely one of his least noteworthy works, but it captures the peculiar nature of rich North Texas women, and it's never dull.

[–] lonmonster 17 years ago

Streamers wasn't too bad. Images and 3 Women were hard to get into, but enjoyable eventually. Ignore Secret Honor and Come Back to the Five and Dime Jimmy Dean Jimmy Dean.

My favorite Altman film is The Player. I don't consider him one of the greatest directors, for every good film he has he has about 4 terrible ones.

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] Isaac5855 17 years ago

I would say not to forget THE PLAYER or BREWSTER McCLOUD, in additiopn to other films mentioned here. Also, if no on mentioned it, McCABE AND MRS. MILLER.

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] barbaralamar 16 years ago

My two favorites are Images with Susannah York and 3 Women with Sissy Spacek and Shelley Duvall.

[–] PsychoDingo 12 years ago

You need to see The Long Goodbye

She gave me a smile so sweet you could have poured it on your pancakes.

[–] fang123horn 11 years ago

I putting it out there: Popeye...There I said it!

[–] nutsberryfarm 10 years ago

this isn't.

'the long goodbye' is.

Veneration of Mark Twain is one of the roots of our current intellectual stalemate