Quintet

Film history is overloaded with compellingly fascinating failures, and Quintet sits amongst them as Robert Altman's first ever shocker - a visually interesting and rare venture into sci-fi territory for him, which at times feels a little dull and leaden - sure to have an average moviegoer shifting in their seat a little. It can be something of a challenge for anyone expecting science-fiction action and drama - stretching out into 118 minutes of a dark, depressing cinematic void. Interpretive meaning should be a little more satisfying than it is in Quintet. The game of life is one in which you feel most alive when close to death, but the thrill inherent in defying your own mortality meets a sad kind of irony here, because this is an extraordinarily boring movie. Visually though, it's much more interesting, and although Tom Pierson's score can be quite overbearing, it beats the sluggish pace and empty tone we're otherwise faced with. Somewhat sadly, Kenner Toys actually designed a board game to be released as a tie-in, but the film's dismal box office death means it went unreleased, and is an extremely rare collector's piece.

A new ice age has descended upon a doomed mankind, freezing the windswept landscape and heralding a new cold planetary era. Survivor Essex (Paul Newman), a seal hunter and young Vivia (Brigitte Fossey), miraculously pregnant, travel north to a city which once housed millions - there, a few cling on tenaciously. Essex looks up his brother, Francha (Thomas Hill) at an abandoned directory and much to his surprise finds he's still living at the same place. Those also sheltering at the abode all join together to play the game of Quintet - which consists of dice, and a patterned five-sided table top, whereupon players "kill" each other and are eliminated. The game's popularity is all-consuming. Essex goes out to search for firewood, and while he's away a stranger, Redstone (Craig Richard Nelson), sneaks a bomb into the building and kills everyone inside. Essex tracks the man down, but before the two confront each other, Redstone is killed. The only evidence as to what Redstone was after is a list of names he had on him, which leads to a Quintet tournament. There, Saint Christopher (Vittorio Gassman), Grigor (Fernando Rey), Ambrosia (Bibi Andersson), Deuca (Nina Van Pallandt) and Goldstar (David Langton) await to play a deadly iteration of the game.

Before saying anything else about this film I have to get one thing out - the central idea embedded in Quintet, of a post-apocalyptic world where survivors are obsessed with this board game, is monumentally stupid. Quintet looks like any one of a hundred uninteresting board games you'd be forced to play for an hour with your aunts and uncles at a family gathering during the holidays. The notion that people, struggling to survive the end of humanity, are fixated on playing it puts me at odds with the movie. Just imagine World War III breaks out, and what remains of humanity becomes inexplicably consumed with playing Ludo all day - to the point where our daily lives revolve around it. The characters in Quintet can barely stand to talk about anything other than this silly game, as if playing it is so addictive people can barely be bothered to eat and keep warm. It makes no sense. Essex is the only character that seems nonplussed by this, inquiring about work, gathering firewood and trying to keep the human race going via raising children. People do nothing but talk about Quintet, and it bugs me because the game is obviously not all that interesting. When your film is the slowest of slow burns, it helps to not alienate your audience with inane fancies that don't stand even brief examination.


Not everything about Quintet is awful however. The cinematography is sublime, and so good that it feels wasted on this hardly seen film. Jean Boffety, who had done absolutely marvelous and beautiful work with Altman on Thieves Like Us, returned to collaborate with the filmmaker again, and he brought an almost supernatural ability to know where to shoot from and what he wanted on each shot. The film was shot in the ruins of the Expo 67 World Fair in Montreal, with broken down pavilions and wreckage providing some great real life sets for the cast and crew. Boffety uses the zoom technique Altman was so fond of a lot, and in a daring move clouded the outer edges of the lens (it was smeared with some substance), making only a central circle visible to us. This gives us the impression looking through an ice-clouded, frozen pane of glass. The whites are dazzling, as are the whites on whites and general mix of long shots, very long shots and intimate closer ones. I loved just looking at Quintet, and blanking the story and characters from my mind. A real winter wonderland with various structures, levels, packs of dogs and huddled survivors clad in apocalyptic medieval winter gear. The lighting is always perfect, and the shot always interesting. There's near constant panning and the camera always seems to be roaming and searching. A very interesting film visually.

I found Tom Pierson's score a little much at times. Although fitting for a science fiction film, at times it would call attention to itself by being bombastic with it's harsh high pitched and loud moments, trumpets and drums pounding. At other times it seemed suited to a disaster film. The music powers the feel of the entire film, transporting us to some part of an alternate reality with it's unusual shrill whistles and sharp tones, climaxing during hunts, murders or the discovery of dead bodies - of which there are quite a few, contributing to the film being classified with an 18+ Censorship Rating. Throats are cut, and people are full-on stabbed in the head in this film - the latter stages of which almost cross over into slasher territory. All the while a roaming pack of fat Rottweilers feed on the various dead bodies littering the environment. Those dogs are unpleasant - they are basically substitutes for vultures, and during one moving scene Essex saves a loved one from the indignity of being eaten by the marauding pack. A scene that would be more moving if Newman had of been directed to exhibit a little more emotion. Listening to Pierson's music for Quintet by itself would be an interesting exercise, it's atmospheric and almost discordant tones and shrieks displaced from the cold apocalypse.

The cast is no less unusual or different, stacked as it is with European actors and actresses. French actress Brigitte Fossey had grown since Forbidden Games and The Happy Road. Bibi Andersson is a fascinating inclusion when you take account of Altman's love for the cinema of Ingmar Bergman. Nina van Pallandt, a Danish actress, had just appeared in Altman's A Wedding, and Indian born Thomas Hill had been in McCabe & Mrs. Miller. Famed Italian star Vittorio Gassman had also popped up in A Wedding. Spaniard Fernando Rey, a favourite of Luis Buñuel, fits in as much as any other performer in this eclectic mix. Upstairs, Downstairs stalwart, David Langton, was flying the flag for Britain. In a disorientating sense, all of these actors playing characters with wildly differing accents espousing the tactics and merit of Quintet isn't pleasurable, and does nothing to sooth that feeling that we have a lack of interest in what we're seeing. There's no grand performance here - and even Paul Newman seems distant and disinterested. I liked Buffalo Bill and the Indians, and Newman must have enjoyed the collaboration in that venture, but not here. He's on autopilot.

"Being alive. That's the only prize." The players in Quintet play for the thrill of it, which is so ironic considering how dull the film is, and how ordinary the game is. They'd be better served looking for food, and especially having sex. Essex gets drawn into the violence and murder, thinking victory will lead to some kind of epiphany or prize - and us as the audience go through the same process of hope and disappointment. Yes, watching Quintet inevitably leads to a feeling of anticlimax, and although sticking around to really get a good feel of it has lead to some appreciation of the artistry involved (the ever-trusty Leon Ericksen, who had been with Altman since 1969 film That Cold Day in the Park, was once again a production designer on Quintet), it's a dud overall. Mention must be made though, about the Medieval-type costumes in this film (Altman would stick with costume designer Scott Bushnell from Nashville in '75 to Short Cuts in '93) which are also extremely well made. Aside from those aspects however, Quintet is so ill-suited for viewing by the average moviegoer that you'd have to consider it an all-out failure, even when considering it's positive aspects. Dull in story, with confused and unenthusiastic performances and a silly central premise, I'd advise even those interested to approach with caution. I give points for it's look and sound only. Altman rolled the dice, and crapped out this time.