Director: Robert Altman
Starring: Elliott Gould, Nina van Pallandt, Sterling Hayden, Mark Rydell and Henry Gibson
Certificate: 12
Running Time: 112 minutes
Synopsis: When private eye Philip Marlowe (Elliott Gould) is visited by an old friend, this sets in train a series of events in which he’s hired to search for a missing novelist (Sterling Hayden) and finds himself on the wrong side of vicious gangsters. So far so faithful to Raymond Chandler, but Robert Altman’s inspired adaptation of the writer’s most personal novel takes his legendary detective and relocates him to the selfish, hedonistic culture of 1970s Hollywood, where he finds that his old-fashioned notions of honour and loyalty carry little weight, and even his smoking (universal in film noir) is now frowned upon.
Even without knowing much about the brooding book series by Raymond Chandler, the character of gumshoe Philip Marlowe is one of those literary icons that rises to public consciousness and make you all too aware of something remarkably familiar. He’s inspired a generation of authors and filmmakers, with Chandler’s pulp private eye transition often giving us memorable movies and portrayals, such as Humphrey Bogart in THE BIG SLEEP (1946) or Robert Mitchum in FAREWELL MY LOVELY (1975) and later returning in a remake of the former three years later (1978). However, without a doubt one of the best actors to play the chain-smoking sleuth was the great Elliott Gould in this little gem from the late Oscar-winning auteur Robert Altman.
Gould gets the mumbling, wisecracking character spot on and at times he’s someone that’s hard to like, yet it’s to the actor’s credit, you can’t help but root for him in a world full of even more loathsome characters. Perhaps it’s an amusing opening scene, seeing him woken at 3am in the morning and heading off in attempt to find the only food his pet feline likes. The Hollywood setting and updating of the original novel’s 1950s timeline to the drug-adled haze of the 1970s, THE LONG GOODBYE really does feel like it belongs in the same universe as Roman Polanski’s more revered CHINATOWN, which followed a year later.
For a seemingly simple, linear synopsis – A simple act in helping an old pal with a lift to the airport, seeing Marlowe mixed up with a host of unsavoury individuals, questioning his own morals of friendship and loyalty – there really is a twisted menace hidden behind a glitzy facade of beautiful women, brutish boyfriends and ruthless mobsters. A self-obsessed (and almost secret) society in the perfect Californian locale offering a side-order of sleaze too. Each well-rounded supporting character (including veteran method master Sterling Hayden as the conflicted author Roger Wade) hints at skeletons-in-the-closet, while often posing more questions than answers.
While the brand new remastered print may not look as pristine as a collector may expect, given the grubby look and feel of the film, you’d be forgiven in believing that this was purposeful. Don’t be surprised in considering a shower after viewing. One of the decades finest, and perhaps forgotten, masterpieces boasting a solid cast and taut direction from a maverick craftsman. Outstanding!
Special Features:
- High Definition presentation of the film from a digital transfer by MGM Studios
- Original uncompressed mono 2.0 PCM audio
- Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired
- Rip Van Marlowe – An interview with director Robert Altman and star Elliott Gould
- Vilmos Zsigmond Flashes The Long Goodbye – An interview with the legendary cinematographer
- Giggle and Give In – Paul Joyce’s acclaimed documentary profile of Robert Altman, with contributions from Altman, Elliott Gould, Shelley Duvall, assistant director Alan Rudolph and screenwriter Joan Tewkesbury
- Elliott Gould Discusses The Long Goodbye – a conversation with crime novelist Michael Connelly, recorded in March 2012
- David Thompson on Robert Altman – David Thompson, editor of ‘Altman on Altman’ and producer of the BBC’s ‘Robert Altman in England’, talks about The Long Goodbye‘s place in Altman’s filmography
- On Raymond Chandler – Chandler’s biographer, Tom Williams, outlines the author’s life and work and discusses Altman’s adaptation of The Long Goodbye
- On Hard Boiled Fiction – Crime writer and critic Maxim Jakubowski discusses the emergence of hard boiled detective characters from the pages of the pulp magazines from the 1920s through to the 1950s
- Original Theatrical Trailer
- Radio Spots
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jay Shaw
- Booklet featuring new writing on the film by Brad Stevens, an archive interview with screenwriter Leigh Brackett, a new interview with assistant director Alan Rudolph and an American Cinematographer article discussing Zsigmond’s unique treatment of the film, illustrated with original archive stills and posters
THE LONG GOODBYE is released on Blu-ray from the 16th December via Arrow Academy
