Kansas City

...will impress and satisfy those who have been following [Robert Altman] since the days of MASH, The Long Goodbye, Nashville and Three Women.

Altman tells a fairly straightforward story about a gun moll who kidnaps a politician's wife, but there's a lot more to the film than its story.

The film plays like part homage, part affectionate parody of old-time noir thrillers.

The three leads offer richly nuanced performances, and Altman and co-screenwriter Frank Barhydt (...) expertly weave such disparate elements as jazz, political corruption, racial tension, marital discord and rabid movie fandom...