It's never exactly the most shocking thing when an 81-year-old man dies, but when that 81-year-old man is as well loved and respected as Robert Altman , who died on Monday night, then the news is still kinda sad.
Robert Altman, the movie director responsible for such pieces of art as MASH, Short Cuts, Gosford Park and that Popeye film that Robin Williams was in, passed away from complications of cancer surrounded by his family in Los Angeles on Monday. While the world of cinema will undoubtedly miss such a fiercely independent spirit in its community, at least we know that Robert Altman is up in heaven, or at least a version of heaven where everyone talks over each other all the time and nobody seems to really know what's supposed to be going on.
Earlier this year Robert Altman was given a semi-real honorary Oscar. Ostensibly this was to honour Robert Altman's:
"innovation, his redefinition of genres, his invention of new ways of using the film medium and his reinvigoration of old ones."
In reality Robert Altman was awarded nothing more than the obligatory 'you should have got one of these in 1970 for MASH but you don't look very well so have this one before you die' wooden spoon Oscar, but it didn't matter – even without the Oscars Robert Altman achieved more in his time than a busfull of other movie directors could ever wish to do. Accepting his Oscar, Robert Altman said:
"No other filmmaker has gotten a better shake than I have. I'm very fortunate in my career. I've never had to direct a film I didn't choose or develop. My love for filmmaking has given me an entree to the world and to the human condition."
Although he started off making corporate documentaries like The Builders and How To Run A Filling Station, Robert Altman quickly progressed to directing episodes of TV shows like Bonanza and The Whirlybirds before finally making his mark on the world of cinema with Korean War comedy MASH, which would later spawn its own rubbish TV show. Following the success of MASH, Robert Altman went on to create a new genre of movie, where everyone spoke at the same time and there wasn't really a plot or anything. This worked well for Robert Altman, and two of these films – Nashville and Gosford Park – were nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars.
Despite a career spanning 55 years, Robert Altman never stopped taking risks, and this continued with his last movie A Prairie Home Companion where he inexplicably decided to cast knickerless partygirl Lindsay Lohan as something other than a hilarious girl with a magical car. And that's bravery that you just can't buy.
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Robert Altman Dies; Maverick Director was 81 – Hollywood Reporter