Robert Altman's depression-era flick,set in his hometown,is a somewhat tangled,hard to embrace film that is long on authenticity and substance but short on "hooks" that is going to get the average viewer.
The characters are tough to develop any real feel for. Unhinged and desperate,Blondie O'HAra(Jennifer JAson Leigh) kidnaps a rich,heavily soused politician's wife(Miranda Richardson,who's very strong here) with the misguided idea that this will free her dense,scheming boyfriend/husband JOhnny(Dermont Mulroney,who barely speaks in this film). She ends up crossing both the Black gangsters of the town,led by a charismatic tough called Seldom Seen(HArry Belafonte) and the political machine that she's trying to manipulate. The results are fairly predictable;it's the interplay between Blondie and Mrs.Stinson as Blondie tries to wait out her scheme that becomes of more interest. Along the way,you get a brief glimpse of the violence,corruption and poverty that is rampant in the area in the post-Prohibition,pre-WWII urban Midwest. Steve Buscemi's turn as a loud-mouthed saloon owner and Pendergast machine lackey who is married to Blondie's sister is strong(As most of his turns in films are)and way too brief.
IN sum,this movie is a worthy watch,but ONLY if one is willing to ride along with the difficult situation as it is laid out. I have not seen that many Altman movies,but I would say I got more out the stories of THe PLayer,Short Cuts or (my personal fave)Cookie's Fortune. The music,however is very strong and practically takes a life of its own,as no fewer than nine established jazz musicians(Kevin Mahogany,Cyrus Chestnut,Ron CArter among them) jam on tunes of(or styled around)the era. If you enjoy jazz,this film--and even more so the soundtrack--is a must to watch and listen.
The characters are tough to develop any real feel for. Unhinged and desperate,Blondie O'HAra(Jennifer JAson Leigh) kidnaps a rich,heavily soused politician's wife(Miranda Richardson,who's very strong here) with the misguided idea that this will free her dense,scheming boyfriend/husband JOhnny(Dermont Mulroney,who barely speaks in this film). She ends up crossing both the Black gangsters of the town,led by a charismatic tough called Seldom Seen(HArry Belafonte) and the political machine that she's trying to manipulate. The results are fairly predictable;it's the interplay between Blondie and Mrs.Stinson as Blondie tries to wait out her scheme that becomes of more interest. Along the way,you get a brief glimpse of the violence,corruption and poverty that is rampant in the area in the post-Prohibition,pre-WWII urban Midwest. Steve Buscemi's turn as a loud-mouthed saloon owner and Pendergast machine lackey who is married to Blondie's sister is strong(As most of his turns in films are)and way too brief.
IN sum,this movie is a worthy watch,but ONLY if one is willing to ride along with the difficult situation as it is laid out. I have not seen that many Altman movies,but I would say I got more out the stories of THe PLayer,Short Cuts or (my personal fave)Cookie's Fortune. The music,however is very strong and practically takes a life of its own,as no fewer than nine established jazz musicians(Kevin Mahogany,Cyrus Chestnut,Ron CArter among them) jam on tunes of(or styled around)the era. If you enjoy jazz,this film--and even more so the soundtrack--is a must to watch and listen.