Alexander Stuart

Sterling Hayden and Elliott Gould discuss men's faces on the beach I sometimes wonder just why it is that I love Robert Altman's The Long Goodbye so much. I know that it's because it encompasses my love for California (especially at a time when I was still living in Britain and dreamed of living here - though living close to Malibu did nothing to diminish the film's allure). It's also because it encompasses my love of Chandler (rather obviously) and my belief that adaptations of anything should do whatever they wish, so long as they capture something of the spirit and intent of the author (and maybe even if they don't). A major factor is that it encompasses my love of the ocean - and Roger Wade/ Sterling Hayden is a kind of life model for me, with the craziness and the stick and the dog, though perhaps not the drinking or gambling or murder or suicide! But I would love a face like that and the sudden intensity and power he has, mixed wit...