What good is making a list if you can’t include a few hidden gems? In 1972, Images moved in and out of theaters making little money, though this Robert Altman masterpiece left a large, unforgettable imprint on many who were fortunate enough to buy a ticket. Today, half a century after its original release, streaming services and a Blu-ray restoration have given Images new life.

Having just watched Images for the first time, I can understand why this film did not gel with general audiences in 1972. It is wildly ambitious, applying an almost Lynchian logic at a time when audiences were less familiar with this type of film. (I could have just as easily categorized it with the Oddities.) The film is relentless in the way it blurs its narrative reality with fantasy, to the point where viewers gain no certainty at any given point about what is real. When reading about the film online afterwards, I could find no definitive interpretation, only further verification of my own suspicion that the film can never truly be fully understood. Like the puzzle motif the film employs, there are reveals when you start to isolate its pieces, and some pieces might fit better with repeat viewings- but that does not change the fact that not all of the pieces were included in the box.

The story is about Cathryn, a pregnant schizophrenic children’s author that gets a mysterious call one night by an anonymous woman accusing Cathryn’s husband of infidelity. After a brief, unsettling argument, Cathryn and her husband Hugh decide to retreat to her childhood home, an isolated cottage in rural Ireland. Once there Cathryn finds herself frequented by unwelcome houseguests. 

Discussions of the film often liken it to Polanski’s Repulsion, or, to a lesser extent, Bergman’s Persona. But instead of witnessing a slow descent into madness, Images depicts a protagonist, played expertly by Susannah York, who seems acutely aware she is insane early into the film and is actively developing and refining coping strategies to push through it, though her strategies clearly pose potential risks to herself and others. York moves seamlessly from confusion to assurance, seductress to woman in distress, sometimes within the span of the same short scene. The role earned York a Best Actress Award at Cannes. York portrays Cathryn as a woman with hidden layers and a secret past that begs discovery. And in those few moments where York must scream, the sound is authentic, chilling, and memorable, partly because the horrors she is responding to are the genuine stuff of domestic nightmares.

The team Altman gathered to help create Images is nothing sort of spectacular. The film is a masterclass in sound, cinematography and editing. John Williams (who famously scored Star Wars) was nominated for an Academy Award for the film’s hauntingly chilling soundtrack. Cinematographer Vilmos Zsingmond, equally deserves high praise for his ability to provide the film a claustrophobic, fragmented atmosphere, his unique choice of camera angles and his ability to capture and add depth to all of Altman’s haunting symbolism and imagery. Clever camera framing and inspired editing adds to the film’s persistent sense of schizophrenia, as we watch characters endlessly morph into other characters and the reality surrounding Cathryn fluidly changing.

Watching Images fifty years later, it is remarkably clear how ahead of its time the film truly was. There are few films better at forcing viewers to become active participants in the experience, challenging them to spot the clues to further decipher meaning. Altman was a pioneer of independent cinema, capable of collecting the right talent to make his visions come alive. With Images, Altman made a film that is not just outstanding as a psychological horror film, it also works as an intensely innovative cinematic experience. It is a genuine example of a horror film that doubles as art.