Nashville (Film)

• David Arkin: Norman
• Barbara Baxley: Lady Pearl
• Ned Beatty: Delbert Reese
• Karen Black: Connie White
• Ronee Blakley: Barbara Jean
• Timothy Brown: Tommy Brown
• Keith Carradine: Tom Frank
• Geraldine Chaplin: Opal
• Jeff Goldblum: Man on the Trike
• Shelley Duvall: Marthe
• Cristina Raines: Mary

Nashville is a film about the American country music scene in the mid -1970s, shot and directed by Robert Altman.

Action

The movie is about different people who are all connected in some way with the city of Nashville in Tennessee. He tells of the fate of the protagonists and their dreams that they had around the year 1976. Nashville is a metropolitan city of the country and western music as well as bluegrass and other styles from the field of folk music. To meet in the place country stars and those who want it to become one, to each other. Central figures include the superstar Haven Hamilton and the popular singer Barbara Jean, who is the great example for Sueleen Gay. Gay would also like to be a famous country singer, while she has no real musical talent. The stories take place in the context of preparing for a big concert from, to be held on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the USA in Nashville. At the same time, it is also part of a presidential campaign.

The cast includes a plate magnate, music journalists and other minor characters who are trying to gain a foothold within the country music scene. Musical performances, small concerts or receptions bring the widely episodic plot, which is based on the individual figures. The view from the outside is represented by the British journalist, played by Geraldine Chaplin, even if it is drawn later in the events.

Background

The film offers a kind of action, in which around 24 people meet each other or crossing paths randomly. Barbara Jean, a rising star at the Country Heaven, Haven Hamilton, a politically ambitious veteran of country music and Connie White offer a contest for the title of the award for best country singer. The individual figures are living through this casual love affairs, make business contacts, indulge in airs and graces or hang their unfulfilled dreams after. But common to all is the desire to play an important role in the music scene of Nashville. The film expected by the loose action link more like a documentary on the country music capital of what is reinforced by the reporting of fictitious reporter for the BBC. Altmann shows in his film relentlessly the mechanisms of directed only to commercial music industry in the period of the 1970s.

The production cost was according to information at the Internet Movie Database about two million dollars.

In the music setting and dealing with dialogues Robert Altman was the directors of his time, he took advantage of by 24-channel recording technique for the dialogue, atmosphere and sound tracks of the movie and created a unique atmosphere.

Awards

Also nominated:

Criticism

• " A fascinating and extremely complex portrait of the United States, the policy, privacy and entertainment industry unmasked as components a manipulated consumer world. " - Encyclopedia of the International Films ( CD -ROM edition ), Systhema, Munich 1997.