Review of Nashville (1975) by Ana B — 22 Jan 2016

Robert Altman has always had a taste for making offbeat character pieces, combining the comedic and the dramatic. Here, he sets a gold-plated standard, with a satirical look at the country and western music scene in it's titular capital. This sprawling epic is set over a few days in Nashville, Tennessee. It follows groups of characters performing throughout the city in the run-up to America's Bicentennial birthday, which will climax with a political campaign by the mysterious Hal Phillip Walker. Such stories include reigning queen of Nashville Barbara Jean (Ronee Blakley), curious BBC journalist Opal (Geraldine Chaplin), superstar singer at the Grand Ole Opry Haven Hamilton (Henry Gibson), married couple Del Reese (Ned Beatty) and Linnea Reese (Lily Tomlin), the latter is having a clandestine relationship with folk-rock singer Tom Frank (Keith Carradine). It's a brilliantly realised film, combining Altman's trademarks of overlapping dialogue, improvisation from the actors, (they wrote all their own songs!!) and documentary style shooting. (Altman shot so much footage, that it nearly became TWO films!! :O) It's a brilliant cast, and it is a very powerful, with some dark humour throughout, and it's a better film than Short Cuts, and once you see this film, you will become a fan of country and western, bluegrass and the Grand Ole Opry. Plus, you'll want to go and visit Nashville too!! :D One of Altman's very best films, and look out for cameo's from Elliot Gould and Julie Christie as themselves... :D.

Robert Altman has always had a taste for making offbeat character pieces, combining the comedic and the dramatic. Here, he sets a gold-plated standard, with a satirical look at the country and western music scene in it's titular capital. This sprawling epic is set over a few days in Nashville, Tennessee. It follows groups of characters performing throughout the city in the run-up to America's Bicentennial birthday, which will climax with a political campaign by the mysterious Hal Phillip Walker. Such stories include reigning queen of Nashville Barbara Jean (Ronee Blakley), curious BBC journalist Opal (Geraldine Chaplin), superstar singer at the Grand Ole Opry Haven Hamilton (Henry Gibson), married couple Del Reese (Ned Beatty) and Linnea Reese (Lily Tomlin), the latter is having a clandestine relationship with folk-rock singer Tom Frank (Keith Carradine). It's a brilliantly realised film, combining Altman's trademarks of overlapping dialogue, improvisation from the actors, (they wrote all their own songs!!) and documentary style shooting. (Altman shot so much footage, that it nearly became two films) It's a brilliant cast, and it is a very powerful, with some dark humour throughout, and it's a better film than Short Cuts, and once you see this film, you will become a fan of country and western, bluegrass and the Grand Ole Opry. Plus, you'll want to go and visit Nashville too!! One of Altman's very best films, and look out for cameo's from Elliot Gould and Julie Christie as themselves... 5/5.