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2008-10-10
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The Death of an Old Man is Not a Tragedy 
2008-09-03
A Prairie Home Companion is a great tapestry of storytelling. On the evening of the last show before being bought out and consumed by a corporate rival, the cast members of the show attempt to come to terms with the end of their long-running radio installment. The movie seems to take place mostly in real time as the final show unfolds. Each member has his or her own personal story and the show has meant something unique in each of their lives. We only catch glimpses of these characters' lives, like you would when making conversation with new acquaintances at a dinner party. But we also catch brief glimpses of the pain, frustration or beauty in each of them. We don't get to know them well but we get to know them well enough to see their humanity. Even when a beloved cast member drops dead backstage after his final performance, we see the grief in these characters and subsequently the resilience in them to remember him lovingly--and even use a bit of humor to dull the pain. The little bits of drama weaved in between heartfelt down home songs, goofy advertising jingles and the even goofier songs played by Dusty and Lefty (Woody Harrelson and John C. Reilly, respectively) are perfect counterpoints. It takes a wise and perhaps grizzled man to stare death in the eye and not flee from it--whether it be the death of a friend, death of a radio show or death of a comfortable way of life. Garrison Keillor is wonderful in this role and brings a bit of grace to the idea that you can't control change, you can only control how you react to it. How fitting that this was director Robert Altman's final show as well.
Idea: OK - Execution: Terrible - Intent: Dubious 
2008-05-04
I won't repeat what a lot of the one-stars here are saying, much of which I agree with. It wasn't the plotlessness and the stereotyping that truly bothered me the most, it was the supposition behind this project that oozes out in every line and incident. First of all, let me say that the final sequence and credits is the best part of the film, the performance of "In the Sweet By and By," because this is what Prairie Home Companion (PHC) has been (and still is) about, passing some of the great traditions of the American past on to present generations. The songs Garrison Keillor uses in his shows ("Sweet By and By", "John Henry," etc.) are some of the greatest cultural products of our nation, and his show makes these songs really human, often by building a story around them.
But that aspect doesn't come across in the film. More importantly, the most important part of PHC, the audience, is COMPLETELY missing in this film! Only once, at the very beginning when they are filing in to the theatre, do we see an audience - a sort of stereotypical "geeky" Minnesota audience, I might add. We never really hear them at all throughout the show and pretty much forget that there even is anybody out there! The audience, both in the theatres and at home/car/wherever, are what make PHC what it is. When Garrison Keillor tells a story you can hear the audience respond in recognition of some of the characters he describes or laugh at an incident that reminds them of something that happened in their own family. I can't believe that GK supposedly wrote this screenplay and left out the audience. Here is my take on it - for better or worse - the portrayal of a modern audience as a real character in PHC would give the impression that the show is alive and current and meaningful to a present-day audience (which it is and continues to be) - with old songs brought up to date with current events and situations, both political and social. But the director and Hollywood production team don't want to do that. Hollywood is in the business of tearing down culture, not shoring it up. So PHC is an old out-of-date artifact - it's supposed to have lost its meaning in today's sound-byte cynical world. But of course anyone who listens to or has attended a PHC show knows this is not at all the case. This movie therefore is NOT about PHC. It's about Hollywood poking fun (yet again) at another institution of American Culture. Hollywood doesn't really like success stories that aren't about Hollywood, and the 30+ year success of an NPR radio show with an audience that is comfortable mixing old-fashion values with a modern sensibility is just too outrageous for them, so Hollywood producers have to show all these characters as has-beens, dotty, self-absorbed, and - perhaps the most egregious - unprofessional, which is clearly not the case in reality.
And once again, I should add, Hollywood is taking pot-shots at generational differences. The young people - of which there is only one in this movie! - are "cool," while the old people are sentimental idiots. That last scene in the diner is one of the most objectionable in the entire film. The daughter, who has just been humiliated in the previous scene by being forced to sing a song onstage - NOTE: how "unprofessional" is this? - and now she gets her revenge. She doesn't even have time to hang up from her cell phone call to have a conversation with her mom. Her mom is a brainless nincompoop who doesn't know anything about money, while the daughter is oh-so sophisticated. She breezes in, says some insulting things to her mom - which her mom has earned, right? - and then breezes back out on her phone. Once again, the older people who have the knowledge and experience, even what should be the professionalism, are here portrayed as the clueless ones. I wish that Meryl Streep would have refused to play the scene. But then the whole movie was set up that way right from the beginning, with the Streep and Tomlin characters. These two actresses were fabulous in what seemed like an long ad-lib at the beginning, but unfortunately it just set the characters up to be pitied and, eventually, written-off, even by their own offspring. Really sad. And totally against the theme of PHC.
Anyway, the radio show still runs, I know many people who listen every week and love it (and learn from it) - and it is still a wonderful mix of old and new, the traditional and the crazy present. There are lots of young people and often phenomenal guests on the show, and it reminds us of what real VARIETY shows were about, and should still be about: reaching out to a wide audience and makes people laugh, not at someone else, but at themselves - it reminds them that humanity only means something when it's shared.
Meryl's accent is worth it 2008-02-03
I have been a fan of Prairie Home Companion (radio) for a while and think this movie is a great companion piece.
No, it is not a film version of the radio broadcast. It wasn't set up to be. It starts off as a Guy Noir mystery - one of the components of the radio program which some of the reviewers here seem to be missing.
The movie is a behind-the-scenes look into the program, and on the evening of it's final performance. Thankfully it is just a movie plot. The radio program continues to delight listeners with it's live broadcast every week from Minnesota.
Meryl Streep's Minnesota accent and speech dialect are absolutely amazing!
I personally don't know folks from that region, but if you ever watched FARGO, and listened to many of the characters voicings (most notably Margie, the investigating police officer played by the very wonderful Frances McDormand) and compared Meryl Streep's interpretation, you'd just have to admire her commitment and ability. She sings quite nicely, too.
The slower pacing the film may have that some folks may find boring is more an indication of their own lack of patience or tolerance. Everything commited to film doesn't have to be geared to short attention span types.
Time Better Spent Alone 
2008-01-21
I've never much cared for Altman, and this film displays his fashionably nihilistic, aimlessly sappy meanderings at their worst. A grave injustice to Garrison Keillor's quirky weekly broadcast and a typically Altman-esque waste of a great cast. Surprisingly, it's Lindsay Lohan who acquits herself most admirably with understated comic performances that cannot be missed: so, both for her scene delivering a mangled rendition of "Frankie and Johnny" and for her portrayal of an adolescent's interactions with her harried show-biz mom (played well by an otherwise criminally underutilized Meryl Streep), this movie might possibly perhaps be a little worth watching ... almost - but for those scenes alone and for nothing else! Blech. Double-blech. Avoid!
Decent, but not enough like the radio show 
2008-01-05
The movie is a celebrity version of Garrison Keillor's radio show. It adds a slight story of the radio show ending as a new owner (Tommy Lee Jones) has bought the Fitzgerald theater that the show broadcasts from and is going to tear it down. Another fantasy element is thrown in as an angel (Virginia Madsen) stalks the theater to take one of the performers. Keillor plays the lead character coincidentally called GK. Lily Tomlin and Meryl Streep play the singing Johnson Sisters with Lindsay Lohan as a suicide-obsessed daughter of Streep. Woody Harrelson and John C. Reilly are hilarious as the slightly off-color singing cowboy duo Dusty & Lefty. Kevin Kline is a security guard who tells the story. Maya Rudolph also appears as a pregnant stage coordinator. Contains some mild sexually-oriented jokes.DVD Features:Available Subtitles: English SpanishAvailable Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)li>Commentary by director Robert Altman and actor Kevin KlineDeleted scenes with optional commentary"Come Play With Us: A Feature Companion" featurette"Onstage at the Fitzgerald: A Music Companion" - extended musical performances and advertisement segmentsSoundtrack preview (jump to songs in the film)TrailerSystem Requirements:Run Time: 105 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: PG-13 UPC: 794043105418 Manufacturer No: N10541
Star-packed evening of A Prairie Home Companion live radio broadcast... with a twist 2007-12-26
If you've ever listened to a radio show of A Prairie Home Companion, this will be a treat. You'll see a fictionalized setup of all the hustle and bustle that goes into one of these productions: the props, notes, the band, make-up (and make-out) rooms, and more.
If you've never listened to A Prairie Home Companion, you may be left scratching your head, wondering why anyone would think a recording of a radio broadcast could be movie-worthy.
Garrison Keillor's voice and persona weaves this show together, but the surprisingly strong acting and singing performances of Meryl Streep, Woody Harrelson, Lindsay Lohan, and John Reilly really make this more than simply a taping of a show.
The plot is "the last show" for A Prairie Home Companion. How will people act? What will they say and sing? The non-Companion listeners who are viewing may say, "who cares?"
Rated PG-13 for "risqué humor." Make this a PG rating at most. This is a movie for the NPR crowd... you know who you are!
[2 1/2 stars] -- For fans of the radio series only, and even then... 2007-12-23
I really like the radio series, and I get/appreciate Keillor's dry sense of humor, so I wanted to like this. Unfortunately, this thing's flatter than week-old soda.
If you're unfamiliar with the APHC radio show, you'll miss quite a few of the inside jokes (such as the mock ads and background characters) and quite likely scratch your head in puzzlement. Then again, hardcore fans may end up doing that as well, though for different reasons.
Technically, the plot is thin and there are tons of red herrings, loose ends, etc. but that's actually typical for Keillor; if you know the radio show, you'll be a bit acclimated to this, but novices coming in cold will most likely have a problem with it.
Keillor's greatest strengths are his eloquent command of the English language and his astounding ability as a storyteller. Sure, he's the king of the "shaggy dog story" but I personally don't care, as he paints such rich pictures with his words. Unfortunately, this just doesn't translate to film, as half the enjoyment is his narration. Likewise, he has a rather sharp (if dry and high-brow) sense of humor, but this was sadly lacking from the film. I chuckled once, and cracked a smile twice.
Probably my least-favorite aspect of the radio show are the musical numbers, and unfortunately that ends up being a large portion of the movie.
Of course, I can see people taking the opposite stance, and liking the film for precisely the reasons I didn't. Still, the film failed to engage me, and I honestly tried to like it. Sadly, about half way through I was conscious I was wanting it to be over with.
Per the credits, Garrison was solely responsible for the screenplay. He should stick to more familiar mediums that he truly excells in.
Starts out slow, then tapers off 2007-11-24
I have been a big fan of the radio show Prairie Home Companion for over a decade. I have also read several articles by Garrison Keillor who is, without a doubt, a gifted writer.
I came to this with an open mind, not knowing what to expect.
To say the least, it was a big disappointment.
It was about as entertaining as watching paint dry.
I kept waiting for something to happen as the story line just meandered along like a slow moving bovine not having any idea where it was going.
It is long.
It is boring.
It is without any of the inspiration that powers the radio show.
Avoid this movie at all costs unless you suffer from insomnia.
Plotless, Pointless 2007-11-17
The fact that most movies made nowadays are without a plot or point does not come as a shock to me (or, I sincerely doubt, to anyone else). However, the fact that Garrison Keillor whose weekly PHC radio sessions draw heavily on the use of narrative and dialogue would star in a film that is sorely lacking in both does come as a shock and disappointment to me. This movie has great actors (minus, of course, Lindsay Lohan - dear God, why her?) whose acting talent is all but wasted. Lohan is disasterously cast as the angst-ridden teenage daughter who wears ripped jeans and writes poems about suicide. (Couldn't there be just one movie containing a teenager that is not a stock character?) It does not contain the monologue (it's been a quiet week in my hometown of Lake Wobegon) that has made Keillor famous. Nor, does it ultimately even make much sense. I could go on, but I won't. Don't watch it unless you're light of head/wallet, or don't mind being bored or disappointed.
