One more detail for now:
Ronee Blakley. Oh my god. Where did she come from? And where did she go?
That performance is beyond stupendous. But her songs, and those orchestrations. Gorgeous. Next time I run this I'm cranking it up on the Big Speakers. Of course I always watch a movie with the Big Speakers. But I'll plan on having a real theater-level experience next time.
I'm someone who's largely indifferent to this genre of music. Hell's bells, the main reason I never felt compelled to see the movie was because of its setting and what I knew the general musical style would be. It won't change my lifelong musical preferences, but I can certainly love what's up there on the screen. Thank you, Mr. Altman, sir.