A Prairie Home Companion

I'm looking forward to the release of A Prairie Home Companion this Friday. I've been a listener of the radio show for about ten years now, and really enjoy Garrison Keillor's folksy, deadpan, Midwestern-flavored, liberal-tinged style of humor. I'm not as particularly interested in the usual musicians he has on the show, which usually run to the country, bluegrass and gospel style, but it doesn't hurt to get exposed to that sort of music once a week.

But beyond that, this film was directed by Robert Altman, which is intriguing, and has a dream cast: Meryl Streep, Lily Tomlin, Kevin Kline, Virginia Madsen, John C. Reilly, Woody Harrelson, Tommy Lee Jones, and even Lindsay Lohan!

I'm sure this film will be a hit with the teensy little NPR crowd, but wonder how it will do in multiplex land. This past weekend the radio show was at the Hollywood Bowl, and featured Streep, Madsen and Reilly doing radio acting, which was fun to listen to. Streep had a tour-de-force as a forties-era radio actress, who did everything from the farm report to a soap opera.

So, here's hoping this meets the expectations of PHC fans and finds a larger audience.