Day 5 - September 5
It's Only the First Five or Six Decades of Filmmaking that are Hard...

The weather is terrific and the movies are pretty darn good today in Deauville. In addition to the young filmmakers in competition, Robert Altman is here with Dr. T and the Women and veteran producer Dino de Laurentiis (over 200 films from La Strada to the forthcoming Hannibal), still going strong in his 80s, was the subject of this evening's tribute. It's inspiring to breathe the same air as two fiercely independent men who have taken risks all their lives and have given movie-goers some of their best moments in the dark along the way.

Richard Gere stars as Dr. T, a prominent Dallas gynecologist whose currently unfair life revolves around the fair sex. "He loves women but he doesn't understand them," Altman says, "because he's looking at them from (ahem) the wrong angle." Altman's opening scene - which introduces the wealthy gloss of Dallas and the barely controlled mayhem of the good doctor's medical offices - is the sort of brave, brash continuous affair most directors (give or take a Welles, a Scorsese or a De Palma) didn't dare attempt until the coming of video. And the final shot - which he wishes to remain a surprise and for good reason - is a luminous moment of which the director says, "I'm prouder of that shot than of anything I've ever done before."

In between, there's the movie itself, a free-wheeling chronicle of the countdown to a wedding in a moneyed community where the men hunt and the women shop. Dr. T's wife has reverted to a childlike state called "the Hestia complex," a condition allegedly brought on by feeling so very protected and well provided for that there's no reason to remain adult in one's responses to the world.

Altman met with us straight from the Lido in Venice where he answered questions in 75 consecutive interviews. Much like Susan Sarandon yesterday, Altman freely shared his political views. "George W. Bush is a stupid man," says the robust director, who tackled politics in Nashville and Tanner 88. "You can see those Republicans a mile away because none of them can smile. I think what might sink Bush is that smirk of his. Gore is a great guy.. In his 8 years as vice-president he's done an enormous amount to secure the conservation of American land, to protect huge chunks of the beautiful country. He's a good man but he's not a glib politician. I'm just hoping voters will come to their senses because Bush would be a disaster not only for America but for the world.

"I was in Austin, Texas not long ago to show Nashville for its 25th anniversary and I addressed a crowd of 1500 people in the capitol building where the auditrium was. I told them how proud I was to be in the great state of Texas and in this building that houses your great governor George W. Bush. And I'm here to say that I hope he REMAINS your governor for the next 12 years."

Altman claims he doesn't direct actors when he makes a film. "I CAST. When I cast the film or the play or whatever I'm doing, 85% of my creative work is finished. The cast does all the work. What I want to see is something I've never seen before, so how can I tell someone what that is?"

Asked if he thinks film festivals serve a useful purpose, Altman launches into a heartfelt speech of unconditional support for fests large and small, far and wide. He attributes his present career to the acclaim he got for M.A.S.H. at Cannes in 1970, without which he firmly believes he'd be directing sitcoms somewhere.

In today's two-pronged portion of the competition, Brad Anderson's Happy Accidents charmed some and left others cold while the taut stock broker drama Boiler Room made a very strong impression.

On tap tomorrow, a gala in honor of the Broadway stage's relationship to Hollywood musicals, with special guests Leslie Caron, Joel Grey and Mickey Rooney.

Wilma Radar