LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION

Today I had the good fortune to see an advanced screening of Robert Altman's A Prairie Home Companion, which opens in theaters in June.

I'm a huge Altman fan, particularly Nashville, Short Cuts and 3 Women. But I've never been very fond of the Prairie Home Companion guru Garrison Keillor. He's very talented, yes, and I admire his commitment to keeping old-fashioned storytelling alive. It's just that his monotone delivery practically puts me in a coma.

So I went into the movie with mixed expectations, and left with a mixed - but mostly positive - reaction. Without giving too much away, the film chronicles a group of musicians who perform their longstanding live variety show for the last time (a corporate bigwig from out of town has bought them out). Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin are fantastic as a singing sister act, and there are fun performances from Kevin Kline, Woody Harrelson and Virginia Madsen. And to my surprise I actually liked the desert-dry witted Mr. Keillor, who plays the grand pooh-bah on the program.

There's not a lot of substance to sink your teeth into, and a supernatural subplot feels a bit incongruous to the main event. But the show's fun while it lasts. But if you don't like old-time and country music you might find yourself asking Calgon to take you away.