Nashville

The Gist: A most variegated cast of characters populates this mosaic of a movie.  Their courses intercept, merge, or clash with one another until the dramatic finale.

I’m a longtime Robert Altman fan, and Nashville is considered one of his masterpieces, so I decided to watch it, but I was disappointed.

I like Altman’s style of jamming a sprawling cast into a film, and he’s a master at keeping all of his actors in line, but this movie just didn’t grab me.  I wasn’t enthused and I was only occasionally entertained.

The script actually felt a bit stretched at times (the movie is quite long) and some scenes even very convenient.

The Bottom Line: If you’re an Altman fan you probably owe it to yourself to check this out.  You might end up loving it like many people have, but for me it was too long, a bit boring, and not really engaging.  I’m giving it a 6 simply because in spite of its age and its drawbacks, it still shows longevity and artistry.

Grade: 6