McCabe & Mrs. Miller
d. Robert Altman, 1971
Having seen Robert Altman's McCabe & Mrs. Miller twice now, it is quickly becoming one of my favorite of all films. However, I'm not sure how well I can explain a lot of my reasons for that.
Every once in a long while, I discover a film that I just fall in love with; everything from the music, how it looks, the mood it evokes. For me, McCabe & Mrs. Miller is one of those rare films. A movie of extraodinary beauty, heart, and, above all, an amazing piece of filmmaking.
Robert Altman fashioned this masterpiece at the beginning of the 70s, and it was one of his first films. He actually built a town in Vancouver that works pretty much the way it looks in the film, and the crew and cast lived there for a while. The effect that all these elements bring is unparalleled by any film.
McCabe & Mrs. Miller is the story of John McCabe's arrival to the town of Presbyterian Church. He rides in on his horse and goes into the bar, makes sure he knows where the back door is, and begins playing poker with the locals. The town is made up of roughly 125 men and most of them are involved in the construction of it.
McCabe decides he is going to build a saloon and a gambling house. After having purchased three women and with the place somewhat done, Mrs. Miller comes into town. She is a whore that "knows a lot about whores." She offers him her partnership on account that he knows nothing of women and needs someone like her to keep business running properly. He agrees, and soon the place is open for business.
Although Mrs. Miller plays a key role in the film, this is McCabe's story, and what a sad story it is. Yet, the film is not sad in the sort of heightened melodramatic cliched way, it is much deeper than that. From the beginning you sense a yearning for love that is never going to come to him, not with Mrs. Miller, and certainly not in the town of Presbyterian Church. Often he speaks to himself, saying things like "I got poetry in me!" and "All you've cost me is money and pain. Pain" shortly after leaving an unsuccessful visit to Mrs. Miller. The film's tone also owes something to the way Altman uses the songs of Leonard Cohen ("The Stranger Song," "Winter Lady," and "Sisters of Mercy" are used in the film).
Without any sort of introduction, in classic Altman style, the audience finds out things about these characters. As when McCabe gets into bed with Mrs. Miller and it hasn't yet been established that they are sleeping together, then it turns out that she's been charging him just like all the other guys that visit the place.
Sometime later in the movie, two guys from a big company come and try to buy all of McCabe's holdings. Being the proud man he is, he turns them down. Mrs. Miller realizes how big a mistake he's made ("They'll shoot you in the back as soon as they'd look at you," she tells him), but he pretends to believe he can negotiate with them. But he knows the time has come, the company will send someone to kill him.
More than any story could provide, the film gives the audience several moments of raw emotion as good as have ever been put on screen. There a lot of great scenes in McCabe & Mrs. Miller, but it would be pointless to describe them for they all depend on Altman's direction and Vilmos Zsigmond amazing cinematography to be effective.
Another revelation that comes in the film is that Mrs. Miller tries to hide the fact that she smokes opium. She often has all her doors locked because of it, as when McCabe comes to visit her. That realization further emphasizes the sort of distant relation both of them have, a relationship which is based entirely on business (to McCabe's disliking, of course). Also, a statement emerges throughout the film about the big company that is trying to buy McCabe out. They may be ruthless and unfair, but the film has the courage to admit that just as bad is inherent human nature, which can't be taken away with any sort of law and order.
All of these different elements are developed in such an effortless way into a breathtaking viewing experience that is truly like no other. It's hard to imagine that this film is not widely considered one of the best ever. It deserves as much recognition as other 70s masterworks like, say, The Godfather or Taxi Driver.
Films have come and gone since 1971, but McCabe & Mrs. Miller is to remain a timeless materpiece for the ages.
