The Long Goodbye
90/100
Directed by: Robert Altman
Released: 1973
Studio: United Artists
Starring: Elliot Gould, Nina van Pallandt, Sterling Hayden,
NOTHING SAYS GOODBYE LIKE A BULLET… Detective Philip Marlowe tries to help a friend who is accused of murdering his wife. – Letterboxd.com
Beating contemporary noir heavyweight Chinatown to the theatrical punch by a year, The Long Goodbye is a stunning 112-minute drama. Director Robert Altman expertly combines the usual noir formula with his special ingredients – a dash of comedy and a less standard character in the form of Philip Marlowe – a disheveled private investigator.
Elliot Gould stars as Marlowe – a go-with-the-flow private investigator. While he is not technically the inspiration for Spike Spiegel, I think that there’s a little bit of his DNA in that old space cowboy. He’s full of smart-ass remarks and could light a match in a puddle if he needed to but he’s not to be underestimated. He’s incredibly observant and thinks outside the box, all while playing the disheveled look to his advantage. Gould is absolutely amazing in this role and sells the movie 110%. Everyone else is fighting to keep up.
…a stunning 112-minute drama.
I love noir. Aside from science fiction, it’s probably my favorite genre of movie. As time goes on, it becomes increasingly more difficult to find movies that scratch that same itch. It’s a bygone genre from a bygone era that’s incredibly hard to replicate in the modern day with any degree of success. I’d say Brick is the closest approximation of what noir could be today, but even that is almost 20 years old. So the only place to find quality noir seems to be the past.
I find that fitting as noir can built on on old relationships, past mistakes, jaded memories being dragged up to the present in order to find the connecting thread between all of those things. The Long Goodbye finds that thread and tugs on it until it comes unravelled in front of the audience. Altman’s unique take on drama and comedy mixes together wonderfully to capture the audience’s attention.
It’s a bygone genre from a bygone era…
The Long Goodbye might just be one of my new favorite movies. The mystery isn’t what makes it special. It’s the journey that Marlowe goes through and how he’s connected to the core that makes it interesting. If you like noir or even have a passing interest, don’t let this 70s gem pass you by.