Saturday, January 6----It is going to take a long time to get over the loss of such a monumental and influential film talent as Robert Altman. The maverick director, who was one of the few to move in and out of both the Hollywood studio system and the independent film world, and yet remain true to his own vision and artistic process, is already sorely missed. To reacquaint a new generation with the astonishing diverse films of his career, The IFC Center, one of New York's most ambitious cathedrals of cinema, will devote the next three weeks to a 27-film retrospective of the master. Aptly titled AN ARTIST AND A GAMBLER: REMEMBERING ROBERT ALTMAN, the program is a testament to the risk-taking and artistic integrity of a singular film talent.

The series begins this weekend with Altman's first major smash, the anti-war classic M*A*S*H* (1970). The film, an improbable studio production, was set during the Korean War, but its anti-establishment air of anarchy was clearly a comment on the Vietnam War that was at its height. The idiocy, intimacy and unbearable tedium of war that the film depicts is a sober reminder as America is again embroiled in a foolhardy quagmire.

The film series, which runs through January 23rd, has unearthed a number of rare Altman finds, including his first known film, THE DELINQUENTS (1957); and his rarely seen films of the late 1960s: the sci-fi film COUNTDOWN (1968) and the chilly relationship drama THAT COLD DAY IN THE PARK (1969).

Included, of course, are some of Altman's best known and most beloved films of the 1970s: the moody, modern Western McCABE AND MRS. MILLER (1971), starring Warren Beatty and Julie Christie; the neo-noir Depression-era gangster film THIEVES LIKE US (1974); the multi-character milestone on American values NASHVILLE (1975); and the enigmatic THREE WOMEN (1977), with stellar performances by Shelly Duvall, Sissy Spacek and Janice Rule.

Films from the late 1970s and 1980s, when Altman was considered a bit out of favor, are ripe for re-discovery, including such underrated works as the multi-character A WEDDING (1979); the satire on the medical industry, HEALTH (1980); the filmed adaptation of his Broadway debut COME BACK TO THE FIVE AND DIME, JIMMY DEAN, JIMMY DEAN (1982); the sardonic relationship drama A PERFECT COUPLE (1979); the film version of the Sam Shepherd theater piece FOOL FOR LOVE (1985); and the intense historical drama about Vincent Van Gogh and his art dealer brother, VINCENT AND THEO (1989).

Altman's film comeback, a cynical satire on amoral Hollywood entitled THE PLAYER (1992) reignited the director's career and cache in Hollywood. From that point on through last year's A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION (2006), Altman remained highly prolific. In fact, at his death in November 2006, he was already at work on several new projects. He had the distinction, unlike other film greats, to work till his last breath.

The series includes the significant films of his later period, including the sublimely ridiculous Los Angeles zeitgeist pastiche SHORT CUTS (1993); the anarchic satire on haute couture, PRET-A-PORTER (1994); the neo-Gothic COOKIE'S FORTUNE (1999); and the elegantly understated British comedy of manners GOSFORD PARK (2001).

The list of films is an astonishing legacy of a director who never repeated himself, was always taking risks and artistic leaps, and who held up an industry standard that has been an inspiration for fledgling filmmakers young enough to be his grandchildren.

AN ARTIST AND A GAMBLER: REMEMBERING ROBERT ALTMAN is presented in collaboration with Sandcastle 5, Altman's production office, and a portion of ticket sales will benefit the Genitourinary Oncology Research Fund in Memory of Robert Altman at Weill Medical College of Cornell University.

For a full list of films and the screening schedule, log on to the website: IFC Center

Sandy Mandelberger
Film New York Editor