The Long Goodbye

“Haha. He’s got a girl, I’ve got a cat.” - The Long Goodbye is a masterpiece that blurs the lines between a character study and a neo-noir. Robert Altman is slowly becoming one of my favorite directors due to his ability to blend style with deeply rooted human substance, standing only next to Paul Thomas Anderson. The Long Goodbye is truly special, and without a doubt his most polished work that I’ve been blessed with experiencing during my chronological watch through. Robert Altmans run in the 70s is often regarded as one of the best in Hollywood history, which already appears honest to me. Being able to make a film a year, maybe even two is a quite an honorable feat; Altman manages this while also directing high quality passion projects that've aged like fine wine. The Long Goodbye spoke to me pretty personally, mainly due to Elliot Ghoulds perfect performance as Philip Marlowe. It’s not the coolness or the nonchalance that I relate to necessarily, but rather the confusing comfort of his own loneliness at points. He lives in his own world, his own head, bound together by his beliefs and morals; which life tends to bring crashing down for just about anyone. Almost like ocean waves. If you stare off too far while standing near the shore, eventually the tide will get you. Elliot Ghould as Marlowe captures loneliness in such a unique way, which the more I ponder, the more I come to terms with the undeniable fact that this is one of my all time favorite acting jobs. The rest of the cast is extremely diligent, giving memorable and worth while performances that match the quality of Ghould as Marlowe. Standout Supporting Roles: -Nina Van Pallandt as Eileen Wade -Sterling Hayden as Rodger Wade -Henry Gibson as Dr. Verringer -Jim Bouton as Terry Lenox Outside of my internal similarities to this version of Philip Marlowe, The Long Goodbye is also masterfully crafted in terms of cinematography. The “restless” camera movement will always be something I praise, no matter the controversy around it. With any Robert Altman films, the long zooms, long takes, and wandering style have become consistent and visibly more confident as Altman continues through his early career in Hollywood. The Long Goodbye marks the establishment, and mastery of this world class unique film making style for Bob Altman. Again, John Williams returns for another well crafted score for Robert Altman. When partaking in Steven Spielberg filmography I wasn’t aware that Williams had done prior work for the 70s most innovative director, Robert Altman. John Williams score for The Long Goodbye is haunting in the sense that it sticks around, literally. His work is remixed into different variations of the same track, which come together feeling brilliantly persistent. Williams and Altman achieve all of this while orchestrating one of my favorite melancholic experiences within film. The soundtrack for McCabe & Mrs. Miller stands as my favorite piece of music so far within an Altman film, but the score for The Long Goodbye comes damn close. Overall, I don’t have a negative word to say about Robert Altman or The Long Goodbye. I see it as another masterpiece that only appears more brilliant as time passes by. Not many films from the early 70s manage to leave an unshakable impression, yet Altman has managed to make four films sequentially that do just that. The Long Goodbye not only stands as my favorite Altman up until this point within his filmography, but also one of my favorite films of all time. 97