Shelley Duvall: The 'Unconventional' Muse

THE NEST, CERTAIN WOMEN, and THE DEATH OF STALIN are streaming on MUBI in the US.

In 1970, director Robert Altman asked a then unknown Shelley Duvall if she'd like to be in a movie. She'd never taken an acting lesson in her life, but she took a risk and said yes. Over the next decade, the pair made 7 films together, 4 of which Duvall features in a significant role: Brewster McCloud, Thieves Like Us, 3 Women, and Popeye. In this video, I take a look at their creative partnership, the specific ways in which Altman utilizes Duvall, the limits of his support, and how he got the best out of her.

Music by Epidemic Sound

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[wkwyqdr]

Respect for talking about her career outside of the Shining.

[sarlukowski]

Thank you for not focusing on The Shining like so many of these “deep dive” videos do. Shelley got exactly what she wanted out of her career and was proud of it! Sincerely, Shelley Duvall Archive.

[gloss]

NOBODY MOVE BKR HAS DROPPED A SHELLEY DUVALL VIDEO

[jean-luceldenwood]

3 Women is a triumph in acting and filmmaking - I had no idea she wrote 80% of her own dialogue, how fascinating. Such a special human.

[benwasserman]

I can't exactly say the Popeye movie was great. But Duvall was perfect Olive Oyl casting.

[pssurvivor]

she truly was something. every time i see her, either in a film or an interview, i'm instantly charmed and captivated. she's like charming bird.

[martymcflown]

The reviews saying she'd never win a beauty contest after the clip of her looking absolutely stunning during an interview at 53:44 made me feel like I was taking crazy pills.

[luvluvu]

Fairy tale theater has such a special place in my heart. I always remember going to the library with my family and getting the vhs and immediately getting excited hearing “hi! I’m Shelly Duvall and welcome to fairy tale theater…” thank you so much for such a beautiful look at her early works. I will need to check them out 😊

[LynnHermione]

38:18 She better have gotten credit AND pay for all the work she did! She legally should be listed as screenwriter!

[horseenthusiast]

Aw, this one is bittersweet. I haven't seen all of Duvall's films, but she's so absolutely charming in everything I've seen her in, so I'm happy to have more to watch. I wish she could have had much more recognition of her talents as a screenwriter and producer in life, and I am amazed at her skill in costuming and set decorating. Learning how much she contributed, especially to the costumes of her roles, makes me respect her even more than I already did. I love costuming and have done some for local theater productions (as well as personal costume projects and designs), and I think it's an aspect of storytelling that people truly undersell; they think it's just there to look pretty or silly or cool, when in actuality it tells SO MUCH of the story and is essential to establishing the setting. I think Duvall had a really good sense of that, and it shines through in the little choices she made for the costumes of her characters.

[nancyboucher]

I shouted "bless your heart" out loud. You ALWAYS know the right videos to release at the right time, just slightly off-center of the zeitgeist to rearrange our eyes to where we should be looking.

[biancachristie]

As a Texan and a Gen X gal,
I grew up with Shelley as part of the landscape of my childhood. I love that there are young(er) folks who are rediscovering her beauty and talent ❤️

[KatyTerBerg]

I echo some of the other comments in saying that your timing is IMPECCABLE. I always liked Shelley Duvall, but beyond The Shining and Fairy Tale Theatre, I didn't watch that much of her work. But after her tragic passing I've sought out more of her work and she was absolutely captivating. There really was no one like her.

[fuzzykyrra]

When someone passes away it's easy to get stuck ruminating on the tragedy of their end, rather than reminiscing about their glory days. Thank you for reminding us of why we fell in love with her in the first place ❤️

[fleursciortino]

Oooo what a coincidence! I watched the Maxxxine trilogy yesterday, and I ended up discussing how much Mia Goth reminds me of Duvall! Two talented and beautiful women!

[TrangPakbaby]

Shelley in “3 women”…
Brilliant, captivating, vulnerable, strong and utterly beautiful ❤

[orinanime]

Robert Altman's Shelley Duvall's Suzanne is not just an interesting take on the Femme Fatale but also an interesting take on the manic pixie dream girl.

[collinmichaelkahn]

I legit cried at the end of this. Ugh.

So hard to explain to anybody who wasn’t there or didn’t live through it, but FTT was a magical moment in so many of us 80’s babies collective lore & history.

And yes: her not being nommed for 3 Women is a woeful blight on the Academy’s overall decent legacy and history.

But on some level winning the Cannes best actress is a bigger honor and makes more sense.

RIP to a true original. They are in short supply in our modern times and I can’t not say “they just don’t make ‘em like this anymore.”

One of your best subjects and a really solid essay this month BKR. Cheers and best as always. Been “with” you since 2019 and been a joy watching you just get better and better. ❤️

[logicn.reasoning]

Shelly was the first "manic pixie dream girl." Especially in Brewster McCloud

[ppelpgj]

I've sung the praises of 3 Women for 40 years, and it still seems relatively unseen outside of people who caught it on late night television or cinemaphiles (I'm certainly the former) so I'm thrilled you focused on it so heavily in this amazing essay. Such a weird, dreamy movie that really sticks in your head. Still one of my favorites after all these years.