At last! At last!
The late auteur filmmaker
Robert Altman’s long sought-after 1982 film adaptation of Ed Graczyk’s stage
play, Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean will be
released as both DVD and Blu-ray product offerings by Olive Films on Nov. 18!
Not only will this news
please fans of filmmaker Robert Altman, but there are literally legions of adoring
fans of the various cast members that Altman assembled for this film (geeze, this
guy had a gift for that, didn’t he!).
Are you ready? Cher
(future Oscar-winner for Best Actress in Moonstruck), the late Karen Black
(Oscar-nominee for Best Actress, Five Easy Pieces), Sandy Dennis
(Oscar-winner for Best Supporting Actress in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?)
and Kathy Bates (future Oscar-winner for Best Actress in Misery) are the marquee
names, but Sudie Bond (perhaps best remembered as “Mama” Velma Castleberry for
the Flo TV sitcom, plus such films as They Might be Giants, Cold
Turkey and Love Story) more than holds her own as the store owner where
the “reunion” takes place.
September 30, 1955 is the
day that James Dean died in an auto accident just outside of Paso Robles,
California … it is now 20 years later and fans — they call themselves the
“Disciples of James Dean” — of the actor are gathering for a reunion to honor
his memory. They are, however, not
gathering anywhere near Paso Robles, but at an aging Woolworth’s (a “five and
dime”) in a remote corner of Texas.
Why there? It’s the closest place they could find to
Marta, which just so happened to be the shooting location for Dean’s 1956 film
release of Giant (released theatrically a full year after his death) … which is a whole other story onto itself.
Through flashbacks and
character dialog (this is, after all, an adaptation of a stage play) we learn
secrets — especially about Karen Black’s character, Joanne, and her
relationship to Mona (Sandy Dennis) — about the various members of the
group.
These connections and
“reveals” are marked by both visuals (an interesting use of mirrors) and music.
And therein was the hold up in getting
this Altman gem to DVD and Blu-ray … music clearances! The soundtrack from the film includes a
number of songs made famous by the McGuire Sisters, including their number one
hit from (yes, you guessed it) 1955, “Sincerely.”
This restored version of
the film was completed in 2011 by the UCLA Film & Television Archive and
should look absolutely gorgeous on both DVD and Blu-ray.
Bonus goodies include a
newly-prepared video conversation with writer Ed Graczyk, who both wrote the
original state play and then adapted that play for the screen.
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