The Long Goodbye May 2, 2006
Posted by clydefro in : Classic Films, 1970s , trackback
Robert Altman’s take on Philip Marlowe is a mostly brilliant film, one that is not beholden to any traditional genre and manages to thrive quite well on its own. That reluctance to adhere to category is, of course, typical of Altman, who has made a career subverting classic genres from war film to western. The Long Goodbye
In an interview on the DVD, Altman tells us that the idea was for Marlowe to awaken in the beginning of the film as though he had been sleeping for a couple of decades, akin to Rip Van Winkle. This is basically what happens as the Marlowe character is inserted into the early 1970s, complete with female neighbors who like to walk around unclothed. The story, as in other Chandler stories, is not really the most important thing. Here, we have Marlowe’s friend being accused of murdering his wife and apparently killing himself. Sterling Hayden fits in somehow as a very eccentric writer and Henry Gibson is here too as a mysterious doctor. The plot basically comes together by the end, but this is not a movie one watches for the plot anyway.
As Marlowe, Elliott Gould gives perhaps the performance of his career. His interpretation is so different than what film audiences have seen from the likes of Humphrey Bogart, Robert Montgomery and Dick Powell that it feels like a completely different character. Gould manages to shake off any preconceptions and make this Marlowe his own. I’ve read numerous mentions of Chandler’s influence on the Coen brothers’ The Big Lebowski, but I see Jeff Bridges’ performance in that movie as a burned-out version of Gould’s Marlowe. They are both easy-going guys thrown into situations out of their control that try to get to the bottom of things. While Gould’s character is a little more polished as a detective than Lebowski, both men seem to prefer relaxing to solving mysteries. Gould plays Marlowe as a slacker and it somehow works beautifully. His fingerprint scene at the police station is particularly great fun.
One other note, the film’s theme is creatively used throughout the picture. We first hear it sung by Johnny Mercer and then are treated to snippets via a doorbell and marching band, among other instances. I must say that I cannot recall another film that has used this technique and it is one of the little touches that Altman brings to the movie that makes it so enjoyable. Also, the DVD mentions the interesting tidbit that the movie was first released in Los Angeles with an advertising campaign portraying the film as a detective thriller and failed to stir up much business. The poster was then changed to the one shown here and the film played much more succesfully in New York. Things like that make you wonder how movie studio executives ever got their job in the first place.
Great movies tend to get better with repeated viewings and I imagine The Long Goodbye will continue to gain my respect the next time I see the film. After watching it once, I’m anxious to revisit other films with the Marlowe character and then settle back in with Altman and Gould. Theirs may be my favorite portrayal of the classic detective despite, or maybe because of, an unwillingness to adhere to the paint by numbers rules of noir films.
(Note: I wrote another piece upon seeing Altman’s film a second time, which can be read by clicking here.)
Comments»
Nice review; fabulous film that really shouldn’t work but does and brilliantly so, and, as you say, it gets better each time you see it. Reminds you of just how good Gould could be, though all the kudos should really be Altman’s.