Cookie's Fortune

 

 

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Southern gothic is a pretty tough genre to tackle, especially in movies.

But Robert Altman gave it his best with "Cookie's Fortune," a little black comedy taking place over the Easter weekend. He crammed it with eccentricity, odd twists and likably atypical characters, but the second half gets a bit carried away by self-consciousness weirdess and melodrama.

It's the day before Easter in the Southern town of Holly Springs. Pushy, self-righteous spinster Camille Dixon (Glenn Close) and her mentally challenged sister Cora (Julianne Moore) are rehearsing the Easter play, "Salome." Cora's rebellious daughter Emma (Liv Tyler) has just come back to town, as her naive boyfriend (Chris O'Donnell) has become a cop.

Meanwhile, eccenric matriarch Cookie Orcutt (Patricia Neal) has become obsessed with joining her dead hubby, Buck. So she shoots herself, minutes before her Camille arrives. Fearful of the scandal a suicide would cause ("Suicide is a disgrace! Only crazy people commit suicide!"), Camille fakes a robbery and murder scene.

There's only really one suspect: Willis (Charles S. Dutton), Cookie's handyman/cook/best pal, who lives on the premises and was polishing the guns the night before. As Camille revels in her presumed inheritance, Willis and Emma help piece together the evidence left behind -- and unwittingly unearth some peculiar family secrets.

"Cookie's Fortune" isn't a typical murder mystery. Sure, the cops are ferreting out clues and motives, but Robert Altman creates a town that basically moves along at a steady, languid pace, and nobody really gets worked up -- even a murder doesn't ruffle them enough to make them lock the cells.

And Altman stirs up plenty of black comedy and amusing dialogue ("A condition under which, in times of extreme stress, her blood will not clot properly.You ever seen her suffer from this condition?" "Unfortunately not"). He even manages to weave in some subtle commentary on family and hypocrisy as well as some racism -- nothing explicit, but you can sense it in the way Camille treats Willis.

The problem? At times Altman tries to be melodramatic, but only ends up seeming overwrought. And similarly, he piles on the down-home quirkiness too thickly at times, such as a sheriff announcing that he knows Willis is innocent "'cause... I've fished with him!"

Dutton is the heart and soul of this movie, as the lovable, friendly Willis, who finds himself arrested for a crime he didn't commit just because nobody can think of another suspect. Patricia Neal and Julianne Moore turn in solid performances as the crabby matriarch and the backward Cora (who isn't as "dumb" as she appears). Liv Tyler's performance is a bit stilted, but she evens out by the last half.

"Cookie's Fortune" is one of those movies that is enjoyable despite its flaws. It's too self-consciously quirky at times, but still amusing and well-written.

This just has to be said:
Robert Altman's Cookie's Fortune may very well one of the greatest films ever made. I kid you not! Well. At least one of the finest films of the past decade.
When you watch this film you are viewing the work of a director that is so sure of himself and his abilities and the story that he just sort of let's it happen. It's truly amazing when it hits you. This film plays effortlessly. Like a Mozart composition.
Unpretentious. Deliberate and confident. No single performance stands out or hogs the spotlight. And Altman's cast is top-notch from critic darlings like Glenn Close to fantastic character actors like THE ROCK!
You might not catch it the first time you see it. But. Watch it a few times. Then it'll hit ya!

This review refers to the DVD edition of "Cookie's Fortune"....

Glenn Close literally gets caught with her hand in the cookie jar in one of Robert Altman's all star,delightful comedies. It also stars Julianne Moore,Liv Tyler, Chris O'Donnell, Charles S.Dutton, Ned Beatty,Courtney Vance, Lyle Lovett,Donald Moffat and screen legend Patricia Neal as "Cookie"....what an ensemble! These great stars work beautifully together, and their comic timing is brillant.

The story starts out at a leisurely pace that gives you the perfect feel of Holly Springs, Mississippi, a small, slow-paced,antebellum town where everyone knows everyone. Then BANG..the little town is shaken up by the death of it's matriach, Jewel May "Cookie" Orcutt, and everyone gets involved with the murder investagation....but wait...was this actually a murder? Someone is sure trying to make it look that way! And uh-oh... the wrong man has been arrested and the police chief is out to prove his innocence. How does he know he's innocent...well..he fishes with him, of course!

Altman's superb direction,the wonderful twists and turns, the great camera work, the music, the terrific story and of course the fabulous ensemble make for a very entertaining 2 hours. You'll want to watch it over and over.

The DVD is a beautiful transfer. You have the choice of widescreen or full screen. The picture is clear and bright with great color. The sound offers the choice of Dolby 5.1 or stereo surround and is excellent. There are closed captions(English) and subtitles in Spanish and French. It includes cast bios and filmographies, and the theatrical trailer. You have the option of listening to the director commentary during the film as well.

So spend some time behind bars in Holly Springs, with Charles Dutton and Liv Tyler. Don't worry it's fun behind these bars..they never lock the bars, and you get to play scrabble and have some great meals! We are serving our famous "catfish enchildas" today!

Have fun with this one.....Laurie

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4.0 out of 5 stars Made for the Stage
I enjoyed this movie, but thought it'd make a better play. >you need to go rent and watch this movie (cookie's fortune).

the rest of this is spoilers .. Read more

Published on Sep 3 2003 by Ellis Godard

5.0 out of 5 stars "Fortune"ate choice at the Video Store
I stumbled onto this one (drawn in by the favorable Roger Ebert comment on the cover and its list of actors). I loved the heart and soul of this movie. Read more

Published on Nov 19 2002 by lonetoad

1.0 out of 5 stars Another Altman Clinker
When there used to be no readily graspable point to Altman films (at least points of the sort other mainstream movies had) it was a good thing. Read more

Published on Oct 10 2002

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Altman Ensemble Wins!
If you don't like Robert Altman, read no further... Why do you think Altman has the respect that he has? Read more

Published on July 5 2002 by R. Gawlitta

4.0 out of 5 stars Altman gleefully takes on Southern Gothic
There seems to be only two legendary directors that most actors are dying to work with. One is Woody Allen. The other is Robert Altman, who made Cookie's Fortune. Read more

Published on Mar 23 2002 by Matthew Horner

1.0 out of 5 stars Southern stereotypes, anyone?
If i were from the South, i'd be tremendously angry at yet another movie portraying Southerners as a collection of eccentric, dim-witted, or eccentric-dim-witted people. Read more

Published on Sep 18 2001 by Manola Sommerfeld

3.0 out of 5 stars Nothing Shocking...
A warm, well acted and well directed movie but nothing much happens unfortunately. Robert Altman's character sketches are quite extreme but still this makes a pretty amazing taste... Read more

Published on Jun 26 2001 by N.Aylin Ulusahin

5.0 out of 5 stars Cookies Fortune
I loved this movie! This film was full of unexpected surprise's and alot of laughts!

Glen Close does a wonderful job in this film, as well as Julianne Moore, Liv, and Robert... Read more

Published on Feb 26 2001

2.0 out of 5 stars This Cookie Crumbles
This is defintiely not one of Altman's best. I don't think it would even make it to his so-so list either. Gone is the bite of The Player or Mash. Read more

Published on Jan 25 2001

5.0 out of 5 stars Worth Your Attention
If you want to speak intelligibly about literary fiction from the New South but don't want to go to the trouble of reading it (though you should), watch Cookie's Fortune. Read more

Published on Jan 24 2001 by C. Ebeling

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