Nashville Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.5

Nashville Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 11, 2014

Robert Altman's "Nashville" (1975) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; audio commentary by Robert Altman; archival interviews with the American director; and archival interviews with screenwriter Joan Tewkesbury and actor Michael Murphy. The release also arrives with a 28-page booklet featuring Adrian Martin's essay "Anywhere But Home" and vintage stills. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

"For the sake of the children, we must say goodbye..."

his fabulous film directed by the great Robert Altman is truly impossible to describe with simple words. At best a writer can give a sense of what the film is about, but cannot possibly describe it. Because the film is too complex and certainly too unique, I will attempt to do precisely that - give you a sense of what to expect when you decide to experience it.

Nashville is essentially a plotless film that captures an atmosphere and rhythm of life while observing more than 24 different characters. Remembering their names or following closely what they do is not essential to appreciate the film. You need to focus on how they do what they do.

The film takes place over five days in Nashville, where a music festival and a busy presidential campaign for Replacement Party candidate Hal Phillip Walker have mixed up guests of the city and local residents. Some are excited to be there, some are annoyed, and some are yet to decide whether they like all the publicity and attention Nashville is getting.

At first Altman observes the activities from afar. His camera moves freely through the groups of people and quickly jumps from one location to another. Then the camera gradually comes closer and spends more time following parts of random conversations. After various characters are introduced, you will slowly be able to identify the most important ones. Pay close attention to their attitudes and manners, not the events they are a part of or the order in which these events are presented.

There is a highway crash sequence where the film switches gears. At this point the crash and the media hype surrounding the music festival and the presidential campaign have already effectively altered the rhythm of life in Nashville. There is confusion, tension and chaos, and people are interpreting what they see and hear differently. Now is the time to start paying close attention to what the many colorful characters have to say. There are angry statements, misleading confessions, and plenty of half-truths. Between them there are also beautiful songs with wonderful but misleading lyrics.

Political overtones emerge during the second half of the film. The assassination of President John F. Kennedy is frequently brought up, party loyalty is addressed, and past and present voting trends are discussed. But Altman does not use any of the subjects to formulate and endorse a political message. The focus of attention is strictly on the diversity of views and reactions, the manner in which opinions are formed, promoted and manipulated.

Nashville has a lot to say about America and the System that makes it what it is - a nation of fascinating contrasts. It was completed in 1975, but I cannot think of another film, more recent or from the same era, that captures better the essence of living in America. Indeed, the clothes, the hairstyles and the music might have changed, but the contradictions, the tensions, the ambitions and dreams are still the same as those witnessed in Nashville.

The cast is massive and impressive. Keith Carradine plays the handsome country singer Tom Frank, Michael Murphy is the suave presidential campaign manager John Triplette, Lily Tomlin is the bored housewife Linnea Reese who is ready to have an affair, Geraldine Chaplin is the curious but slightly annoying British reporter Opal, Gwen Welles is the ambitious but very naive waitress Sueleen Gay, Ronee Blakley is the country star Barbara Jean, the beautiful Karen Black is her rival Connie White, Henry Gibson is the local country celebrity Haven Hamilton, Merle Kilgore is the club manager Trout, and a very young Jeff Goldblum is the cool Tricycle Man. There are also some notable cameos. Julie Christie, Elliott Gould, and Grammy-award artist Vassar Clements, for instance, play themselves.

Note: In 1976, Nashville won Oscar Award for Best Music, Original Song (Keith Carradine for the song "I'm Easy").

Nashville Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Robert Altman's Nashville arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Eureka Entertainment.

The high-definition transfer appears to have been sourced from the same master Criterion accessed when they prepared their Blu-ray release of this classic film in 2013 -- and this is certainly very good news. Depth and clarity are very pleasing, with the daylight footage, in particular, looking quite wonderful. Contrast levels remain stable throughout the entire film. Colors are well saturated and stable, always looking healthy and natural. The best news, however, is that there are no traces of problematic degraining corrections. Compromising sharpening adjustments have not been applied either. Rather predictably, when projected the film has a very pleasing organic appearance. Overall image stability is also very good. Finally, while viewing the film I noticed the same tiny flecks occasionally popping up here and there that are present on the Criterion release. There are no large cuts, damage marks, stains, or warps to report in this review. All in all, this is a very strong organic presentation of Nashville which should make fans of the film residing in Region-B territories very happy. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Nashville Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. For the record, Eureka Entertainment have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The lossless 5.1 track opens up the film in all the right places. Indeed, during the live performances the sound is rich and very well rounded, while during the mass sequences -- see the airport footage and the highway crash -- random sounds and noises are exceptionally easy to identify. The dialog is crisp, stable, free of problematic background hiss, and easy to follow. For the record, there are no audio dropouts or distortions to report in this review.

Nashville Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original trailer for Nashville. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080p).

• Commentary - this audio commentary with director Robert Altman was recorded in 2000. It initially appeared on the R1 DVD release of the film which Paramount Pictures produced in 2000. It also appears on Criterion's Blu-ray release of Nashville. In English, not subtitled.

• Robert Altman 2000 - in this video interview, the American director recalls how Nashville came to exist and discusses some of the film's unique themes. The interview also appears on Criterion's release. In English, not subtitled. (13 min).

• Robert Altman 2001 - in this video interview, Robert Altman discusses the production history of Nashville and the type of control he had over the project before and during the shooting process. The interview was conducted by by David Thompson. A portion of the same interview appears on the Criterion release. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• Joan Tewkesbury - Joan Tewkesbury wrote the scripts for Robert Altman's Thieves Like Us (1974) and Nashville (1975). In this video interview, Joan Tewkesbury recalls her first encounter with the late American director, and discusses her contribution to Nashville, her real life experiences in the city, the ending of the film, etc. The interview was filmed in Los Angeles in October 2001. In English, not subtitled. (25 min).

• Michael Murphy - actor Michael Murphy, who appeared in a number of films directed by Robert Altman, including Countdown (1967), Brewster McCloud (1970) and Nashville, recalls his first encounter with the American director at MGM and what it was like working with him on the set, and discusses the director's work ethic and troubles with the studio system, some of the improvising he did on Nashville (and in particular a scene with Geraldine Chaplin), etc. The interview was filmed in Los Angeles in October 2001. In English, not subtitled. (14 min).

• Booklet - 28-page booklet featuring Adrian Martin's essay "Anywhere But Home" and vintage stills.

Nashville Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Fans of director Robert Altman's work residing in Region-B territories should be quite pleased with Eureka Entertainment's upcoming Blu-ray release of Nashville. It uses as a foundation the same 2K restoration from Paramount Pictures which Criterion accessed when they prepared their Blu-ray release in 2013, and borrows some of the supplemental features from the Region-A release. Place your orders with confidence, folks. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.