Set in 1925 Montana, the film revolves around a rancher whose brother marries a local restauranteur whose son is known for acting a bit effeminate and talk with a bit of a lisp as he becomes uncomfortable with their presence as he becomes intimidating towards them. It is a film that explores a world where men and women have their place in the world but there is this sense of change where the definition of what men and women are begin to blur. Jane Campion’s screenplay is broken into a few chapters as it play into the relationship between the Burbank brothers in Phil (Benedict Cumberbatch) and his younger brother George (Jesse Plemons) as the latter is an educated while the former prefers to maintain his lifestyle tending to the ranch as he has no interested in bathing nor show any kind of weakness. During a cattle drive where they stop at a nearby town at a restaurant run by Rose (Kirsten Dunst) whose son Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee) is a waiter where his lanky and effeminate presentation amuses Phil who would later mock Peter.
The first act is about the relationship between the brothers as well as George’s yearning to marry Rose as he would do so much to Phil’s annoyance as her presence would cause tension just as Rose is trying to bring a few changes as well as invite Phil and George’s parents and the governor (Keith Carradine) and his wife (Alison Bruce) for a dinner. The second act is about Peter’s arrival to the ranch following his time in college where he’s studying medicine and surgery where he tries to stay away from Phil and his ranchers but also makes a discovery about Phil that would change their relationship in the film’s second half. It is where this theme of masculinity come into play as Phil would become open to show Peter the ideas of being a rancher that Peter takes great interest in. Yet, Rose becomes uneasy about it as she turns to alcohol to cope as she would do something that only anger both Phil and Peter.
Campion’s direction is definitely intoxicating for the presentation she creates as it is set in the American West that is Montana though it is shot on the Maniototo plains in the Central Otago region in New Zealand with several interiors shot on sound stages in Auckland. Campion’s direction is often filled with gazing wide shots of these locations where they are major characters in the film as it play into this world that is untouched by modern society which suits Phil and the world he cares about. Campion would also use medium shots and close-ups to get a look into some of the attention to detail in the locations including a small flower in the field or something is symbolic. Most notably in a shrine for Phil’s mentor named Bronco Henry as he would tell stories about his exploits as it serves as this idea of what Phil wants to maintain with his cowhands who are also this embodiment of intense masculinity. Even as there is that moment where Phil notices some flowers made out of paper that Peter had created and burns it up as a form of intimidation and mocking.
There are also these shots that play into the tension between Rose and Phil such as a scene of the latter trying to play a piano piece with Phil on the floor above play that same piece with his banjo as a form of intimidation. Campion also play up the tension during a key scene where Phil and his cowhands are on the river with Phil at another location in the forest by himself where Peter makes this major discovery. This revelation for the second half is where Phil realizes that he and Peter are a lot alike in the way they see things but also that Peter is a lot stronger than both Phil and Rose would believe as Peter is fascinated by the idea of what it’s like to be a cowboy. For Rose, it’s a terrifying idea as she becomes more troubled and fearful as it adds some chaos in the film’s third act. It is Peter’s actions in the third act in what he’s learned from Phil is key to this unexpected bond between these two men who don’t feel like they belong in the modern world despite the things that Peter is studying yet he’s more intrigued by a world that is much simpler and uncompromising. Overall, Campion crafts a ravishing yet captivating film about a tough rancher’s encounter with his new sister-in-law and her effeminate son.
Cinematographer Ari Wegner does incredible work with the film’s cinematography as its emphasis on natural lighting for many of the exteriors including some scenes in the forests are just gorgeous to watch while many of the nighttime interior scenes are used with available light to help set a mood. Editor Peter Sciberras does excellent work with the editing as it is largely straightforward with some rhythmic cuts to play into the drama as well as some of the dramatic tension that occurs within the film. Production designer Grant Major, with supervising art director Mark Robins plus set decorators Gareth Edwards and Amber Richards, does amazing work with the look of the ranch and its interiors with how spacious the dining room is as well as Phil’s room that he shared with George and some of the exteriors including the stable where Phil keeps a lot of Bronco Henry’s possessions. Costume designer Kirsty Cameron does fantastic work with the costumes from the golden dress Rose wears to a dinner with the governor and others to the more rough-clothing and chaps that Phil and his cowhands wear.
Hair and makeup designer Noriko Watanabe does terrific work with the look of the characters from the dirty look of Phil as well as the hairstyle of the women during those times. Special effects supervisor Brendan Durey and visual effects supervisor Jason Hawkins do nice work with some of the effects as it relates to some of the horse riding and a few bits of set dressing for some scenes. Sound editor Robert Mackenzie and sound designer Dave Whitehead do brilliant work with the sound in the way cows and horses sound from afar as well as other sparse moments including the comb that Peter carries along with musical instruments as it is a highlight of the film. The film’s music by Jonny Greenwood is phenomenal as its usage of discordant strings, eerie piano pieces, and lush orchestral string pieces add to the drama as it is a major highlight of the film while music supervisor Andrew Kotatko bring in a few classical and folk pieces that are performed in the film.
The casting by Nikki Barrett, Tina Cleary, Carmen Cuba, and Nina Gold is remarkable as it feature some notable small roles from Alice Englert as a young hooker who dances with a cowhand, Adam Beach as a Native American that wants to buy one of Phil’s rawhide, Maeson Stone Skuccedal as the Native American’s son, Sean Keenan and George Mason as a couple of Phil’s cowhands, Alice Bruce as the governor’s wife who is eager to meet Phil, Keith Carradine as the governor who is fascinated by Phil’s workmanship, Peter Carroll and Frances Conroy as Phil and George’s parents who are eager to see Rose in welcoming her to the family, Genevieve Lemon as the housekeeper Mrs. Lewis who kind of runs the ranch while telling Rose on a few house rules, and Thomasin McKenzie in a fantastic small role as the young maid Lola who works at the house and help Rose in a few things. Jesse Plemons is marvelous as George Burbank as Phil’s younger brother who is a more educated and kinder person than Phil as he would marry Rose as a way to have his own life instead of being intimidated by his brother.
Kirsten Dunst is incredible as Rose Gordon as a restauranteur who is intimidated by Phil as she is troubled by his presence that drives her to drink while becomes protective of Peter when he starts to befriend Phil where she does something that would upset them both. Kodi Smit-McPhee is phenomenal as Peter Gordon as a young man who has this effeminate presentation to him in the fact that he’s also very skinny yet Smit-McPhee makes Peter a far more intriguing individual who would do things that Rose would not approve of but Phil might’ve as well as show that he’s willing to learn as it play into his own ideas of life lessons. Finally, there’s Benedict Cumberbatch in a magnificent performance as Phil Burbank as a rancher who is more content with doing work with the ranch and living a rough and tumble lifestyle as he is wary at Rose believing she is being disruptive but takes a liking towards Peter in the film’s second half as there is this ambiguity and complexity to Cumberbatch’s performance that can be chilling but also has this air of sensitivity that is definitely a career-defining performance for Cumberbatch.
The Power of the Dog is an outstanding film from Jane Campion that features phenomenal performances from Benedict Cumberbatch, Kodi Smit-McPhee, and Kirsten Dunst. Along with its ensemble cast, gorgeous locations, ravishing visuals, Jonny Greenwood’s unsettling score, a chilling soundtrack, and its themes on masculinity in an ever-changing world. It is a film that doesn’t play by the conventions of what it means to be a man or how to be one in a world that is removed from conventional society but rather to take an identity and own it no matter how hard society can hit. In the end, The Power of the Dog is a tremendous film from Jane Campion.
Jane Campion Films: Sweetie - An Angel at My Table - The Piano - The Portrait of a Lady - Holy Smoke! - In the Cut - Bright Star - Top of the Lake (Season 1) - (Top of the Lake-China Girl) – The Auteurs #25: Jane Campion
© thevoid99 2022
Based on the novel by Edward Anderson, Thieves Like Us is the story of three men who escaped prison as they go on a crime spree throughout the American South during the 1930s. Directed by Robert Altman and screenplay by Altman, Joan Tewkesbury, and Calder Willingham, the film is a loose remake of Nicholas Ray’s 1949 film They Live by Night which was also an adaptation of Anderson’s novel as it blends elements of humor and crime. Starring Keith Carradine, Shelley Duvall, John Schuck, Tom Skerritt, Bert Remsen, and Louise Fletcher. Thieves Like Us is a riveting and mesmerizing film from Robert Altman.
Set during the Great Depression in the American South, the film revolves around a trio of escaped convicts who become bank robbers as they would become successful and notorious only to go way over their head when they are later pursued by the authorities. It’s a film with a simple premise as it play into three men that want to live the good life during the Depression as well as endure some of the trappings of success in their work as bank robbers. The film’s screenplay by Robert Altman, Joan Tewkesbury, and Calder Willingham does follow a straightforward narrative but it’s really more about three guys trying to plan robberies and such as one of them is a young man named Bowie (Keith Carradine) is someone that is learning the ropes of robbing but is eager to wanting to have a good life with a young woman in Keechie (Shelley Duvall). Yet, Bowie is pressured to continue robbing by his partners T-Dub (Bert Remsen) and Chicamaw (John Schuck) as the latter becomes more violent and troubling to the point that he would cause a lot of trouble.
Altman’s direction has elements of style in terms of the compositions and scenes he creates but he also does things that doesn’t play into conventions such as the robberies where he never reveals what happens during the robbery. Instead, it’s about the action outside where Bowie is the getaway driver as he waits for T-Dub and Chicamaw leaving the bank and getting into the car. It’s among these moments in the film that has Altman deviate from what is expected in caper films as he’s more concerned about the characters and how they plan a robbery. Even if it means laying low between robberies where they can get a chance to enjoy themselves as T-Dub would live at a house with Chicamaw and a woman whose young adult daughter is someone he is in love with. Shot largely on location in the state of Mississippi, Altman does maintain that air of realism into the locations such as the swamps and dirt roads along with showing this period of the American South during the Depression that was grimy but also kind of exciting.
Altman’s direction also emphasizes on the usage of radio reports as well as diegetic music to capture the idea of the times where it is either used as a form of entertainment or to intensify the drama during the film’s second act where Bowie, T-Dub, and Chicamaw become fugitives. Altman’s usage of long takes in the drama add to an energetic tone as well as the events that would occur in the third act with Chicamaw becoming violent as Bowie finds himself being a reluctant participant in these violent acts. Even as Bowie wants to take part in a simple life with Keechie but is pulled into wanting to participate in more robberies as it would eventually get more troubling. All of which has Altman showcase these haunting moments of violence that would haunt Bowie whose life is in greater danger just as he’s trying to make changes for himself. Overall, Altman crafts a witty yet compelling film about three convicts making a name for themselves as bank robbers during the Great Depression.
Cinematographer Jean Boffety does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography as it has a low-key approach to the way many of the daytime exteriors look with ideas of grainy photography as well as the way some of the scenes at night are lit. Editor Lou Lombardo does amazing work with the editing as it has an air of style for its usage of jump-cuts as well as a key scene towards the end with its usage of slow-motion as it is a highlight of the film. Costume designer Polly Platt does excellent work with the costumes from the look of the dresses the women wear as well as the clothes the men wear during those times. Sound mixer Don Matthews does fantastic work with the sound in the way music and radio programs sound like inside a car or at a house as well as the atmosphere of the locations including the scenes involving overlapping dialogue.
The film’s superb cast include some notable small roles from Arch Hall Sr. as a young man who picks up Bowie, T-Dub, and Chicamaw early in the film, Al Scott as a prison warden, Ann Latham as T-Dub’s young lover Lula, and Tom Skerritt in a terrific small role as the general store owner Dee Mobley who also runs a small-time criminal operation that he eventually abandoned. Louise Fletcher is fantastic as Lula’s mother Mattie as a woman who lets T-Dub, Bowie, and Chicamaw stay at her home where it eventually becomes chaotic to the point that she would later play a part in their downfall. Bert Remsen is excellent as T-Dub as eldest of the three thieves who walks with a cane and is always trying to ensure that things go well while not wanting to be violent as he enjoys the fruit of success.
John Schuck is brilliant as Chicamaw as the most brutal of the three thieves as well as someone who isn’t satisfied with robbing banks where he becomes more violent and unruly where he would get everyone into trouble. Shelley Duvall is amazing as Keechie as Mobley’s younger sister who falls for Bowie as they embark on a relationship where she knows what he does but also keeps it a secret while dealing with the idea that Bowie would abandon the good life in favor of the thrill of danger. Finally, there’s Keith Carradine in an incredible performance as Bowie as a young thief who contemplates his role as someone who is a robber where he relishes in having money and wanting a good life but becomes disturbed by some of the violence he encounters as it’s a role that has Carradine display humor but also someone who comes to term with the trouble he’s created and the need to make things right.
Thieves Like Us is a sensational film from Robert Altman that features great performances from Keith Carradine and Shelley Duvall. Along with its ensemble cast, evocative cinematography, loose take on theft and notoriety, and an unconventional take on the caper genre. It’s a film that play into the idea of three men wanting to succeed through crime only to go way over their heads once they become notorious. In the end, Thieves Like Us is a phenomenal film from Robert Altman.
Robert Altman Films: (The Delinquents) – (The James Dean Story) – Countdown (1968 film) - (That Cold Day in the Park) – M.A.S.H. - Brewster McCloud - McCabe & Mrs. Miller - (Images) – The Long Goodbye - California Split - Nashville - Buffalo Bill and the Indians or, Sitting Bull's History Lesson - 3 Women - (A Wedding) – (Quintet) – (A Perfect Couple) – (HealtH) – Popeye - (Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean) – (Streamers) – (Secret Honor) – (O.C. and Stiggs) – Fool for Love - (Beyond Therapy) – (Aria-Les Boreades) – (Tanner ’88) – (Vincent & Theo) – The Player - Short Cuts - Pret-a-Porter - (Kansas City) – (The Gingerbread Man) – Cookie's Fortune - Dr. T and the Women - Gosford Park - The Company - (Tanner on Tanner) – A Prairie Home Companion
© thevoid99 2018
Directed by Ron Mann and written by Len Blum, Altman is a documentary that explores the life and career of one of American cinema’s great artists in Robert Altman. Featuring audio interviews with his widow Kathryn Reed Altman, their children, and the people who had worked with him. The film plays into Altman and his peculiar approach to filmmaking and storytelling along with rare footage of behind-the-scenes footage and rare home movies provided by his family. The result is an enchanting and exhilarating portrait of one of American cinema’s great voices.
The term “Altmanesque” is something that best describes the style of the kind of films that Robert Altman makes which are based on real things that are happening with overlapping dialogue while refusing to play by traditional and conventional aesthetics that usually happens in mainstream cinema. For those that had worked with him and those like Paul Thomas Anderson who was inspired by him, it’s a term that means many thing. Especially to a man that didn’t live his life by conventional means as he was someone that liked to have a good time and treat his actors and collaborators as part of his family. It’s a film that isn’t just a tribute to Altman but also to his body of work which were all defined by its refusal to play by the rules whether they were successful or not.
Each chapter opens with a collaborator of Altman such as Lily Tomlin, Lyle Lovett, Sally Kellerman, Elliott Gould, Michael Murphy, Paul Thomas Anderson, Keith Carradine, Robin Williams, and several others to each define the term “Altmanesque” in their own way. These chapters would play into Altman’s early life where he served in the U.S. Air Force in World War II and later found his way into the film industry when he co-wrote the screen story for a film called Bodyguard in 1948 for RKO Pictures. The film would also play into Altman’s time doing industrial films and documentaries during the 1950s, his work on various TV series where he would meet his third wife Kathryn Reed, and his first films as a feature-film director where he would clash with studio heads about how to tell a story.
By the time he broke through with M.A.S.H. in 1970, things would definitely go up as Altman would often have his own family on the set where director Ron Mann would reveal not just a few rare short films but also some rare behind-the-scenes moments and such to show how Altman’s children were part of the set. Notably as his son Stephen would start out as a props man and later be his father’s production designer while Matthew Reed Altman would become a camera operator for much of his father’s films. The success that Altman would have for much of the 1970s where he was able to remain independent while working with studios gave him the chance to create a studio of his own in Lion’s Gate Films (not the US/Canada studio of the same name) that launched the career of Alan Rudolph and several others.
The film would play into Altman’s own innovations as a filmmaker where he would find new ways to record a lot of overlapping dialogue through little microphones on the actors while Altman and a sound mixer would find out which dialogue to use and how to mix it right the way to make it feel natural. While his innovations would be used for a lot of films by other filmmakers including Hollywood, the film also played into Altman’s own exile from Hollywood until 1992’s The Player where he made a big comeback. Some of the scenes that Mann would create would be presented through the work of art directors/animators Matthew Badiali and Craig Small who would create some background images of what Altman might’ve been doing during those times.
With the aid of cinematographer Simon Ennis in shooting some of the testimonies from Altman’s collaborators and Kathryn Reed Altman for its ending along with editor Robert Kennedy to compile footage of Altman’s earlier work and rare home films. Even as the sound work of John Laing would help play into Altman’s innovations in capturing overlapping dialogue while the music of Phil Dwyer and Guido Luciani is playful with its jazz-based score. Music supervisor Mike Rosnick would maintain that sense of playfulness with the music to play into the different periods of time.
Altman is a phenomenal documentary film from Ron Mann. It’s a film that anyone who loves the work of Robert Altman must see this not just for some of the rare home movies and interviews he does but also into a study of his methods. For anyone new to Altman might think of the film as a nice place to start though his own work is the best way to look into the man and his work. In the end, Altman is a remarkable film from Ron Mann.
© thevoid99 2015
Directed by Louis Malle and screenplay by Polly Platt from a story by Malle and Platt, Pretty Baby is the story of a 12-year old girl who works in New Orleans’ Red Light District in the early 20th Century as a prostitute. The film is an exploration into a young woman coming to terms with her sexuality as she watches her mother work as a prostitute where she is forced to be part of a world she is not ready for. Starring Brooke Shields, Susan Sarandon, and Keith Carradine. Pretty Baby is a compelling yet provocative film from Louis Malle.
Set in the Storyville area of New Orleans in 1917, the film revolves the young life of a 12-year old girl whose mother is a prostitute as she catches the eye of a photographer as she would become his muse and lover. It’s a film that plays into this young girl who comes of age during this time where she only knows the life of being in a whorehouse and tending to things at the place. Even as she would eventually become a prostitute herself where the result would have her grow up too fast. It’s a film that is set into a period in time where morals tend to fall by the wayside as it is about money and being fulfilled sexually while the women who prostitute themselves are using their sexuality to get what they want and hopefully have a better future.
Polly Platt’s screenplay uses this setting as a backdrop for this young girl coming of age where she wouldn’t just live with prostitutes, bartenders, cooks, musicians, and a brothel madam but also children who live and work in the house. It’s a world that is something where it has its own rules yet everyone helps each other out. For the character Violet (Brooke Shields), she is part of that world as she would help take care of the younger children, including her newborn baby brother Will, and give the brothel madam Nell (Frances Fay) what she needs if it’s cocaine or opium. It’s a world that gives Violet a sense of fulfillment but her mother Hattie (Susan Sarandon) is tired of the life as she is quite immature at times as well as selfish. When the photographer E.J. Bellocq (Keith Carradine) comes in to do photographs, he is intrigued by Violet as he sees her as a young girl becoming a woman while being conflicted of being there for her and give her the life that she needs.
The script also has a very offbeat structure where much of the film is set in this brothel with very little places outside of it as it plays to the world that Violet lives in and how comfortable she is in this world of booze and sex. Even if she is too young for it as its second act has her lose her virginity to a man she doesn’t know and deal with her mother’s desire to leave the brothel. The third act would have Violet leave the brothel to stay at Bellocq’s where it’s a very different world with rules as well as Bellocq’s devotion to his work as a photographer. It’s also a moment where Violet not only faces the real world but also a world that is starting to change once World War I is ending.
Louis Malle’s direction is very exotic for the way he presents 1917 New Orleans by shooting on location in the city with its old buildings along with a few shots in Mississippi. Much of the compositions do play into some of the photos that the real E.J. Bellocq did during that time in the way Malle would place the characters into a frame or how he would set up a shot. A lot of it features some intricate medium shots for some of these scenes including the photos that Bellocq would create. There is a beauty to the brothel that Violet lives in as it’s very lively and has this air of sophistication mixed in with a bit of decadence. Yet, there’s an air of innocence that Malle captures in the film as he sees Violet have the energy of a child but also a woman who is quite mature but also immature.
Then there’s the sexuality of the film where there are scenes of Violet being nude as it is discomforting to watch. Especially since she is a 12-year old girl as it definitely borders the line of what is obscene yet it does play into not just Bellocq’s obsession towards her but also Violet’s own awareness of her sexuality. Even as there’s a shot of Violet lying on a couch for a photograph totally nude, with the exception of her genitalia, as it is very provocative in how it can bring a sense of discomfort but there’s a beauty to it. Even as Malle is aware of what he needed to say visually as it plays into Violet’s encounter with the real world where it is about order and morality just as the home she had known for all of her life becomes the target of everything that is wrong. Overall, Malle creates a very fascinating yet unsettling film about a young girl coming of age in early 20th Century New Orleans.
Cinematographer Sven Nykvist does incredible work with the film‘s cinematography as it is a major highlight of the film in terms of the attention to detail in its photography for many of its interior scenes and usage of naturalistic and artificial light along with . Editor Suzanne Fenn does excellent work with the editing as it is very straightforward as well as using rhythmic cuts to capture Violet‘s own sense of energy. Production designer Trevor Williams and set decorator James L. Berkey do amazing work with the look of the brothel in its state of glamour as well as how small the kitchen is along with the studio that Bellocq works at.
Sound mixer Donald F. Johnson does nice work with the sound to play into the atmosphere of the locations as well the mixture of live music and natural sounds in the mix. The film’s music by Ferdinand Morton is superb for its New Orleans jazz-based score while the rest of the soundtrack features the music of those times.
The casting by Gary Chason and Juliet Taylor is fantastic as it features some notable small performances from Matthew Anton as a young boy named Red Top, Barbara Steele as the prostitute Josephine, Mae Mercer as the cook Mama Mosebery, and Diana Scarwid as the European prostitute Frieda. Antonio Fargas is terrific as the piano player Professor who is a friend of the prostitutes while being the one to keep an eye on her at times. Frances Faye is excellent as the brothel madam Nell as a woman who runs the operation and make sure things go well while doing drugs to cope with her aging. Susan Sarandon is brilliant as Violet’s mother Hattie as a prostitute who has the beauty and body of a successful prostitute but becomes tired of the life as she is eager to want something new despite her selfishness.
Keith Carradine is amazing as E.J. Bellocq as the famed photographer who is entranced by Violet’s personality and beauty as he falls for her while wanting to be her protector. Finally, there’s Brooke Shields in a phenomenal performance as Violet as this 12-year old girl who is enamored by her environment while having a troubled relationship with her mother as she would fall with this photography as it’s a very exciting yet dangerous performance from Shields who was only 12 when she did the film and expose herself in that way.
Pretty Baby is a remarkable film from Louis Malle that features a breakthrough performance from Brooke Shields. While it is definitely not a film for everyone as it does border the line between what is obscene. It is still a captivating film that plays into the world of a young girl coming of age in early 20th Century New Orleans in one of its seediest moments in history. In the end, Pretty Baby is a enchanting film from Louis Malle.
Louis Malle Films: (The Silent World) - Elevator to the Gallows - The Lovers (1958 film - Zazie Dans Le Metro - (A Very Private Affair) - (Vive Le Tour) - The Fire Within - (Bons baisers de Bangkok) - (Viva Maria!) - (The Thief of Paris) - Spirits of the Dead-William Wilson - (Phantom India) - (Calcutta) - Murmur of the Heart - (Humain, Trop Humain) - Place de la Republique - Lacombe, Lucien - Black Moon - (Close Up (1976 short) - (Dominique Sanda ou Le reve eveille) - Atlantic City (1980 film) - (My Dinner with Andre) - Crackers - God’s Country (1985 film) - (Alamo Bay) - (And the Pursuit of Happiness) - Au Revoir Les Enfants - (May Fools) - (Damage (1992 film)) - (Vanya on 42nd Street)
© thevoid99 2015
Written and directed by David Lowery, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints is the story about a man who goes to prison for his wife after she had shot a police officer. Years later, he escapes prison in order to reunite with his wife while being pursued by the law and other forces. The film is an exploration into love as it plays to a couple who made a mistake as they deal with the forces who are after them. Starring Casey Affleck, Rooney Mara, Ben Foster, Rami Malek, Charles Baker, Nate Parker, and Keith Carradine. Ain’t Them Bodies Saints is a chilling yet evocative film from David Lowery.
Set in Texas, it’s a film where a man tries to return to his wife and the daughter he never met as he escapes prison. Serving time for wounding a police officer and other offenses though he took the blame for shooting the officer as his wife was pregnant at the time. Yet, it’s a story where Bob Muldoon (Casey Affleck) is eager to see Ruth Guthrie (Rooney Mara) and their daughter Sylvie (Kennadie and Jacklynn Smith) who is about to turn four as he would get warnings from an old friend in Skerritt (Keith Carradine) to not see Ruth. Though Bob would trek around different states to reach Texas and see Ruth as he knows there’s a price on his head.
David Lowery’s screenplay doesn’t really go for plot but it’s more about a man wanting to redeem himself and be there for his wife. Yet, the officer his wife shot in Patrick Wheeler (Ben Foster) checks on Ruth as he would befriend her and her daughter while he goes on the search for Bob. Unlike the intentions of the law and some bounty hunters that tried to give threaten Skerritt, Patrick has very different intentions to meet Bob. Much of the script involves a lot of letter-writing from Bob to Ruth in his attempts to maintain contact with her where Ruth would eventually receive the letters but she’s more concerned with her daughter and to live a good life. Bob’s impending return only causes a lot of grief and some regret for her actions as she has a hard time meeting Patrick as she is unaware of Patrick’s real intentions.
Lowery’s direction is truly mesmerizing as it recalls a lot of the visual language of Terrence Malick. Much of it involves a lot of images that play into a dream-like tone as well as shooting on locations around the hills of Texas as there is no real definition of when the film takes place. Lowery’s compositions in its use of wide-shots, medium shots, and close-ups has this loose yet enchanting quality that makes the film very engaging while playing up to the sense of naturalism that on display. Lowery also maintains that air of suspense in not just the sense of what would happen if Bob gets caught but who will catch him as well as what would happen if he does finally reach Ruth. It adds to that sense of what might happen or what might not happen as well as Patrick’s growing attachment towards Ruth and his intentions into meeting Bob. Overall, Lowery crafts a very gripping yet somber film about a man trying to come home to his family.
Cinematographer Bradford Young does brilliant work with the film‘s very understated yet gorgeous cinematography from the use of low-key lights for the interior and exterior scenes at night while playing to the use of natural lighting for many of its exteriors including one key scene at night. Editors Craig McKay and Jane Rizzo do amazing work with the editing with its use of dissolves and jump-cuts to create a sense of style in some of the narration when Bob is writing a letter to Ruth as well as some intense cuts for some of its suspenseful moments. Production designer Jane Healey and set decorator Adam Willis do nice work with the look of the house that Ruth lives in with Sylvie as well as the antiques shop that Skerritt runs.
Costume designer Malgosia Turzanska does terrific work with the costumes where it plays to a certain period in time but also has a realness that makes it much more ambiguous. Sound designer Kent Sparling does fantastic work with the sound from the way some of the voice-overs are presented to some of the moments in the film‘s locations. The film’s music by Daniel Hart does incredible work with the film’s music as it is largely based on string instruments ranging from folk to country with some orchestral string flourishes as it plays to the suspense and drama as it’s one of the film’s major highlights.
The casting by Vicky Boone and Avy Kaufman is superb as it includes some notable small roles from Rami Malek as a driver that Bob meets, Nate Parker as an old friend of Bob whom he lets crash in his place, Charles Baker as a brooding bounty hunter, and in the role of Sylvie, Kennadie and Jacklynn Smith as they do wonderful work in playing the young girl. Keith Carradine is excellent as the old town leader Skerritt who watches over Ruth while warning Bob not to go see her. Ben Foster is amazing as Patrick Wheeler as the man who got shot by Ruth four years earlier as he goes on the search to find Bob while looking out for Ruth and befriend her.
Rooney Mara is brilliant as Ruth Guthrie as a young woman who committed a sin in shooting Patrick as she tries to deal with what Bob has done for her while wondering if him returning would be good for her and their daughter. Finally, there’s Casey Affleck in a great performance as Bob Muldoon as this man eager to get back to his wife no matter what the cost is as it’s an entrancing yet somber performance of a man just wanting to come home and see the family he lost.
Ain’t Them Bodies Saints is a remarkable from David Lowery. Featuring tremendous performances from Casey Affleck, Rooney Mara, and Ben Foster, it’s a film that is a smart and compelling crime-drama that doesn’t play by the rules while focusing on its characters and themes of redemption. In the end, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints is a phenomenal film from David Lowery.
David Lowery Films: (Pete's Dragon (2016 film)) - (A Ghost Story) - (The Old Man & the Gun) - (The Year of Everlasting Storm) - The Green Knight - (Peter Pan & Wendy)
© thevoid99 2014
Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 3/13/07 w/ Additional Edits & Revisions.
Directed by Robert Altman and written by Joan Tewkesbury, Nashville is a multi-layered story about different groups of people coming together for a country music convention where the world of politics and celebrity collide in the course of five day that leads to a climatic concert. The film explores the world of celebrity culture through a variety of stories that features more than 20 characters. With an all-star cast that includes Keith Carradine, Lily Tomlin, Shelley Duvall, Michael Murphy, Geraldine Chaplin, Henry Gibson, Ronee Blakley, Gwen Welles, Barbara Baxley, Ned Beatty, Jeff Goldblum, Allen Garfield, Scott Glenn, Elliott Gould, Julie Christie, and many more. Nashville is a superb, sprawling, yet eerie film from Robert Altman.
Replacement party candidate Hal Phillip Walker is set to appear in Nashville, Tennessee in the hopes to win another primary for the U.S. Presidency as a BBC news reporter named Opal (Geraldine Chaplin) is making a documentary about the city. Opal accidentally interrupts a recording session for country legend Haven Hamilton (Henry Gibson) as she meets his son Bud (Dave Peel) while she attends another session featuring gospel singers led by a local housewife in Linnea Reese (Lily Tomlin). Linnea's husband Delbert (Ned Beatty) has a meeting with Californian businessman John Triplette (Michael Murphy) while a mysterious man (Jeff Goldbum) arrives on a motor-tricycle where a cook named Wade Cooley (Robert DoQui) and waitress/aspiring singer Sueleen Gray (Gwen Welles watch). Another aspiring singer in Winifred Albuquerque leaves her husband Star (Bert Ramsen) at a traffic jam as Nashville is waiting for the arrival of famed country singer Barbara Jean (Ronee Blakley).
Delbert, Triplette, Haven, Bud, and Haven's mistress Lady Pearl (Barbara Baxley) are at the airport to meet Barbara Jean and her husband Barnett (Allen Garfield) while a soldier named Pfc. Glenn Kelly (Scott Glenn) watches while a folk trio named Bill (Allan F. Nichols), Mary (Cristina Raines), and Tom Frank (Keith Carradine) arrive to the city as does a woman known as L.A. Joan (Shelley Duvall) who meets her uncle Mr. Green (Keenan Wynn). Jean is sent to the hospital as many await to give interviews or to meet her as Mr. Green later gets a visit from musician Kenny Fraiser (David Hayward) asking to rent a room. Jean's appearance is canceled as everyone in town including African-American country singer Tommy Brown (Timothy Brown) play gigs all over the city while Linnea gets some strange calls from Tom Frank who sleeps around with some of the women in the city. Sueleen auditions for a man named Trout at a club where she passes the audition despite her poor vocal quality. At a show at the Grand Old Opry, Connie White (Karen Black) fills in for Jean who steals the show much to the dismay of Barbara Jean who is still at the hospital. With a big concert at the Parthenon still set, Bill and Mary's relationship is deteriorating as Triplette asks them to play.
Barbara Jean finally plays a show but the performance was shambolic making Triplette and Barnett worried if she will be involved for the big show. At a club later that night, Tom Frank reveals his vulnerability in a song called I'm Easy as Linnea watches while Sueleen attends the gig she received where it's revealed to be not what she expected. On the day Hal Phillip Walker arrives for the show, all of the people big and small in the past four day come together for the big moment where reality and tragedy collide.
Given upon the film's attitude towards idol-worship and politics, the timing couldn't have been any better for a film like Nashville. Even in today's view where whatever cynicism that had been growing in the mid-70s has only served as a reminder to today's harsh times. While a lot of credit should go to Altman for his improvisation, chaotic style in collaboration with his actors. Much of the credit should also go to screenwriter Joan Tewkesbury for telling this story of ordinary people including celebrities and political officers coming together in a place as American as Nashville.
A lot of the film reveals the kind of cynicism and disillusionment that came out of the 1960s. The character of Lady Pearl reveals these feelings when reflecting on her love for the Kennedys and her anger towards her own state for letting Richard Nixon win that state because they didn't want to vote for someone who is Catholic. A lot of the film's political overtones from the voice of P.A. guy talking about the candidate Hal Phillip Walker, who is never seen throughout the entire film.
It's not just politics that drives the course of this story, but also celebrity in which, you have some major celebrity figures in characters like Haven Hamilton, Barbara Jean, Connie White, and Tommy Brown. There's a scene in which the African-American Brown, based on the country singer Charley Pride, is called a racial slur, not by a white man but from one of his own. There's also a scene in where Barbara Jean starts to ramble where it shows the folly and downside of celebrity where it becomes a disappointment to somebody in the audience.
Largely because they're forced to see this iconic figure be something they don't want to see, human. Jean is an interesting character who starts to fall apart from the pressures of celebrity as well as the competition against rival Connie White. There's even a couple of walk-on cameo appearances from Altman regulars Elliot Gould and Julie Christie playing themselves intrigued by this event going on in Nashville.
The city itself is a major character since it's the melting pot of not just where country music is but also the place where Hal Phillip Walker hopes to win. There's a moment where John Triplette uses Nashville hoping to get more votes though he has no care for them. Right before the film's climatic concert, there's a scene of Triplette and Barnett arguing about political motives that revels in how a country has become unsure of their own future concerning the government. After this argument comes this tragedy that would foreshadow an event in the years to come. Plus, in this tragedy comes this wave of disillusionment, loss, and confusion. It is there that someone takes this tragic moment and tries to create something to get people together. This is where the genius of Robert Altman occurs.
Altman isn't concerned about politics, lifestyles, or the cult of celebrity but people, real people even if they're celebrities or political lackeys. Altman's observant yet improvisational direction proves that there's a lot of life in any part of a place like Nashville. Even in a scene where Opal goes to a car dump to prepare narration for her documentary as she is trying to figure out what to say. Altman shows the folly of humanity and how events can lead to surrealism. The character of Linnea Reese is a woman who is a loving mother and wife who cares for her deaf children while her husband is more distracted by this political event rather than paying attention to what his son is trying to say. Altman reveals the folly of people trying to follow something as confusing in politics and celebrity. The moments in the film are often filled with overlapping dialogue to convey the atmosphere of what is going on and where these people are. What are they reacting to or what are they thinking. Altman isn't trying to reveal any kind of answers rather than letting the audience themselves involved in what they think is happening. The result is a truly superb, sprawling direction from the late, great Robert Altman.
Cinematographer Paul Lohmann does excellent work in capturing the wonders that is Nashville from the Parthenon, the Grand Old Opry, and the clubs that make this place unique with its colorful, documentary-like camera work. Set decorator Robert M. Anderson also plays to the film's authentic look of the city with its intimate look for the clubs to the colorful, spacious home of the Reese family. Costume designer Jules Melillo does great work in creating the lavish costumes of the country singers as well as the laid-back clothes of the folk trio Bill, Mary, & Tom to the look of regular people. Editors Dennis M. Hill and Sidney Levin do great work in putting together the stories and characters together with some wonderful editing to move one story to another and see how they all relate to another. Sound editor William A. Sawyer along with Chris McLaughlin and James E. Webb also do amazing work with the sound to convey the sense of tension and atmosphere in the scenes that's happening, notably the way the music is captured.
With many of the actors including Altman contributing music to the film, the soundtrack is wonderfully memorable from the songs Ronee Blakley sings that is pure traditional country to the other songs by Karen Black, Henry Gibson, and Timothy Brown that shows the wonders of country in the 1970s. The musical performances are memorable with Gwen Welles doing a hilariously bad rendition of the songs she sings. Lily Tomlin also does some wonderful music while the real standout is Keith Carradine and his Oscar-winning song I'm Easy. The performance of It Don't Worry Me by Barbara Harris truly memorable while other songs features contributions from Richard Baskin and Gary Busey. It's one of the finest soundtracks ever assembled.
Then, we have the film's large, ensemble cast and it's truly filled with some of the most memorable characters assembled on film. From notable small performances from Gailard Sartain as a diner patron, screenwriter Joan Tewkesbury as the voice of Tom's lover and Kenny's mother, Howard K. Smith as a TV reporter, Merle Kilgore as Trout, composer Richard Baskin as a piano player named Frog, James Dan Calvert and Donna Denton as the Reese's deaf children, and cameos from Altman regulars Elliott Gould and Julie Christie as themselves. Notable small performances from Bert Remsen as Star, Jeff Goldblum as the tricycle man, and David Arkin as Norman are exceptionally memorable for their individual moments. Allan F. Nichols and Cristina Raines are also excellent as the bickering couple of Bill and Mary who are stuck in a tempting love triangle with band mate Tom. Gwen Welles is great as the naive dreamer Sueleen whose belief that she can sing is undermined by the fact that she can't until this moment of humiliation. Robert DoQui is also great as Gwen's friend who reminds her of her lack of talent despite his cynical attitude.
Karen Black is excellent as the bitchy, vain Connie White who has a nicer personality onstage but offstage, she's a mean, egotistical singer with little respect for Barbara Jean. Timothy Brown is also excellent in his brief role as the Charley Pride-inspired Tommy Brown while Scott Glenn is also good in his small role as a soldier who had a nice story about Barbara Jean. Barbara Harris gives a comical, memorable performance as a struggling singer named Albuquerque who is hoping for her own break where she has an amazing scene in the film's finale. David Hayward is also great as the mysterious Kenny who seems lost in the world he is surrounded by as a musician trying to find a place to fit in. Dave Peel is wonderful as the sweet, intelligent Bud Hamilton who enjoys the role of helping his father's business matters while aspires for something more. Allen Garfield is great as Barbara Jean's frustrated, caring manager who is trying to take care of his wife but couldn't deal with the way she's being used.
Keenan Wynn is wonderful as Mr. Green, L.A. Joan's uncle who is dealing with his wife's illness and his niece's single-minded personality. Shelly Duvall is wonderful as the loopy, icon-obsessed L.A. Joan who is more concerned about public events and icons rather than her own aunt. Barbara Baxley gives a wonderfully touching performance as the sweet yet cynical Lady Pearl whose loss of hope for politics reveal a dark anger to the way she reacts towards her own background. Henry Gibson is great as country legend Haven Hamilton who is trying to organize things while dealing with his own celebrity and his city's reputation. Ned Beatty is excellent as the neglectful Delbert Reese while Altman regular Michael Murphy is also great as the political lackey John Triplette, who makes an insulting comment on Nashville. Ronee Blakley gives a wonderful performance as the fragile yet enchanting Barbara Jean whose presence as a singer is wonderful to watch only to see her fall apart with her rambling.
Geraldine Chaplin is wonderful as the eccentric, loopy Opal who tries to create a story but isn't sure what to do while being selfish for her own gain. Altman regular Keith Carradine is great as the burned out, womanizing Tom Frank who has a great moment with his performance of I'm Easy. In her feature-film debut and first of many films for Altman, Lily Tomlin gives a phenomenal performance as Linnea Reese with her caring, conflicted woman who loves her children but tries to deal with her husband's neglect and her own role as a wife.
Nashville is a magnificent film from Robert Altman that features an outstanding ensemble cast and a captivating screenplay from Joan Tewkesbury. The film is definitely one of the great examples of what a multi-layered ensemble film should be as it doesn't lose sight on the big themes while allowing small moments to play out. It's also a film that is also not afraid to tackle big subjects that are more relevant than ever since its original release. In the end, Nashville is a tremendous film from Robert Altman.
Robert Altman Films: (The Delinquents) - (The James Dean Story) - Countdown (1968 film) - (That Cold Day in the Park) - M.A.S.H. - Brewster McCloud - McCabe & Mrs. Miller - (Images) - The Long Goodbye - Thieves Like Us - California Split - Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull’s History Lesson - 3 Women - (A Wedding) - (Quintet) - (A Perfect Couple) - (HealtH) - Popeye - (Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean) - (Streamers) - (Secret Honor) - (O.C. and Stiggs) - Fool for Love - (Beyond Therapy) - (Aria-Les Boreades) - (Tanner ‘88) - (Vincent & Theo) - The Player - Short Cuts - Pret-a-Porter - (Kansas City) - (The Gingerbread Man) - Cookie’s Fortune - Dr. T & the Women - Gosford Park - The Company (2003 film) - (Tanner on Tanner) - A Prairie Home Companion
© thevoid99 2013
Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 11/26/04 w/ Additional Edits & Revisions.
Based on the novel McCabe by Edward Naughton, McCabe & Mrs. Miller is the story about an entrepreneurial gambler who teams up with a brothel madam to become business partners for ventures in a town that is just developing in the late 1800s. Directed by Robert Altman and screenplay by Altman and Brian McKay, the film is a revisionist western set in the Pacific Northwest during the late 1800s where it explores ambition and the people that would come in to ruin the dreams of these two individuals. Starring Warren Beatty, Julie Christie, Shelley Duvall, Keith Carradine, Rene Auberjonois, William Devane, John Schuck, and Hugh Millais. McCabe & Mrs. Miller is an evocative yet entrancing film from Robert Altman.
John McCabe (Warren Beatty) arrives on a horse to a small town where he stops at a saloon to gamble where he meets its own Sheehan (Rene Auberjonois) and a patron named Smalley (John Schuck). McCabe stays at the saloon where he reveals in wanting to build a new saloon and a gambling casino as well as a bathhouse. With Smalley and other men helping out, McCabe also bring in three homely women as prostitutes until a brothel madam named Constance Miller (Julie Christie) looks on as she meets with McCabe. Miller is aware that McCabe wants to create a brothel but felt the women he brought in aren't good enough as she can get more classier girls from Seattle where they make a deal for Miller to run the brothel while Miller also helps McCabe become successful. With the town being built as a group of people arrive including a barber named Washington (Rodney Gage) and a young woman named Ida Coyle (Shelley Duvall), the small town is finally completed where McCabe and Mrs. Miller's business ventures become successful.
With Ida becoming a prostitute for Mrs. Miller after the death of her husband and the arrival of a young cowboy (Keith Carradine), a local mining business is interested in buying out McCabe as two men in Sears (Michael Murphy) and Hollander (Anthony Holland) offer McCabe a substantial deal. McCabe's decision upsets Miller who thinks that McCabe should've taken the deal but McCabe wants to stick to his dream of running a small independent business. After some discussions with Miller, McCabe starts to consider the offer as he turns to a lawyer (William Devane) who tells McCabe what he should do. Meanwhile, a gunman named Butler (Hugh Millais) arrives with two men whom McCabe believe are from the mining company. After an incident that leaves both McCabe and Mrs. Miller shaken, McCabe realizes what he must do to save his dream.
While Miller & Mrs. McCabe, like many Westerns, have a shootout scene. Altman presents the scene in a more unconventional way, especially done in a hazy, snowy way where McCabe is battling Butler but at the same time, something else is going on in the town. Altman's directing style done in widescreen camera angles is very succinct and elegant in its look, notably for the fact that it doesn't look like any other Western. Thanks to a strong, ambiguous script by him and Brian McKay, the film is filled with many ideas and comparisons to the time of the late 1800s and the Vietnam-era of 1971. The film's business ideals and sense shows the idealism of the 1960s with many of the dialogue done in a more contemporary way with a lot of profanity. Yet, when the third act begins with death, it's not just McCabe's dream that falls but also something that many film critics had suggest that the death of an even bigger dream. This is why Altman's directing is so dead-on in its presentation, especially since he knew that big business would take over the little business soon, one way or another.
Whereas most Westerns had a desert, sunny look, Altman chose for a bleak, rainy, snowy look in McCabe & Mrs. Miller where he shot the film, entirely in Canada. Helping Altman with his hazy vision is the grainy, desaturated cinematography of Vilmos Zsigmond, who brings a colorless look of muddy grounds, leaves, and everything else that isn't bright except for the sunlight in one scene. For the lighting, Zsigmond goes for candlelights in a lot of the interior scenes while in the exteriors, goes for graininess in its look. With production designer Leon Erickson and art directors Phillip E. Thomas and Albert J. Locatelli, the film has a very detailed look of the late 1800s Western saloons, bathhouses, and brothels, especially the bridges that connect in some of the lake areas. The film also has a strange, atmospheric sound with its wind and music box chimes that is captured wonderfully while Lou Lombardo's editing really helps give the film a nice pacing while in the shootout scene, help plays to the film's unconventional style.
Then, there's the film's soundtrack which features three songs by Leonard Cohen, The Stranger Song, Sisters Of Mercy, and Winter Song which all came from Cohen's debut album. The use of Cohen's songs helps bring a dark, bleak atmosphere where everything is amiss and a sense of doom is set to emerge. Winter Song serves a nice accompaniment to the opium-induced mind of Mrs. Miller while The Stranger Song is perfect for the brooding McCabe. Sisters Of Mercy is also wonderfully used for the three homely prostitutes McCabe brings. Even in their extended instrumental sections that Cohen added to the film, it's melancholic folk-driven tone really gives the film a different feel in comparison to many Westerns.
Then, there's the film's amazingly sprawling cast of actors. Hugh Millais is wonderfully sadistic and charismatic as Butler with his British, roguish tone where he seems like a likeable villain while Michael Murphy and Anthony Holland are sleazily brilliant in the respective roles of Sears and Hollander. Shelley Duvall is lovely as the aloof mail-order bride Ida who doesn't know much but her scenes with Christie are wonderfully executed. William Devane is exquisitely charismatic as McCabe's attorney who shares his dreams in a way that seems very off but with some humor. Rene Auberjonois is also wonderful in his small role of Sheehan as is John Schuck as McCabe's business associate, Smalley. Rodney Gage, Bert Remsen, and many other small characters are wonderfully acted but biggest standout in the smallest of roles is Keith Carradine as a doomed, young cowboy who gets killed for no reason since all he wanted was to get new socks inside the saloon.
Warren Beatty, often seen as an iconic, handsomely old man, brings in an amazing performance as John McCabe. In his bearded look, Beatty brings a mix of humor, romanticism, idealistic, and charm to his role as the somewhat simpleton, chauvinistic McCabe. The scenes where Beatty talks to himself are funny sometimes but also sad since there's a sense of doom laying for him. Beatty really shines in this performance where he plays against type as a man who is just a bumbling, two-bit gambler who achieves something more than his simple, foolhardy dream. Julie Christie is the film's best performance, not to mention that she received an Oscar nod for Best Actress for this film, thanks to her Cockney British accent and smart, business tactics as Mrs. Constance Miller. Though the character was more interested in her opium pipe rather than the world around her, Christie brings grace and sympathy to her role, as a woman who is trying to ignore the world around her yet couldn't escape it. Christie also brings a sexiness that is a wonderful presence despite not showing a lot of skin as she transcends her beauty with grit and intelligence.
Beatty and Christie are wonderful together in their scenes and thankfully, Altman chose for them to go more into a sense of business rather than into a full-on romance. Though, there's hint of it, Beatty and Christie chose to act like business partners rather than reluctant lovers. Though the two care about each other, they know what's important first. It's one of the best pairings in cinema.
McCabe & Mrs. Miller is a magnificent film from Robert Altman that features incredible leading performances from Warren Beatty and Julie Christie in the title roles. Armed with a great supporting cast, Vilmos Zsigmond's lush cinematography, strong themes, and Leonard Cohen's seductive soundtrack. It's a film that is definitely among one of Altman's best films as well as one of the most unconventional westerns of that genre. In the end, McCabe & Mrs. Miller is a brilliant film from Robert Altman.
Robert Altman Films: (The Delinquents) - (The James Dean Story) - Countdown (1968 film) - (That Cold Day in the Park) - M.A.S.H. - Brewster McCloud - (Images) - The Long Goodbye - Thieves Like Us - California Split - Nashville - Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull’s History Lesson - 3 Women - (A Wedding) - (Quintet) - (A Perfect Couple) - (HealtH) - Popeye - (Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean) - (Streamers) - (Secret Honor) - (O.C. and Stiggs) - Fool for Love - (Beyond Therapy) - (Aria-Les Boreades) - (Tanner ‘88) - (Vincent & Theo) - The Player - Short Cuts - Pret-a-Porter - (Kansas City) - (The Gingerbread Man) - Cookie’s Fortune - Dr. T & the Women - Gosford Park - The Company (2003 film) - (Tanner on Tanner) - A Prairie Home Companion
© thevoid99 2013
