No, it's not a documentary about the long-running NPR show (yes, I know - that's Garrison Keillor on stage, as the show's host, hawking Powdermilk Biscuits and all), but neither is it entirely concocted fiction (yes, I know - one of those people standing in the wings is an angel of death). The action takes place during the final performance of "A Prairie Home Companion," a live radio broadcast that is being shut down by a corporate chain, but the show goes on for one more night, tapping its own foot to a string of musical numbers and comedy routines (both onstage and off) that are nothing short of "down-home-exquisite" (Baltimore Sun). It's a uniquely charmed event, where "Altman's casual chaos meets Keillor's rhubarb-tinged nostalgia...Together they have confected a breezy backstage comedy that is also a sly elegy: a poignant contemplation of last things that goes down as smoothly and sweetly as a lemon drop." The all-star ensemble cast "moves through it all with relaxed professionalism, making the whole production look as effortless as Mr. Altman's sauntering dolly shots or Mr. Keillor's mellow riffs on the virtues of ketchup and duct tape...It's just wonderful. (NY Times) More at aprairiehomecompanionmovie.com.
2006, color, 1 hour 45 minutes, USA