California Split
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Movie Reviews of California Split
Movie Review: Lesser Altman
Summary: 2 Stars
Nashville and The Long Goodbye are two of my favorite films of all time. Both are masterpieces of cinema that I can pretty much watch any time. This is unfortunately very weak Altman in my book with a terrible performance by George Segal. The film starts great and has a nice realistic feel to most of the proceedings and then spirals downhill for the rest of the film without any real sense of direction or purpose. The cinematography and Elliot Gould's performance keep you watching for the most part but this film grated on me after I awhile. If you want a really good gambling movie about loveable loser's who've lost their way then check out PTA's Hard Eight(Sydney)...Probably the best film about the dark and seedy world of gambling ever made. The fact is "Split" doesn't even work as a comedy...The only real humor in the film (which is funny mind you-don't get me wrong) comes from minstrel tunes and Gould's trying to figure out all the names of the seven dwarfs. Otherwise this is a serious disspointment from one of America's most innovative filmmakers.Movie Review: BET ON THIS WINNER OF A DVD
Summary: 4 Stars
In Robert Altman's wonderful CALIFORNIA SPLIT (Columbia Tristar), there's something endearing and frightening about the shared compulsion to gamble by new best buddies George Segal and Elliot Gould. Some of Altman's lesser known films ("Images" and "Secret Honor") are getting a lot of deserved if belated attention in their new digital editions and this is one his very best. (On the DVD box, a blurb by Robert Ebert claims it is "better than MASH" and I agree. I just wonder who Robert Ebert is. Could it be a brother of Roger or is it a typo?)
Essentially a buddy road trip turned inside out, Gould and Segal are two losers who share their disease as they willingly risk it all for the thrill of, well, risk itself. For them, it's not about winning big to buy a new life but rather losing big as proof of life. But make no mistake, while "California Split" may be an accurate picture of compulsive gambling, it is also wildly funny and weirdly upbeat. A terrific extra is the revealing commentary with Altman, Gould, Segal and writer Joseph Walsh.
Movie Review: Egyptian Femme! Egyptian Femme!
Summary: 5 Stars
OK...if you had told me ten years ago this film would be on DVD i would've been shocked...first I would've said 'what's a dvd'? then i would have said 'i can't believe anyone remembers this film besides myself' (i've been trumpeting it for years...if that's a word) It might not look like it, but this film is a true masterpiece, one of Mr. Altmans best films (up there with Nashville, McCabe and Mrs. Miller, etc...) The story is a little ramshackle...but that's part of the charm. You follow two gamblers as they roam around California looking for action, they win...sometimes...and lose...more...get beat up a couple times...and eventually travel to Reno for the grand finale. The acting is perfect, Elliot Gould has never been better and George Segal gives a great haggard performance. The sound is Altman at his most layered. The whole film is rich in detail and heavy on atmosphere and most viewers will need to watch a couple times to really enjoy. If you think 'Rounders' is a great poker film...see this one. And for once he commentary on this DVD is great (too often commentary is boring 'oh yeah, that actor was wonderful, that actress was amazing, etc.. without explaining how the film got made, etc) They don't make 'em like this anymore.
Also: when will Altmans "A Wedding" come out on DVD, a true lost classic (similar to Gosford Park and Nashville in style). It's been out of print for years and needs to be seen!
Movie Review: Beer and Fruit Loops
Summary: 5 Stars
Also taped this from television years ago, as I could never find it on tape. I saw it as a kid years ago when living in Europe, and I always thought this is what America is like.
Beer and Fruit Loops. Naming the dwarfs in a bar with a drunken buddy, and an utter carefree lifestyle.
Somehow you feel like these are real people, that are still at it. Rarely do I get that sense in movies.
Movie Review: Why did it take so long?
Summary: 5 Stars
It's finally here, the crown jewel of the TRIFECTA of gambling movies (Tricheurs, and The Gambler - James Caan not Kenny Rogers, being the other two, IMHO) in all it's widescreen glory! Like the other reviewers I've had to settle for the Cinemax(?) pan and scan version for years, and a commercial tv version before that. This film is a lost masterpiece on male bonding, and degenerate gambling, and to be quite honest...I want to be these guys! My folks took me to see this as a teenager, and it's always been etched on my brain, and now I can finally see it as Altman meant it to be seen. I agree with Ebert that it's better than MASH, if only because I could watch this film every day! It's almost like watching a documentary, and the director, writer and cast commentary add credence to what is obvious while watching the film...that a good time was had by all in it's making! How come no featurette, or even trailer for CS, though? There are trailers included, but for other Columbia films....I want to see anything related to this film and it's making....Actually, I'm just glad to have it looking this pristine...I would like to know the story, though, about why it's taken so long to come to home video...No VHS, or Laserdisc...Is there a tale? Has it been finally released because of the new interest in Poker? At any rate this film should be considered essential to any film enthusiasts collection...definately one of the best films of the 70's!