Down on the Prairie

A Prairie Home Companion is this week's movie. The film is a performance, the last performance before the theatre is torn down, of a radio show that has played for decades at the Fitzgerald Theater. During the movie we get to see the characters sing, dance, play their own instruments and some backstage drama as well. The movie, shot mostly at the actual Fitzgerald in Minnesota, features Kevin Kline as Guy Noir; Lily Tomlin and Meryl Streep as the Johnson sisters, a duo who used to be a quartet; Lindsay Lohan as Streep's daughter; Woody Harrelson and John C. Reilly as cowboys Dusty & Lefty, respectively; Maya Rudolph as the stage manager and, of course, Garrison Keillor who plays GK. The film is entertaining enough and has some really catchy songs, especially one called Bad Jokes, which is sung by the cowboys. The cast is aware that this is to be their last show but try to make the best of it. However, when something tragic happens to one of the cast members an even bigger pall is cast over the show. There are some strange things in this movie including Tommy Lee Jones as the axeman. He is the man who bought the theater and is planning on turning it into a parking lot. He shows up very briefly and then leaves; couldn't he have done his business over the phone like everyone else? Another pointless character is the Dangerous Woman, played by Virginia Madsen. She's an angel, ok. She walks around with a dazed look on her face like she's trying to figure out which movie set she's supposed to be on. Keillor, on the other hand, is captivating. He commands the screen by hardly doing anything except talking. If you are familiar with the Prairie Home Companion radio show, you'll know what to expect. Directed by prolific helmsman, Robert Altma, the film moves along briskly and even uses some of the actual musicians and performers from the radio program. Disappointing, however, is the fact that there are no mini dialogue skits and no skits featuring catsup, one of the sponsors. The jingle is mysteriously absent too. That is one of my favorite parts of the radio broadcast. I don't see this being a big hit, maybe not even a medium sized hit but the cast is good and there are worse movies one could sit through.

peace,

paul