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The Long Goodbye

Play trailer Poster for The Long Goodbye R 1973 1h 52m Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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93% Tomatometer 58 Reviews 87% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
Private detective Philip Marlowe (Elliott Gould) is asked by his old buddy Terry Lennox (Jim Bouton) for a ride to Mexico. He obliges, and when he gets back to Los Angeles is questioned by police about the death of Terry's wife. Marlowe remains a suspect until it's reported that Terry has committed suicide in Mexico. Marlowe doesn't buy it but takes a new case from a beautiful blond, Eileen Wade (Nina van Pallandt), who coincidentally has a past with Terry.

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The Long Goodbye

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Critics Consensus

An ice-cold noir that retains Robert Altman's idiosyncratic sensibilities, The Long Goodbye ranks among the smartest and most satisfying Marlowe mysteries.

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Critics Reviews

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Richard Brody The New Yorker 12/19/2022
Altman holds genre clichés and conventions up to the light of modern life—and uses them as a prism to reveal its hidden tones. Go to Full Review Kevin Maher The Times (UK) 11/26/2021
4/5
Some of the improvisational scenes don't entirely work, but it's an ambitious and artful reinvention. Go to Full Review Philip French Guardian 07/17/2020
A masterpiece of sorts, it digs beneath the surface of the supposedly liberated spirit of the times to expose the ethos that took America into the Vietnam war and produced Watergate. Go to Full Review Michael Walsh The Province (Vancouver) 5d
A moody, diffuse and disorganized film, The Long Goodbye bids a painfully drawn-out farewell to Philip Marlowe as a screen character. Though I stuck to the absolute end, it was hard not to envy that uncommonly finicky cat. Go to Full Review Chance Solem-Pfeifer Willamette Week 04/17/2025
Even when The Long Goodbye is ’70s shaggy, director Robert Altman (at the height of his powers) maintains a core tension within Marlowe’s wild goose chase. Go to Full Review Keith Garlington Keith & the Movies 04/16/2024
4/5
It all comes down to the wisecracking Gould – messy and unkept, with a cigarette loosely dangling from the corner of his mouth. He’s the special sauce that makes the whole thing work and a perfect fit for the kind of movie Altman is shooting for. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Mark W @MinneMark612 Mar 15 Great plot and loved the gritty early 70's LA. I wish Gould's Marlowe wasn't quite so sloppy but overall I really liked the movie. I wish there were sequels. See more Jens B @Jens97 Feb 24 Why are there five "Dirty Harry" flicks but only one Philip Marlowe, created by Gould/Altman? Anyone with that kind of athletic stamina, despite being a chain smoker, can take on anything! Even the pickiest cat in the world. See more Frans B @FransB Nov 30 It might just be the "gloriously inspired tribute to Hollywood". Great adaptation of story. Good cinematography and beautifully brought to screen by Robert Altman. Whole cast excels in character convincingly. Benchmark noir movie. A true classic not to be missed See more A.L.Jude P @judebd Nov 28 Adaption gone haywire. Bit and pieces everywhere and does not fit in to a nightmarish comedy even. See more Corey S @sinn10304 Nov 17 A beebopping, free loving fever dream. The plot isn't as sharp and intricate as the novel, but that gives the film room to breathe while staying quick and breezy. See more Annie S @RT32858755 Oct 8 This is the ultimate early 70s movie about California. First watched by me in the 80s when I was, as a fan of Altman, Didion and other CA icons, simply blown away. Too many reviews harp on the 40's noire and Marlowe comparisons, which are sooo not the point. This movie is about the experience of California/LA and what it maybe meant to be in this phenomenally influential place at this time - part gangster, part scam and part art. It's the best exploration imaginable. The divine Henry Gibson represents all of One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest and more in his few, dry scenes. Sterling Hadyn viscerally portrays the artist, the guy who has ability, vision, machismo, and the classic inability to deal with his own fame, with having any belief in himself. Nina P is the ultimate representation of a Lady of The Canyon. And Elliot Gould carries the whole thing insouciantly on his shoulders. It remains firmly on my Top Ten Best Ever List. Put aside the Chandler baggage and view it as it is - So Cal when So Cal was probably the most culturally influential place of its time. Nothing is as it seems, nothing is dependable, life looks so sweet but feels essentially hollow, all is a sham. Enjoy!!! See more Read all reviews
The Long Goodbye

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Cast & Crew

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Robert Altman

Director

Elliott Gould

Philip Marlowe

Nina van Pallandt

Eileen Wade

Sterling Hayden

Roger Wade

Mark Rydell

Marty Augustine

Henry Gibson

Dr. Verringer

Movie Clips

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The Long Goodbye

The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Chasing Eileen Wade The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Chasing Eileen Wade 2:11 The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Wade's Suicide The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Wade's Suicide 2:10 The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Dr. Verringer's Clinic The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Dr. Verringer's Clinic 2:13 The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Walter Brennan The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Walter Brennan 2:13 The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Broken Bottle, Broken Face The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Broken Bottle, Broken Face 2:13 The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Take Off Your Clothes The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Take Off Your Clothes 2:08 The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - The Albino Turd The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - The Albino Turd 2:12 The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Freedom From Verringer's The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Freedom From Verringer's 2:12 The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Interrogation The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - Interrogation 2:12 The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - A Born Loser The Long Goodbye: Official Clip - A Born Loser 2:13 View more videos

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The Long Goodbye

The Long Goodbye (1973) The Long Goodbye (1973) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Private detective Philip Marlowe (Elliott Gould) is asked by his old buddy Terry Lennox (Jim Bouton) for a ride to Mexico. He obliges, and when he gets back to Los Angeles is questioned by police about the death of Terry's wife. Marlowe remains a suspect until it's reported that Terry has committed suicide in Mexico. Marlowe doesn't buy it but takes a new case from a beautiful blond, Eileen Wade (Nina van Pallandt), who coincidentally has a past with Terry.
Director
Robert Altman
Producer
Jerry Bick
Screenwriter
Raymond Chandler, Leigh Brackett
Distributor
United Artists
Production Co
United Artists
Rating
R
Genre
Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 7, 1973, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 16, 2008
Runtime
1h 52m
Sound Mix
Mono
Aspect Ratio
35mm, Scope (2.35:1)
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