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I saw this film, one of Altman's least-seen, twice in the same weekend on a huge concave screen when it first opened because I immediately recognized this was a film that was quite unique but also so unusual that it likely would never be seen like that again. And I was right. More than 40 years later, now on DVD, the film still holds up. If you're looking for a parable about violence in a future world, this ain't it. Try 'Rollerball.' If you're looking for a sci-fi 'one man against the world' story, you'd do better to invest in 'The Man Who Fell To Earth' with David Bowie (1976). But there are plenty of odd turns, special moments, a sustained ominous feeling, and interesting performances here. Any film starring Paul Newman, Vittorio Gassman, Bibi Anderson, Fernando Rey and Nina van Pallandt can't be all bad. I happen to like Altman's experimental period (including 'Health,' 'A Perfrct Couple', and 'Streamers') and 'Quintet' is perhaps the coldest (pun intended), oddest, and least accessible of any of those. But I would say: try it for yourself. It's more about tone and feeling than action or subtext, but it has its rewards.

Don't EVER listen to the critics. Despite that fact that Alan K Pakula directed some of my favorite films of all time ('Klute,' 'The Parallax View,' 'All the President's Men'), I failed to see one of his best and most personal films for forty years simply because the critics disuaded me. Turns out, this film is just as good as any of the other great films he directed.

I won't go into the story because if you're reading this you already probably know something about it. What I will say is that the film is full of real moments, well observed. The film keeps you guessing which way it will go throughout and it's totally believable and laid out with measure, confidence and aplomb.

Jeff Bridges is the lead and he's never given a bad performance and here is no exception. Alice Krige is the smart and sexy woman he's in love with. But it is three actresses (Farrah Fawcett, Linda Lavin snd Frances Sterhagen) that really shine and Pakula shines, too, in the way he uses each of them. Each, in their way, gives what I would call the epitome of what I think of when I think Best Supporting Actress Oscar.

Why was the film not successful? Perhaps it seemed too upscale, too Patrician. The film features a good deal of symphony and jazz music and, since it all happens in New York, perhaps the film seemed too much like a Woody Allen without the belly laughs. It did, most assuredly, have a horrible ad campaign.

Either way, judge for yourself. I really loved it and could've missed out if I hadn't taken the chance.

Maggie Smith passed away today (September 27, 2024) and woe are we. There was a time, as Norma Desmond says in 'Sunset Boulevard ' when the movies 'had the eyes and ears of the whole world' and in that halcyon golden time (the 1970's), there was no greater an actress or star than Maggie Smith. She remained a searing force in cinema until her last breath and made some of the greatest films of my generation. Cheif among them was 'Travels With My Aunt.' Ostensibly the story of an aging bookworm who meets his maiden aunt at a funeral and accompanies her on her wild travels, the film is about so much more. It's about love, family, friends, transcending one's past, about learning to breath, learning to live. As directed by George Cukor, the film has his signature panache and might for some seem just a tad creaky or old-fashioned. But that's just exactly what makes it so endearing, so classy. Maggie is extraordinary as the devil-may-care titular character, Alec McCowen superb as the uptight nephew, with early steller work given by Louis Gossett Jr. And Cindy Williams. I can not say enough about the excellent production design or Oscar-winning costumes. Also, I can not fail when watching it to be transported to a simpler time when charming and sophisticated films like this could be found.

Goodbye, Maggie. You will never be forgotten. You are in our hearts FOREVER 💕!