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Quintet (1979)

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Top Critics

Average Rating: 3.2/10
Reviews Counted: 8
Fresh: 1 | Rotten: 7

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Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 2
Fresh: 0 | Rotten: 2

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Average Rating: 2.7/5
User Ratings: 486

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Movie Info

Perhaps the least seen but most talked about film of Robert Altman's career, Quintet is a somber science fiction tale that takes place after a nuclear holocaust has thrown the world into another Ice Age. A man named Essex (Paul Newman) and his pregnant wife Vivia (Brigitte Fossey) are wandering the desolate, frozen landscape and attempting to find Essex's brother, Francha (Tom Hill). They finally locate him in a frozen city, occupied by a number of apocalyptic survivors who who pass their time

R, 1 hr. 58 min.

Drama, Mystery & Suspense, Science Fiction & Fantasy

Directed By: Robert Altman

Written By: Robert Altman, Lionel Chetwynd

In Theaters: Jan 1, 1979 Wide

On DVD: Apr 25, 2006

Cast

Paul Newman
Essex
Vittorio Gassman
St. Christopher
Fernando Rey
Grigor
Bibi Andersson
Ambrosia
Brigitte Fossey
Vivia
Nina Van Pallandt
Seuca
David Langton
Goldstar
Tom Clarke Hill
Francha
Monique Mercure
Redstone's Mate
Craig Richard Nelson
Redstone
Marushka Stankova
Jaspera
Anne Gerety
Aeon
Michael Maillot
Obelus
Max Fleck
Wood Supplier
Fran�oise Berd
Charity house woman
Thomas Hill

Critic Reviews for Quintet

All Critics (10) | Top Critics (2) | Fresh (1) | Rotten (7) | DVD (2)

All great directors must be arrogant to the extent that they will follow their dreams through to the bitter, sometimes banal end. This time Mr. Altman's faith in himself has led him over the brink.

May 9, 2005 Full Review Source: New York Times

| Comment

Vincent Canby

New York Times

Top Critic

The narrative is convoluted, the characters thin, and the pace appropriately glacial; burdened with opaque metaphysical dialogue and bizarre, medieval-looking costumes.

December 16, 2001 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader

| Comment

Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

Top Critic

The pace of Quintet is as glacial as its setting. A career nadir for Paul Newman.

November 24, 2006 Comment

Chuck O'Leary

FulvueDrive-in.com

A baffling film whose ultimately hollow idiosyncrasies speak to Altman's self-destructive streak more than they constitute an applicable allegory

April 27, 2006 Full Review Source: Film Freak Central

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Bill Chambers

Film Freak Central

a painful attempt at depth that comes across as nothing more than utter pretentiousness

April 19, 2006 Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com

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Christopher Null

Filmcritic.com

Slow, confusing, and for Altman fans only.

January 3, 2005 Comment

Steve Crum

Kansas City Kansan Source: Kansas City Kansan

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Audience Reviews for Quintet

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It's hard for me to call Robert Altman's "Quintet" an out right terrible film because everything we see on screen seems entirely deliberate. From the slow pace, to the detailed production design, to the multiracial casting, to the etherial score, to the philosophical musings- "Quintet" seems extremely self assured.

May 17, 2011