Robert Altman - A Prairie Home Companion

0:00 Are you talking about? Well, no, I was just saying I just want to do there's a quick I want to do a quick plug for black Key Coffee. And then I'm not this, Uh yeah you are no, not at all. Fuck, No, I thought you were hosting it. I'm not. I mean, this isn't like like I'm not playing like I really legitimate. I legitimately thought you were. Are you not? I mean I didn't have that. I was so, okay, this is gonna be interesting. This is I don't know, gonna be just like a live save show. It's gonna be like the movie. I guess we're without a net. Okay, Well we will figure it out.

0:45 All right, we're going We're going for it. We're doing it. Are you kidding me? Oh my god? I have to have this so I can because it comes out on Monday. I'm so sorry. Well are you you can talk about the movie though? Well you're yeah, Okay, we'll be the radio show. We'll be fine, right, all right. I'm so sorry we did not. Well, it's it's how communicate. No, like I if you told me, I didn't. It didn't go like I knew. I was doing the Meryl Streep top ten because you guys don't know each other's list. But I, in my ignorance. Sorry, I'm like, I'm gonna have a heart attack. I'm so sorry.

1:29 We're fine, you know. I just like I feel like you're saying this and you're gonna like we're gonna be done, and you're gonna walk out of the room and go motherfucker now, and you're totally lying to me right now because I'm having a nervous breakdown. Don't well, you're fine, We're fine. Let's let's do this now. Now. I'm even more excited now because that was like, okay, I don't know what the fuck's about to happen. So well, because I I told like I usually I usually do the whole episode in my head, like before we ever record, I hear the whole thing. I type out everything I'm going to say, like a whole this six pages long. This is going to be interesting. Okay, hey let me oh all right, but we're doing all right, We're ready, let's do it, like, ah, this is gonna be cool.

2:15 All right, put all this shit on YouTube. This might be YouTube goal, I don't know. Uh okay, uh. Three two. This episode is brought to you by Black Keycoffee right now. You can celebrate Saint Patrick's Day with a Lucky Charm cold brew or the Poto Goold latte. And you can always order your favorite hole beans or ground coffee from their website at www dot black Keycoffee dot com. I recommend the Guatemala Espresso. Black Key Coffee remind you with enough coffee, anything is possible. And now we're gonna talk about a film by Robert Altman, his two thousand and six musical comedy A Prairie Home Companion.

3:04 It is two thousand and six, right, yes, okay, I got a couple of things. All right, this is gonna be fuck, this is gonna be a good one. Hello everybody, I'm Jeff Johnson, I'm Lewis, and this is a film by podcast. Before we get going, Uh, just a quick shout out, a couple shoutouts amber. First off, the YouTube channel is growing more and more by the day. I want to say hey to all of our new subscribers and remind everybody we're now doing TV. We are doing Garrett Gibson and I have our newest series previously on where we are recapping and discussing some of our favorite current TV shows, some of you your favorite current TV shows right now you can check us out. We're talking about DTF, Saint Louis and monarch Legacy of Monsters. But I know we've got young Sherlock and Scarpetta on the dockets, so we'll be taught, we'll be We'll be getting to them soon as well. In addition to uh to the YouTube stuff, gotta say hey to our ever growing Patreon family, Amber.

4:27 These guys and gals are absolutely awesome. Yes, welcome everyone. Yeah, and Patreon subscribers. And I guess, I guess if people are listening to this right now and they sneak in, you know, because I don't have to listen from me, but to our Patreon subscribers. And I'm talking about our our paying subscribers. Amber. Yes, if you're one of them, you can expect a care package in the mail within the next few weeks. There's a bunch of them, so I gotta, you know, give me, give me some time here. I gotta make a multiple trips to you know, the mailbox. But we got something fun heading your way. So that's a thank you, you know, for your your patronage as it were. If you have not signed up or checked out our Patreon page, please head to www dot patreon dot com. Slash a film by podcast where you can get all of the exclusive episodes that you can't get anywhere else amber and uh, you know they're not they're not streaming on Spotify or YouTube or Apple, They're they're only on Patreon.

5:35 Well in the commercial free sneak peek is is particularly delightful. I gotta tell you. I I thought let's do something extra for our Patreon family, and that that went over quite well. Uh ad free and you know typically it's early too. You get it, you get it a day, you get it a day early. Let's talk about Robert Altman. This is your guy. Yes, we've been here before. I listened to that episode again today. Oh poor Jeff. That was was that? Uh? That was that our buddy Def Dave who who had recommended that. I'm trying to remember. I can't remember where.

6:16 It's like, why aren't we talking about the player? I think it was. But I was like super excited and you were like. You were and I was like, well I had okay, So I had a I had a complicated history with Robert Altman because I hadn't seen the player, and obviously you could listen to that episode. I'm not I'm not a big I wasn't very warm on it. You know, I didn't care a great deal for it. Not to say that there wasn't some good stuff happened in that film and some great performances, but really at that point, my I think my my relationship with Robert Altman was Popeye. Mm hmm, which a lot of people. Yeah, but I'm just not not a big Robert Oltman guy.

6:59 And uh, you know, I saw you when I when I told everybody, hey, we're doing movies specifically this season from the years two thousand and one and two thousand and six so that we can we can celebrate the anniversaries. I saw your eyes light up a little bit. And then when I told you, guys, hey, in March we're doing Meryll and Kidman month. It's see me movies that are just Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman, your eyes got a little bit wider because you're like, oh, hey, there's a there's a Meryl Street movie that came out one of those years. Great, let's talk about it. And I just, you know, a prairie home Companion heard it, never heard of it? Who directed it? Okay, Robert Altman? So and here we are.

7:51 Yeah, well in Gosford Park came out in two thousand and one. So well, it's a it's a pretty full schedule. So don't don't hold your breath. We'll see, we'll. See you can't. You can work it in. More on that later, But my campaign has just begun. Your campaign needs a shutdown. I know. Listen, we've talked about all of them before. But two things I wanted to mention about this director. I know that this was his final film, right yeah, PRAI Home Companion, his final his final film. I believe he was eighty years old when he passed away. Now another thing that I found found interesting, I'd say, well not interesting. You know, it bothered me that the studio put this on him, but I like how it worked out. Uh, they would not ensure him to work on the film unless he chose a director, a fellow director who would be ready to go as like a stand in. And you know, and he kind of jokingly was telling everyone on set like, hey, if I kicked the bucket, his words, if I kicked the bucket, you know, here's your guy and that guy PT Anderson, I mean, who I'm.

9:12 Not the hugest fan of I know you love him, but I'm kind. Of I love him. I know you're not, but you know, and I was when I saw that. I was like when I when I was reading that, I was like, wow, I wonder how I wonder I ever felt felt about that because I know you're not you're not big on him. But I mostly felt it was bonkers insulting, except when you put it in the perspective of Robert Alman. Wasn't just eighty years old. He was a sick person, so yes he was. He was going through chemo and it was a whole situation. So it wasn't just you know, like, well you're ancient, so you ask somebody there you know, I can die, you know, it was he he was very ill, and I do. I mean, it's a lot of money, so you know, but I like that at least.

9:58 Paul Thomas Anderson was a huge Altman fan, and kind of he wasn't looking at it like he was anything special. He was looking at it like I get to sit and watch this person I admire, you know, do what he does so well. So this is this is an all tour. That's the word I'm gonna use to talk about pt Anderson. This is an all tour. Who is sitting at the side of Robert Altman, like, you know, it's like it'd be like me going to fantasy baseball camp, you know, with the Reds. He's with one of his favorite all time directors getting to help, right. Yes, he's even shooting some second unit stuff for Altman, So I I think that's a pretty cool thing, and you know, probably nice for him because uh, I know, uh, Maya Rudolph is in the film happens to be his wife, So.

10:52 I didn't know that. Yeah, going to work with your your you know, and was really pregnant during this film. Really pregnant. Yeah, yeah, really, but she's. Pregnant in movies a lot. It's hard to know. Yeah, very funny, very funny actress. Oh yeah, all right, five words synopsis, let's do let's let's describe this movie using five words or less. I'm I'm not knocking this out of the park. I'm not getting a well, this is a prayer Home companion, so I'm not I'm not getting a standing ovation because it's it's rather bland, but I'm gonna give you. I'm gonna give you mine. Okay, curtain call for radio show.

11:38 Mine's almost the same. Okay, what do you got. Radio variety shows? Final Broadcast. I felt like it was important to have the variety part. You know what, I think you win listeners, you can, you can hit us up on on social media, tell us. If you're not, I'm voting for ambers. So if you're not. If you're not, I don't know what's wrong with you. But I think that I think you got the variety. The word of variety is important. Yeah, I kind of that. I didn't have that one. To describe what it is that you're watching because it's almost indescribable. Yeah, well, I'm gonna your word indescribable. All right. I'm glad, I'm gonna be I'm gonna I'm gonna be I'm gonna be fair, I'm gonna be respectful, all right. And I want to start by saying, because there's there's some good stuff I want to talk.

12:31 Did you hate every goddamn frame of it? I mean I did not hate every frame of it, Okay, thank god, But this was one of those where I'm like, oh my God, how much longer. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, but but there's some good stuff happening, and I specifically want to talk about some some good stuff. But and let's start with this. I was, I was rather pleaded. I went in this. I went into this cold. I didn't watch. I didn'tve watch. Did you listen to an episode of the radio show? No, I didn't. I just pressed for time. I didn't. I wasn't able to. But let me let me say that, Okay, let me can I get this out of the way first before I give my opinions about this movie and and give people the wrong idea, I can tell you this.

13:24 You know, I'm a big Fraser fan. One of my all time favorite episodes is Ham Radio, where Fraser does the the Nightmare in uh for you know, like so I I love, I love. That's my all time Fraser episode. Not not my all time favorite, it's my second all time favorite. That's what I'll say. Can't can't forget ski Lodge. However, personal anecdote, A little fun story to let you know, like, I think radio has its place. I think it's it's an amazing medium. A long time ago, you know, early twenties, I'm living with like three other guys, which meant there was like six or seven of us in the house at all times because all the girlfriends basically lived there were It's like the real world, Cincinnati more or less.

14:21 And I don't know what prompted me to do this, but Orson Wells, the War of the worlds something, I just you know, we all know the story famous hoax. You know the radio play that he puts on. Everyone lost their goddamn mindes uh when they did it because they thought it was real. They thought aliens were actually attacking right. Which it wasn't a hoax, Like he wasn't trying to put one over on people. They said, up, it was radio theater. But yeah, if you weren't listening. But it's the beginning and you came in the middle of a news report saying that the marches have landed. Like, so I get this, and I have sided. I had the I had the room in the basement, which was like the fun you know, we had a pull table and I was like, ah, this is where you know, this is where I live. And uh So I had the ambiance set, I had candles, I had the CD.

15:14 I was gonna play it on an actual on an actual stereo. You know, back then we had stereos. You didn't just use your phone for everything. And to my surprise, my roommates were like, this sounds kind of cool, so they followed. They come down the steps with me. The girls are like, uh, you know, we'll hang out for a minute. I don't expect anyone to hang out longer than five minutes once they realize it's this old timey radio show. And I tell you, like ten minutes into it, I'm looking around at my friends and it's just captivated faces. They're eating it up. And it was such a wonderful night listening to this then, because you know, it's like you're it's like real life because they're cutting for commercial breaks and they're doing this stuff and just a fun time.

16:01 So I tell you that story just so I can get get it out in the air right now. Love love the format. Okay. Well, and we did Haunted Honeymoon and that was han yeah you and I for Yeah. I love six like I love that. So listeners go back check out what it was that Patreon or was that yeah that was Patreon? Wasn't it was Paton? Yeah? Okay, well, listeners, join Patreon, or if you're already on Patreon, check out the Hanted Honeymoon episode. That was a lot of fun. Geene Wilder, Gilda Radner, Don Delouiz. I might I might watch that tonight now that you've put it back on my radar. All right, Uh, let's talk about what I what I really enjoyed though, right off the right off the bat, the I think I think hearing the tuning of the radio dial with the opening title credits, it's a it's a real nice touch because it kind of puts you, It gives you, It sets the vibe, right it It lets you know, like because you're you're tuned in between like this commercial versus that show versus that talk show. You know.

17:03 Well, And I thought of it, as you know, we first heard in my family Prairie Home Companion on a recommendation from my uncle. Driving to Michigan every year. It's a minimum eight hour drive, so you know, you're running through the dihal trying to find a radio station that'll come in. And interestingly, that section that's not real radio, that's Tim Russell and Sue Scott and Tom Keith okay doing all those bits all right. I had no idea. I just thought radio, no background garble, all right.

17:44 Nope, that's the the theater, you know, members from the Prairie Home Companion show. Okay, so I told you I didn't watch the trail. I went in cold. I don't. I don't think I was expecting how the film story is told watching it. Okay. So I never really connected to a specific character because it's shot in this like pseudo documentary format, which I think works for the film, I really do, but can but still can be it's frustrating at times because it's almost like you're your POV is a like a silent camera operator who's just moving around backstage, kind of lurking, picking up pieces of conversations here and there, you know, never but never staying, never, never looming too much.

18:36 Right, So I kind of felt like at times, like when I was a kid and we had a family reunion. Yeah, and you're a kid, so you're not with the adults because they're talking boring adult conversation, but you're running in and out of the house and you know, getting another coke when nobody's looking, and you know, and so you are floating amongst all of these different reminiscences and songs and conversations and. It okay, So I guess the one thing I'm wondering, how do you have such an immense plethora of Oscar winning an Oscar nominated talent jammed into this movie? And it it just I don't know. I don't want to.

19:23 I don't want to. I don't be mean, I don't want I don't want to say it's bad, but it's just I just don't think this is a good film. Member. Well, there you do, and now we're gonna have a good talk about. There was a critic that called it like absolute garbage, like he just absolutely destroyed the movie and just thought it was horrible. Now, being fair, well you bring up critics. So I got something here for you, all right, because listen, I did some homework before watching it because I wanted to kind of, you know, just what's what's up? Very very mixed reviews from the critics when it's come out, right now, I'm it up just because I want to be fair. Roger Ebert four stars puts it on his Great Movies list.

20:09 That's that's that's a serious accolade. But I got a quote from another another critic here and listen. Critics. Critics are critics. I mean you and I are critics. Just because we have an opinion doesn't mean you have to listen to this one. It's like you either get it or you don't. You know. So, So Michael Medved, who is also a radio host, he gives the film one and a half stars, and he says, quote, the entertainment value stands somewhere between thin and non existent, and it may be the worst movie ever made that pooled the talents of four count them four Oscar winners. So I just want to be fair.

20:52 I gave you, I gave you Ebert, I gave you, I gave you this guy because I was like, am I am I not understanding what I'm watching here. It's it's a divided audience. Like you said, it's you you either love this or you hate it? Right, Well, no, you either get it or you don't. Okay, you get it or you don't. I don't get it. And I think a big key to if you get it is if you heard the radio show and if you loved the radio show, because so much of it is that show, and you know, understanding that everyone that does the show like they're featured, so they're not really a cohesive group. It's you've got Dusty and Lufty, and you've got Rhonda and Yelanda, and you've got these pairings that dip in and out.

21:47 Yeah, Okay, well, I mean and I pick up I picked up on that. I don't think it's the format so much as it is maybe the genre because this this type of program uh. And I'm talking about the the genre itself, like the type of music and the type of comedy. It reminded me of being a little kid at Mammal's and the Lawrence Welk shows on, and I'm just you're trapped, like you can't this is what's on TV, and you're stuck. Mammal says, hey, you get what you get, and you don't know a fit. It's like, I don't want to watch this, please. But it's like it's like, you know, the town in Footloose. I feel like all the parents in Footloose, this is they're they're they're listening to a Prairie Home Companion. There, they're watching the show. They're in the audience. It's there. That's that's It's like a Midwestern bluegrassy Yeah.

22:47 Parentson Footloots were assholes, like it don't compare it to them. Well, they weren't all assholes. It's just I'm just okay. This is like, this is that aesthetic. It is very Midwestern. If this movie was a restaurant, it'd be the Cracker Barrel. Yeah. Fair, fair, But like I don't know, but we live here, like like you should get these jokes. Like I just yeah, Okay, I'll tell you what. Let's let's take a let's take a quick break, uh, as they say in a prayer home companion. Well we'll pause for station identification and then we'll come back. Well, we'll talk about some of the casts. Okay, welcome back, Amber Lewis and I.

23:43 Getting rid of throw it down. See I was gonna say debating, you're getting Let's let's talk about the cast a little bit obviously, Okay. Can I just run down this list because it's a good list. It's a oh hold on, it's we don't have time to talk about everybody, but we gotta, we gotta at least mention. We gotta give him, we got we gotta shout him out. So you've got Gary. Okay, I'll tell you what. Let's let's do something. We never do this. Okay, but you know this movie, you love this movie, you grew up on the on the radio show. Can you give me like a quid pro quo. I'm gonna say that the the the actor and the character, and you just give me like your five second shoot from the hip the voice of Reason herself. Can you do that?

24:36 Like what describing who they are in the movie? No, no, no, no not. I don't want your description. I just just the actor. I want you to yeah, you know, I gauge their performance. Okay, I'm like, what do you want from? Right, let's do this? All right? Garrison Keeler as himself. Which I mean he's just Garrison Killer, like that's who he is on the radio show. Like that's that's just it. Like he's just awesome. He's funny, and he has written all of this. He's always written the shows. So I found I found him to be a dry character. I didn't care. Yes, but it's funny.

25:16 I not. I didn't think so. All right, Kevin, all right, hold on, I've got like fifteen all right, Kevin Klein as Guy Noir. He was the one that I didn't really like, Uh. What's going on with him in this in this movie, So. Prayer him companion the radio show every episode, like one episode will be Dusty and Lefty at the Cowboys, and then one episode they'll have Guy Noir and he's a very popular character. But it's Scarson Keeler doing Guy Noir Like it's okay. They do this little like story section and it's making fun of in a loving way, like those Mickey Splaine kind of stories. And Kevin Klein just, I mean he did like fart jokes and he's bumping into walls and I just it was kind of.

26:11 Out of place, all right out of place, thank you, because I'm gonna jump in and just tell you I think Kevin Kleine is in a different movie because for half the movie, I'm like, that is he? Is he real? Do people see him? Is he? Because even at the end he shows up, he's still playing that he's he's never an actor, he's playing I don't know what the hell's going on with his character. Like you could have cut him completely and it wouldn't have changed anything. Yeah, and he didn't really at anything. Okay, Okay, see we're we're kind of we're kind of sympatico here Lily Tomlin as Rhnda Johnson, one of the Johnson sisters.

26:53 Well, you can't separate her from maryl. H Listen, it's Marilyn kimmen Month. I'm not talking about Mary yet. I'm gonna save No, just just move past Meryl. We'll get back to her. Lily Tomlin is so great at just creating a character and running with it, and like, my favorite scene is one of the ones that she takes the lead in and I think she's hilarious. A problem with the movie not enough Lily Tomlin should have had more. Yes, yeah, I could have stayed with Ronda and Yolanda like the whole time. Okay, Lindsay Lohan as Lola Johnson, she's playing Meryl Streep's daughter. Okay, if you want to know what the relationship was like between Amber Lewis and Nan Lewis at those ages, that is it?

27:41 Really okay? Her trying to get me to wear something I didn't want to wear, and me rolling my eyes and then I end up doing what she wanted anyway, but I just had to do it in my own space, And oh my god, I love her and Meryl together. I could my understanding is that she wasn't even in the script, but they that she wanted to be in the movie. She campaigned to get in, and Robert Altman's he jammed her in there. I don't I don't think she really serves a purpose I could take earlier. I think it's to show that you could have had another generation of the show. Okay, could have continued. All right, my man, Woody Harrelson is Dusty. Oh my god, he's so good awesome. That was always Liam's favorite segment when we listened to the radio show.

28:29 See they were perfect. See you are, we are, We are just agreeing left and right. Knew that they were going to be your favorite. They come on and tell jokes. I mean, okay, so you can't talk about what Harrelson's Dusty without John c Riley's Lefty. Yes, they're they're they're the pair. And it's nice seeing John c Riley have such great comedic chemistry with someone other than will Ferrell. Yes, well, I think Williams to John cy. Like happy and kind of goofy, and he and Woody like they just the vibes match, and. The the one character that I felt a connection to in the movie Tommy Lee Jones as the axe man.

29:18 I thought you're gonna say, Virginia Madison's Angel of Death. We'll we'll get the hair. But Tommy Lee Jones again, is he there? Just was he? Was? He walking by and they're like, oh, hey, you might be in the movie because he shows up to do what like we we know the show's closing, right, it's the last show. He shows up in the limo. He says, hey, don't this won't take long. He goes in, orders his water, neat, no ice, no lemon. He watches a little bit of it, has a brief moment where he talks about why it's necessary to kill the show because you know, the new the new owners want to tear it down, tear down the theater, make a make a parking lot, and he leaves. Again.

30:06 He the only person he really talks to is, aside from Virginia Madson, is is guy Noir, who at that point, I'm like, I don't know if he's a real person or not. He's just a fish. Tommy Lee again. This sounds this sounds so disrespectful and I don't know any other way to say it to make it sound better. But a lot of people did this movie because Robert Alman was not going to live forever and they wanted to work with him. They you know, this was like we moment you know where I think Tommy Lee Jones was like, this is my one shot and I will be in this movie for five minutes. I don't care. These people have had how many decades to work with with Robert Altman. It's not like he it's not like he's only making one movie every fifteen years.

30:54 I mean, but I you know, everything has to come together. I guess. Okay, well, I'll tell you what comes together. Virginia Matts and that that is a pack, right, you weren't. You weren't sad about her slinking through in that white trench coat. Like, okay, so she's credited as dangerous woman now, yeah, but. She's got like two different names, so I don't know why they credit her that way. But is she the Angel of Death or is she an angel? Because she's again, what the hell's going on with this character? And why why is she even in the movie. I don't know. I never know. I never really got that part. I didn't other than her easing their pain of losing this show and losing one of the members of the cast, and I guess you know, but yeah, I never really got it. You know who I t I was like, I don't care.

31:50 I love I love seeing her and hearing her. You know who who I tend to agree with a lot is uh director Robert Altman, who did not want her character in the movie and like reduced the role to practically nothing. And I feel bad for her because it turns out she is a huge fan of the radio show and her agent I was reading this in passing her agent just happened to mention it, like, ah, yeah, everyone in town's doing the blah blah blah, and she's like, oh my god, I need I gotta do it. That's I love that radio. She like took a crowbar to the studio and was like forced her way in. Good for her. Maya Rudolf playing Molly the stage director fun character. Can we can we agree? Yeah? Just the just the right amount of Maya Rudoff, I think.

32:41 And having done the stage director's job, I totally like felt her pain of. Like did you can't shut up? You can't get him on stage at the right time? Like did you have did you have a minor panic attack watching that scene where he's the dude who is Garrison's trying to do the duct tape commercials drops all the Okay, hilarious, all right, all right, I'll move past it. We'll come back to it. We got we got Mary Louise Burke as the lunch lady. You know, she's just everyone's yeah, Grandma. I love that conversation of like, what is him slid anyway?

33:25 Yeah? Was in it? No one? All right, we got we got two more people I want to talk about, but I think we're gonna talk about them a little bit more. So. That's why I saved him for the last. First off, l Q Jones playing Chuck akers this when he. Gets choked up during his song like it kills me. It makes me sad because this is his final film role Amber and he this guy, I mean, this goes he goes back to the fifties. I remember him in westerns like Hang Him High and The Wild Bunch. He's a he was a great character actor. Uh, any any project, Nina, Cowboy, you call you call this guy right? Ye had a bit of a resurgence in the nineties with roles in Casino. Well, he's one of my favorite characters at casino. Uh when he's when he goes to kind of strong arm uh de Niro, but he's also in the edge, he's in the Maskazoro And and I quick a quick shout out to his awesome work in eighties television because amber he is showing up in episodes of Charlie's Angels, The Incredible Hulk, the Dukes of Hazzard, the Fall Guy, and the A Team like this is the this is the Jeff Johnson childhood lineup of awesome TV, and l Q Jones is just everywhere. So I just wish I don't know, I uh, I know, I would listen. This is such an ensemble, you know, And again we talked about how it's shot

34:55 like no one's really I don't think. I don't think this movie has a star. There's no there's no lead. Garrison like it's his show and he's not even Really Yeah, I just. It would have been nice to have more l Q Jones, but even want more. And you know, he got such a beautiful you know, spotlight for for his scene that. All right, well, okay, okay, I'm not okay with Garrison just letting him turning it's it's almost like they turned into weekend at Bernie's. Are just leaving him down there in his in his dressing room. Yes, talking, No one wants. To mention it weird.

35:36 Yeah, and again, uh, hey, Lindsay Lohan just settle down, bumped the breaks with the waterworks, like you don't even know the guy. And she's like all upset teenager. I guess let's talk. A teenage girl. You can't really well. I was not, but uh, speaking of dramatic, let's talk. Let's talk about the reason we chose this movie. Meryl Streep is playing, saying Yolanda Johnson, it was always her dream to work with Altman, so she accepted this role. No scripts, I unseen. She all she had to hear was Altman, and she's she's in. But I love that, Like you know, she really does go at things at like one hundred and ten percent.

36:19 Because she ended up doing the fourth of July show of a Prayer Companion and. You shared, yeah, you sent that to me together said. To you, yeah, you know, like she was. It was like she made this movie and she was all in. She really she really got the show. I think, yeah, it's just and I'm watching this, and again it's weird because once I've once I'm halfway through, and I'm not truthfully, I'm not digging it, but I'm also questioning, like why is why are we not anchoring with one person? Like who's why are we not seeing more Meryll? Like this is a Meryl Street movie, but you know, obviously by the end of it, I'm like, this is not a Meryl Street movie. This is just it's a it's a Robert Altman film. This is what he does.

37:02 He gets like, but how often can you say, like, it's not a Meryl Street movie, it's a movie that Meryl Streep is in. I think this is the this is the exception of the movie the one. Can you think of one Meryl Street movie where she's not the main character, She's not the. I mean, the only thing that pops into my head is but I haven't seen it since like the eighties. Is she devil? Yeah? Yeah? And she's like the other woman? Yeah? But okay, so even when she's the other woman, like like death becomes her, which is awesome. You know you got Goldie, right, Yeah, That's what I'm saying, Like this movie is like, oh have you seen that Prairie Home Companion movie. It's who's in it, and depending on who you're talking to, you're gonna get like seventeen different answers, because again, I think people are watching it for like, oh, you know, I love I love Woody Harrelson. So I'm watching the cowboy movie that he did. Okay, a cowboy, way, No, it's a Now he's a cowboy in this radio Cowboy. Yeah.

38:13 But I thought Meryl's great, amazing, amazing singing voice, and uh, what do you think about her accent? This is like her perfect singing voice. I think because she loves to try to do Broadway and she's not that person, but this is like where she lives. It's really really good. I loved her accent. I loved the little quirk that her accent gets thicker when she's on stage. I thought that was really good. And I just her and Lily Tomlin together, like you, they don't look anything like, but you one hundred percent believe that they are sisters. These hysterical stories that they're telling, like you are completely bought in that this really happened.

38:54 Yeah, I'm this is a listen beginning of this month with you know, Merrily and kimmen Month. I told I've told you so. Look, if you ask me for what I think are good Meryl Street movies, I'm not going to give you the list that you're gonna come up with, because I think of like Death Becomes Her or The River Wild and then You got You and You and Angela opened my eyes to The Devil Wears Prada, which I think. I think Miranda Priestley is one of the greatest characters cinematic characters ever. I think definitely Meryl's probably my favorite Meryl Streep performance, but I think it's her best. So I say all that to say this, I think she did good here. It's you know, I've seen Meryl Street movies on like Meryl Streep New Thank You.

39:39 But sometimes she's exhausting. Good. Yeah, not exhausting here, That's what I'll say. No, No, like she kind of like she is on only Murders in the Building where the ability for someone who is like such a huge star in the firmament to fit in to this cluster is fascinating. I think, so two things I want to discuss about the background, and I'm gonna ask you about the radio show because it seems like you know a thing or two about it. Uh, we're talking about Meryl and her singing voice. So it's my understanding that actors did not record their songs in studio sessions. Altman insisted they perform them live in front of a real audience at the I guess the theater the main Like, you know, I see it, I see it behind you.

40:35 That the Fitzgerald, the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and that's where they do the Pray Him Companion radio show. Okay, so he's like on the road. Okay, so he's he's he actually has them performed live in front of an audience, and then he's turning around and asking the audience like which take do you did? You guys like what you know? He's crowd, Yeah, he's. I mean, you know, we all we we get these movies that come out and it's like test audiences. You know, he's he's test. He's got the test audience built in during production. That's pretty pretty cool. I think, yes, yes, well, and I think that a lot of times singing live, yeah, doesn't necessarily work out, you know, and we'll we'll say the Hugh Jackman lame is is a perfect example of that train wreck that can happen. But then conversely, over at document we were just talking about New York, New York, which is a terrible movie. But there is one song that Liza saying, it's live like she's not lip syncing. She did it in one take, and I mean she just blows your face off, you know. So it can go either way.

41:47 But I think for a show like this, the imperfections are to be expected and it's real, and it makes the songs touching and very human, and so I think it works really really well. I'll tell you what doesn't work really really well is Garrison Keiller's thought process on film titles. So let me help you out here. So the working the working title, now we gamber this is. This is a long running like radio show that's performed live. It's called a Prairie Home Companion. Yes, it's been running, well, it's over now, but it ran the beginning in nineteen seventy four.

42:30 Okay, so it's been a where it's been around a while. Yes, we're making a movie based on it. So here's a thought. Let's not call it what it is. His working title is called the Last Broadcast which isn't bad, but again it's. A different movie, Like it sounds very heavy drama. If I'm making, if I'm making, well, the last broadcast sounds like it's a new show for one thing. Yeah, and if you've got something that's on brand that everyone knows that you've been doing for decades, call it what the show's called. What I don't get what this guy what his thought process is? And if you think the last broadcast is lame hee he then says, hey, I can get a bigger appeal his his thought process. Here you're smiling, so you know the story. But the he thinks he can get a bigger piece of the audience by changing the name. And then he wants to call it Savage Love. What kind of bullshit title is that? Like?

43:32 Could you imagine if you watch this movie called Savage Love and this is the movie. I mean, I think it's a clever way to maybe trick people into getting into the theater and then maybe they would have a good time. I guess them. If I'm if I buy a ticket for Savage Love and I hadn't seen a trailer, I'm I'm planning on going. I'm planning on going in and seeing like a fatal attraction type, but like a pseudos like a like a sexual thriller. You know, I'll look different basic instincts. And if I got this, I got this bluegrass bullshit happening for Savage Love. Oh I'm mad, I'm so mad. Thankfully. Listen, the studio executives aren't always right.

44:13 Amber We've talked about that in the past, but the studio president outright rejected this and said, you are keeping it called a prairie home companion. That's that's what we're doing. That's what we're doing. Get out of my office. So like that's kind of Garrison Killer's sense of humor, Like he probably wasn't serious. Who knows. Let's we're gonna, we're gonna take another break and then we're gonna we're gonna we're gonna share a scene or two. We'll see. Okay, let's talk about the scene. First off, I want to know why you specifically chose the scene that you're about to tell us about and tell us and tell me tell me first. Is it because there's a strong pformance, Is it the pivotal moment of the movie. Is it because of the cinematography, or is it, you know, the rapidly growing fan favorite. It pissed Amber Lewis off.

45:14 Why did you choose your choice for this? It just about was just why did you choose your scene? I would say it's the performances. It's you know, of course it's an ensemble effort, but they all come together, like the timing is impeccable. And I mentioned it before, it's the the duct tape commercial okay scene because like the problem with the Guy No War character is Kevin Klein's doing nothing but site gags and then like one part joke and none of which are funny and it doesn't really fit. But in the duct tape commercial scene, you've got Garrison Keeler and Lily Tomlin and Meryl Streep on stage and they do during Prahim companion, they do these like fake commercials all the time. None of the products are real. They're all fakes.

46:13 Oh I didn't know that. Okay, Yeah, there are no powder powder milk biscuits, there's no rhubarb pie. Like this is all just written for the show. So the duct tape commercial is a gag to get the sound effects guy to do a bit. And the bit is that whoever's doing the commercial with Garrison. They just keep throwing random crazy stuff out and the sound effects guy just has to like spur the moment come up with. He has worked there, working him, Yes, and. So it's one of my favorite gags in the radio show to see, like, what random crazy stuff are they going to make this poor guy try to do a sound effect for. And also but it's a cohesive story, like they're telling a story and they're seating it with these details of like a chainsaw and you know, dripping water and whatever. And then through the whole thing you've got this amazing sight gag that doesn't work for radio, but it works in this moment of Myer Rudolph trying to juggle this huge sheaf of papers and they just keep falling and it's a castigating nightmare for her.

47:28 I all right, so here's here's what you just did. You just made me enjoy that scene. Now that I understand, this is why I wanted you to listen to the radio ship. First, Okay, so I just thought I just thought, Okay, first off, I thought the dude's doing his you know, because it's a radio show. I thought I thought he's just doing his you know, I did at the top of the hour, right, I talked about our favorite black Key coffee. I didn't realize that it was part of the act, that she's supposed to fumble it, and that the audience is supposed to see the stage manager. And no, that part was not part of the act. But what Balty Tomlin is doing. Yeah, well, they're just crazy story. Spewing this random story that makes no sense about chimpanzees.

48:12 And he's got like this what the hell based on him, you know, and he just has. To keep rolling with whatever they throw at him. All right, I like it. I like it. I chose a scene based on performance as well. Ah, it's the one scene where it's the one scene where I was like, you know what, I enjoy this moment of this movie because I just wasn't amber. I just wasn't enjoying the movie. But when I got to this moment, I was like, I'm having fun. And I laughed out loud, literally laughed out loud once or twice. Can we talk about it? What is it? I don't know, Okay, tell me, tell me.

48:53 You know you know me so well. I know it's gotta be Dusty and Lefty doing bad jokes. Can we's got me there? Can we listen to it just a little bit here? Yeah, hold the plug? You ready for another one? Yeah? Land on it. Holy went to the neighborhood dancing and won the big door prize was a toilet brush, and he took it home and the next week one of the guys said, Holy, how's that toilet brush the one you wont from the neighbors? Holy said, or it works pretty good, but I prefer toilet paper. Jokes, Lord, I love him ban jokes. Can't get enough of.

49:37 Ban jokes for me. Farmer had a champion bullet bread two hundred times a year. Farmer's wife said, two hundred times. Isn't that wonderful, dear? Maybe you want to watch him. Maybe he'll show you how. Farmer said, he's a heck of a bull boter what and all? What's the same? Cow? Come on now, man joked, I love him jokes. Can't get it up bad jokes to me. Okay, so it is. It is Dusty and Lefty singing bad jokes. Amber it happened, and. The stage manager is like freaking out because he begged them to keep it clean. In the first thing, they're talking about boobs and butts.

50:23 And Amber great, it's it's a funny song. And then I like how they're kind of like they're breaking it down into just just tasteless jokes. Yes, so I got it. I've got a couple of them. Here and Prairie Compinion. They will do like every episode is basically the same, it's the same format, it's the same commercials, it's the same everything. But then every now and then they'll do a joke's show and they'll have like Paul Poundstone on or something, and then they do this bad jokes bit. Okay, can we agree that they are as as they are offensive? Because I'm I'm I'm watching, I'm watching the I'm watching the moment and I'm like, I'm laughing. I'm like, oh, I bet Amber laughed at that. And then I'm like then like a second land, I'm like, oh, I bet that pissed her off. No, okay, Okay, I just want to I want to share some of my my favorite ones here. Uh let's see. Uh, and I I know I'm on very thing ice since it's women'.

51:29 I was gonna say, choose carefully. Dusty uh says I got another one. Lefty s Finn said to his his friend, Oh, I think my wife died. His friend said, well, what do you mean you think? Well, the sex is still the same, but the dishes are stacking up. That's awesome. Sorry, uh, Lefty, you got another one, Dusty, Dusty, actually I do. Did you hear the one about the Viagras shipment that got stolen? Lefty? Know who they think did it? Dusty? Well, they don't know, but they're on the lookout for hardened criminals. Oh boy. And then uh, one one more because it's a quick one. Dusty says, Hey, hey, Lefty, what did the elephant say to the naked man? Lefty?

52:18 What they say? Dusty? That's cute? But can you really breathe through that thing? Very tasteless, very offensive, but hilarious jokes. These are almost like they're almost like R rated dad jokes. Yeah, I mean jokes, but yes, yeah. Their entrance to the movie, like they they come in telling a bad choke. Yeah, yeah, it's kind of dirty. I like those guys. Guys, and let's just let's just be let's be up front this. You know, we're I thought you were hosting. You thought I was hosting. Usually the host does a little extra work cast. You know fine, you know, like when we talk about running the numbers, well, you know, we're we're not ready. We're basically we are.

53:13 We are right now Maya Rudolph just dumping uh strip pages and commercials out of the folder in front of the audience. So listeners know what we are is the sound effects guy trying to Frans keep up with whatever shenanigans is being thrown at us. Yeah. Well so listeners, if you're wondering the numbers on a companions, nah, listen, Uh, we're not. We're not gonna We're not gonna do it off the car. If we don't know, we don't know it. But I did read it. I just didn't make it. Oh, here we go. The budget was ten million and the box office was twenty six million.

53:55 Not good. I mean it made its money back and a little bit more. Are you The budget was ten million, okay, listen, and it made twenty six You. Know this though. If a movie's budget is ten million, the studio always matches that for the promotions, so it has to do well. Well, that's every Hollywood studio. No, it was not, you know it Captain America Civil War. It was not. Well it was not. But I'm just I'm just saying like it lost money. That's let's just call it what it is, because a movie usually has to do like triple the budget to like to be in the black, you know, to make a profit. So and that's just look, I don't I don't agree with it. I think it's stupid.

54:44 The rules. I don't make the rules. I just watched the movies. But yeah, I don't know. Let's let's let's just wrap this up here. You're like, getting me out of this movie. Get me out of this, get me out of the Fitzgerald. I will. I will tell you. It will ease the pain of me putting you through this for you to know that Nan Lewis loves this movie and she is going to be so happy when this episode drops. So well, you made one lady in Los Angeles very very happy. See one of our one of our favorite listeners, Patreon supporter Nan Lewis. If I knew that this was like on on NaN's list, I probably would have behaved myself a little bit more than no.

55:31 And she loves you, she doesn't care. Well, let's let's talk about uh, Robert Altman one more time, little thing we do this season at least, you know, written by, directed by, or starring amber which Robert Altman film or probact? Well, I'll just I'll say project, let me do that, Let me do that one time? Okay, written by, directed by, or starring which under rated project by Robert Altman? Would you suggest for someone who watches this movie and says, hey, I really like this guy, Robert Altman? What else is? What else she got? And it's underrated, you know, because like they already know about the hits.

56:15 Yeah, but I'm never not going to throw DVDs of Gospeler Park at people until everyone watches it because it's absolutely amazing. But another favorite of his and I we talked about it a little bit on the Player episode is a film called The Company. Do you remember you talking about that one? Yeah, And it's surprisingly maybe people don't know. It stars Nev Campbell, which stars it's an ensemble, but she she is extensively trained in ballet, so she's dancing. I didn't know the film. Yeah, And it's just this little movie about a ballet company.

56:58 And you know, if you if you've ever had experienced, you know, in a theater company or a ballet company or you know, just any kind of collective artistic endeavor like that. It's very, very real in just the dynamics of the people and you know kind of what that life is like. And so I enjoy that one very much. All right, Yeah, I remember you mentioning that one. I'm gonna I'm gonna throw one at you, directed by Robert Altman as well as co written. And look, when it comes to the guy like Altman, let's just be honest, it's not like he didn't make big movies nons like. It's it's hard to pick an underrated project for a guy like Yes, you know, I don't have to like him to say that. I still respect the talent. I still respect the.

57:45 Yeah, because there's a lot of like his early stuff I haven't seen. Yeah, Okay, so that's I want to talk about one of them because I had not seen it until very recently, nineteen seventy one's McCabe and Missus Miller, which he like, I said, he directed it and he he co wrote it. So he's like, no, because on the one hand, you get Julie Christi, but then on the other hand, you have to put up with Warren Batty. So okay, sure, all. Right, Well here's what I'll tell you. I watched it on Hulu recently after listening to the Cinematic Flashback podcast. They did an episode on it and listeners for those of you that don't know about the Cinematic podcast and listeners for those of you that don't know about the Cinematic Flashback podcast. These guys dive into seventies movies and debate whether or not they still groove or if they skip the beat. I can tell you that, even as a lover of seventies cinema, they have turned me onto several classics. I wasn't even aware of this being one of them. So shout out to Chuck and Matt. Their show is awesome if you if you are a fan of like the gritty seventies cinema, it is definitely a show for you. But I I had never even heard of McKay and Missus Miller and when it pulled up, you know, I follow them on Spotify, and when it pulled up, I was like, what's what? What is this movie?

59:15 But I'm glad they did the episode because I got to see got to see the film anyway, it's what you call a revisionist Western, meaning it's not done in the classic sense of good guys and bad guys. Uh, it's it's simpler, more realistic in tone, and rather than being heavy handed with myth and romance, if that makes sense. There's no like, you know, you got to tell sundown partner type of stuff. It's more of like, this is what the real Old West was like. And you've got you've got peak. Yeah, well it's not. It's not a town, so you've you've got peak. Warren Baty and Julie Christie. They're trying to establish a new brothel in this boomtown.

59:58 So you know, basically expect a very deep character study amid all the gambling and prostitution. It's worth watching. Yeah, it sounds like a proto dead would kind of thing. Yeah, okay, yes, and the cinematography is gorgeous if I could, I'll tell you that too. But and the music, it's it's weird because again it's a Western, but you get you got you get some Leonard Cohen music, so kind of kind of throws you off. But yeah, check that one out. Amber. I am gonna go ahead and give you the the moment. First to tell these listeners why you recommend seeing A Prayer Home Companion. Please take center stage and tell them all about it.

1:00:44 I think that if you have never listened to a radio show and so you're not entirely sure what we're talking about, this is a good way to get into that and to see, you know, just kind of a the scenes of how this concert variety show comes together with great talent, and you know it's fun. It's funny, you'll laugh, and then you'll give the radio show a try. All right. I can recommend uh the Ham radio episode of Frasier. I can recommend Haunted Honeymoon Jean Wilder nineteen eighty six, but I cannot, in good conscience recommend this film, or, if I'm being fair, most of Altman's catalog. That's not to say his films, including A Prairie Home Companion, aren't made incredibly well with very talented ensemble casts. He's just not a director I enjoy.

1:01:47 I'm gonna wear you do. We're gonna watch gos for and I know, hold on now, I. Feel sales will drop from your eyes and you'll fully get it. Amber I'm sorry to say I feel like I have watched my last Robert. Also, it's coming, It's gonna happen. I'm telling you, listen. If you you can campaign all you want for Gosford. Park, listeners, seriously back me up and make this man do this episode. I think anyone, we got a pretty we've got a pretty deep bench here on a film. By now. I think I think let's let's hear you and and someone not named Jeff talk about a Robert the film because I'm I'm oer for two on this guy. Uh And I just I don't know.

1:02:27 If I got just to get you to watch this movie. Well, let's do another one. Let's do an episode on Popeye. I know I liked that one. I will I will watch Popeye if you will watch Gosford Park. You've seen Popeye. That's not fair, and you love this director. That's what are we doing. Here, because a lot of people think that Popeye is garbage. And just because I liked it when I was seven doesn't mean that it holds up. I haven't seen it since. I'm sure. I'm sure it doesn't hold up. I said that it's a Popeye fan. I was. I was playing the Popeye arcade game last year at Retromania with with a bunch of bunch of amazing people. But all right, that's neither here, not letting it go.

1:03:09 It's gonna happen, all right. Well, next time on a film by Amber Lewis, uh will have a much more agreeable companion at the Prairie Home whe her Angela Norris is back. You guys are what do you? What are you talking about? And are you guys doing the others that really creepy Kim movie. I'm dragging you guys out of your wheelhouses because Angela is not a creepy movie kind of person. She she's a bit of a fraidy cat. Yeah, she's not a fan where I will watch like, I won't necessarily like him, but I will watch anything. Who's that? Is that?

1:03:49 Who's a Alejandro ale Yeah, guys, he's a visionary I like. I look forward to seeing what you guys. What do you guys think of that one? I know, well, you know you love it, butlet's see what Angela has to say. Yeah, well, listeners, if you've seen the others, how would you summarize it in exactly five words? Head to www dot a film by podcast dot com to give us your answer, or you can email us at a film by podcast at gmail dot com. If we use your five words synopsis on the show, we'll shout you out on the episode and you'll get some a film by swag. Real quick side note. Ah, We Angela and I did a movie four Patreon. It was an exclusive episode. We went. We did a video episode talking about a long game of Spider. Yes, and a couple I got a shout out Patreon members Brad Moore and James Buckley who had some very very kick ass five word synopsis options for a long game of Spider. So we're gonna, We're gonna.

1:04:59 I love it, knock it out of the park. I think you're doing good. I think you I think you do good with it. And then in the beginning I was I was not so much thinking you were doing good, but then then it just clicked, Well, this is I mean, you know, this is like any job Amber, there's there's always going to be like the review time. You know, I got I gotta tell you about your I can tell you about your strengths, but I also have to tell you about your opportunities. And you know, in this situation, this situation an opportunity has become a strength. I think you do good with them now. So listeners, please join us on social media. You can find us at YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and x. Amber loves interacting with all of you, sharing opinions, taking your request for future episodes, and debating great movies and great directors for that matter. Amber, listen, I think I already said this once, maybe twice, but uh, loving the Merrill kidman, You and Angela have been doing a great job. I haven't torn the studio down yet.

1:06:07 Thank you for that, and you know. It was fun. I'm blocking you guys out. Yeah, I think you guys are doing a great job, and I know we're gonna end the month with something fun. I think we're gonna do like a top ten Meryl Streep episode. So yeah, that should be some interesting choices All right, Amber, Well, I will thank you, and to all of you listening to the show, following us on social media, and subscribing to our Patreon, we thank you.