Thiis seems to have morphed into another topic, hence the change of topic header.
Wyler made great films, some greater than others. I would also put George Stevens up there, THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD nothwithstanding it's Hollywood "moments". I also think Ridley Scott is an industrial strength director, even despite a couple of duds like A GOOD YEAR (one of the few times Russell Crowe had given a totally mis-judged performance.... what were he and Ridley thinking?) or HANNIBAL (even if it gave Scott the chance to shoot Venice as he always wanted to, as he was once quoted soemwhere about his involvement in the film). He does, however, create extraordinary worlds whether it's ALIEN and BLADE RUNNER, or the epic history of KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, which in its long director's cut version is perhaps one of the richest of historical films and definitely highly recommended. And this is a real director's cut, unlike the long version of GLADIATOR which Scott virtually disses in his brief intro to the DVD... and says the cinema version was the Director's Cut. His "contemporary" films - such as BLACKHAWK DOWN, AMERICAN GANGSTER and BODY OF LIES are richly layered, superbly characterised and acted and frankly, there are few people who can stage intricate action sequences with the style of Scott. Ironically, it's the DVD of one of his smaller films, MATCHSTICK MEN, which contains one of the most illuminating views of the director at work, one of the few nuts and bolts documentary "extras" that give some real insight into the precision with which he makes his films. When one takes into account all the films and series that he and his and brother's company, Scott Free, have produced, then he's one of cinema's greats. Phil ----- Original Message ----- From: David Kusumoto To: [email protected] Sent: Friday, July 03, 2009 5:11 PM Subject: Re: [MOPO] Karl Malden, RIP at 97 (+ Sage Words from Orson Welles) ** That's a great story, Rich. I'm 100% w/you that people are better off being honest about their motivations and not apologize for them, e.g., your great story about John Ford -- and I'm also with you about the genius of William Wyler. But I think Wyler and Ford are only appreciated by film nuts. To me, Wyler has become "more forgotten" than even Victor Fleming, who was the subject of that recent New Yorker article about "Oz" and "GWTW." ** As I think I wrote earlier, many people mix Wyler up with the similar sounding Billy Wilder, who most film buffs consider the greater genius because he was a writer and director of dark comedies and dramas. But when you look at the list of classics directed by Wyler, including his Bette Davis pictures -- culminating w/the chain that began with "The Best Years of Our Lives" and continuing on through "Roman Holiday" and "Ben Hur" -- he had a Midas touch. At least until he hit a wall during the 1960s (though "Funny Girl" was a cinematically stylish musical, a new genre for him). He wasn't articulate but he was tough, funny and instinctively great. I think Wyler gets the shaft from many scholars in love with auteurs -- because his films don't have a visual signature. And he wasn't a "message-preacher" producer-director like Stanley Kramer either. ** But you look at the performances Wyler extracted from the actors in his films and you recognize his gifts. He certainly was a "in the moment" type of guy. The content of most of his better films is smart and undated. I turn into a sobbing wimp no matter how many times I watch "Best Years." It gets me every time. And you're right -- Wyler never cared about a "legacy." Yet I also understand if you're a Selznick or a Welles -- and you keep wondering if you're ever going to be able to top yourself. I think Coppola went through something similar when he did "Apocalypse Now," which is finally considered to be a fractured classic, because I remember the initial disappointment people had when that film was first released. But compared to the film that won the Best Picture of 1979 (Kramer vs. Kramer), "Apocalypse" looks fine indeed. ** Dustin Hoffman used to make fun of his friend, the late Sydney Pollack, saying Sydney suffered from "Oscar-itis." After Pollack won an Oscar for "Out of Africa" in 1985, Hoffman said Sydney didn't know what to do; he was frozen solid about his next project. He said Sydney couldn't decide whether he should deliver some picture even bigger than the one before or just get back into acting. ** Meanwhile, a director who I think is very underrated -- and deserves acclaim for lifetime achievement is Ridley Scott. Just look at his filmography and you just shake your head. Scorcese finally got his for a lesser film ("The Departed") -- while Scott keeps churning out these mini-masterpieces. Best, -d. -----Original Message----- Date: Thu, 2 Jul 2009 16:18:18 -0700 To: [email protected]; [email protected] From: [email protected] Subject: Re: [MOPO] Karl Malden, RIP at 97 (+ Sage Words from Orson Welles) Dave I think Selznik just felt that way because in Hollywood - it's all about ego in that job (Producer) if instead of trying to feed his ego, he looked at himself as being in lifelong a career.. he may have been able to make that better movie than GWTW. Look, I keep saying that William Wyler is one of my top directors.. every film he made was a masterpiece on it's own. He made great films because he was focused on what he was doing now.. not what he hoped to accomplish in the future, and that by doing his job well is how he cemented his legacy and he made some of the most highly revered films of all time. Selznik was always looking past what he was doing and his focus suffered from it. He wasn't trying to make money - he was trying to make the blockbuster of all time. that's a hard task. John Ford was once asked on a 1950s tv show by a British interviewer "when you made a movie, what were you trying to accomplish?" Ford thought for a second and then slowly lifted the cigar from his mouth and said (slowly raising his cigar as he spoke in a slow deliberate manner) "I was trying to accomplish... a check!" (and he stabbed the air with his cigar) it was the funniest thing I'd ever seen with Ford.. If Selznik had applied that kind of focus to his ideas.. he made yet have done what he was trying to accomplish Rich At 03:22 PM 7/2/2009, David Kusumoto wrote: ** Joe -- Your story about Selznick forever trying to top GWTW reminds me of Orson Welles, who could never top "Citizen Kane." ** Many years ago, writer-director Peter Bogdanovich was reminiscing with Welles about Greta Garbo -- lamenting how sad it was that someone so legendary -- only did 2 films that were great. ** Orson responded with a sage grin, "Well, Peter. You only need one." ** That's a great attitude to have about life's accomplishments. If more people could look back and say they did at least one thing that was near perfect -- whether it was raising their kids, finding the right soulmate, finishing that titanic project, whatever it was -- that's good enough. Then everything after would be a bonus. I think the root of unhappiness is the constant benchmarking of what we hope to accomplish -- with our careers, relationships, sex, money, material things, whatever -- against a manufactured snapshot in time. Riding with goal-oriented friends shouldn't stop us from sometimes going our own way. We just have to tune the negative shit out, otherwise we'll never stop beating ourselves up for not reaching goal "x" by age "y." I give people -- and myself -- pep talks about this all the time. ** So while Selznick was sad that he never topped GWTW -- most would take that in a heartbeat. Thus when people say, "Gee, poor Mark Hamill, he never did anything important after "Star Wars." I say, "so what? If his legacy is only about being Luke Skywalker, that's better than nothing. He'll never be forgotten." I think that's why Carroll Baker feels the way she does about "Baby Doll." Big things were expected of Baker after that fabulous picture -- but they didn't happen. That's OK. Because she'll always be "Baby Doll." -d. -----Original Message----- Date: Wed, 1 Jul 2009 22:46:48 -0700 From: [email protected] Subject: Re: Karl Malden, RIP at 97 To: [email protected] Thanks right back, David. It's sadly amusing that Malden himself chuckled that when he passed, all the obits would say that he would be "most famous for" the American Express commercials and the "Don't leave home without it" line. Like David O.Selznick, who always cried that his obits would lead, "David O. Selznick, the man who made 'Gone With the Wind," Malden was right. The difference is, Malden had already excelled in many different roles and types of characters. Selznick, argueably the greatest of Hollywood producers, strived (strove?) the rest of his life to top GWTW. He didn't succeed. I expect Selznick's Revenge will occur when Michael Bay remakes GWTW --- and the entire 4-hour spectacle is the explosive destruction by fire and brimstone of the 1864 city of Atlanta. Selznick will smile upwards and say, "Frankly, my......" Joe -----Original Message----- Date: Wed, 1 Jul 2009 21:22:59 -0700 From: [email protected] Subject: Re: Karl Malden, RIP at 97 To: [email protected] ** Thanks Joe! That's a great story about Malden; I never knew about that tidbit you wrote below, e.g., how he slipped in references to his birth name in his own pictures. I saw the picture you mentioned, Baby Doll, again last year and man oh man, that's still a HOT one. Made zero money because it was "condemned," but what stands out is its timelessness. That horny Eli Wallach. That repressed Karl Malden. And geez, that jail bait Carroll Baker; I like the fact that Baker acknowledges she now LOVES IT when people call her "Baby Doll." (Apparently she didn't like it when she was younger.) ** And thanks to everyone who wrote me publicly or mostly privately about crossing paths with that ultra-gentleman, Karl Malden. I appreciate it very much! It's not often a person like myself can come even close to matching the stories told by other members at MoPo who've crossed paths with bigger stars in New York or Hollywood. The only upside to San Diego is its climate (it's better than L.A.'s because we're on a harbor, not a basin) -- and the fact that many glitterati choose to retire here because its quiet. But we still have to drive three hours to L.A. to see stars in person -- that is, when they're still, as they say, "ambulatory" and in their prime. ** I was obviously impressed with Malden. Oh, I know he'll never be considered a "legend," but he was so total class off-screen -- and made many movies better -- by just being on-screen. As I wrote to a fellow MoPoer, he had a stature about him, almost regal in his old age -- that one would never think of when you saw him playing the "everyman" in his pictures. He was just a consistently great character actor. That he lived large -- and lived to be 97 -- I'm sure his family is satisifed with that. He outlived them all. Best, -d. -----Original Message----- Date: Wed, 1 Jul 2009 19:52:44 -0700 From: [email protected] Subject: Re: [MOPO] Karl Malden, RIP at 97 To: [email protected] CC: MOPO ListServ ( [email protected]) Wonderful story, David! I'm totally envious. The great Karl Malden is one of the actors I would have loved to meet. Just yesterday I remarked to a friend that there was only one film of a Tennessee Williams play (first filming) that still was represented by the three surviving leads--- "Baby Doll." Now that statistic is gone forever! Caroll Baker is still with us at about 78 and the indestructable Eli Wallach-- 95-- is still giving readings with his wife of about 60 years, Anne Jackson. He also still does films and tv occasionally. The last two things I remember were a cameo in "Mystic River" at the request of director Clint Eastwood and a wonderful turn on that excellent but short-lived tv series that was a backstage view of a "SNL"-type show a couple of seasons back. When the term, "They don't make 'em like that anymore," is heard, the reference is to actors like these. Jeremy Piven--- eat your heart out!!!!! Joe B in NOLA PS-- Malden always regreted having to change his real name (Mladen Sekulovich) for a sho-biz career. As he became more known he enjoyed inserting his name into scripts. The next time you watch "Patton," note when "General Bradley" turns to an officer and orders, "Sekulovich, take this ......" But my favorite one is: Malden is the prison warden in "Birdman of Alkatraz." He takes a reporter on to see Stroud (Lancaster) and, passing each cell, indicates the prisoner within...."Jones....Smith...Sekulovich." Joe -----Original Message----- Date: Wed, 1 Jul 2009 16:43:48 -0700 From: [email protected] Subject: Re: Karl Malden, RIP at 97 To: [email protected] ** In April 1998, when Karl Malden was 86, my wife and I got a chance to meet him and his daughter Carla at a screening of "On the Waterfront" at a theater in La Jolla, north of San Diego. He was also there to promote his fabulous and somewhat dishy memoir, "When Do I Start?" -- which had been released the year before in hardcover -- (and as of this writing, is still gloriously in print in paperback because it's that fantastic, esp. his impressions of the stars he worked with -- which he felt OK writing about -- given the fact that even in 1998, he had already outlived most of 'em). ** In conjunction with his appearance, I loaned my LB one-sheet to "On the Waterfront" to the film society group hosting his visit. It was displayed on stage after the screening -- and also at an adjacent bookstore where he signed copies of his books with his daughter, who wrote the text. He answered a ton of questions from the huge audience that turned out -- esp. what it was like working with Brando, Elia Kazan and Vivien Leigh. He said Kazan was a genius, that Leigh was closer to Blanche DuBois in real life than Blanche herself, and that Brando was the greatest actor he'd ever worked with. He spoke of Brando with great sadness, calling him a man who had everything -- drop-dead looks, talent and money -- but who became a corpulent, tragic figure who lost it all, squandering his money and becoming increasingly eccentric, working in bad projects after the Godfather, desperate to make money just to pay his bills. ** The entire night, Malden was sharp as a tack -- and had the command and respect you'd expect as a president of AMPAS -- but who also had that self-deprecating persona that made him endearing, esp. jokes about his lack of matinee idol looks, his Broadway stage experience vs. his work on film -- and his conviction that his years as a spokesman for American Express ("don't leave home without it") made him more famous than all of his other work combined. In fact, he joked that his obituaries would all mention his Oscar -- and predicted ALL would also mention his work for American Express -- saying it would be the "signature role for which he was better known to most of the public." ** The man we met that evening was gracious and accommodating to every fan present. He represented the "old Hollywood," the type like the late Gregory Peck and Charlton Heston -- and the still-with-us Tony Curtis out here in California -- who have good manners and love to mix with fans. Malden loved the attention -- and I got the impression he was ultra-surprised and ecstatic that a "supporting actor" could generate such a large turnout. He and his daughter signed our book thus: "To Koose and Yoe, best always from Carla Malden and Karl Malden." I took my "On the Waterfront" poster off its easel and asked him to sign it. He did, just above his name credit. I've mentioned this poster several times to the MoPo group -- in the context of certain signatures which add sentimental value -- but don't add $$ value to vintage movie memorabilia. That poster is no longer in my collection -- but I recall it fetched an OK price. But I kept his book, personalized as it is. I view it similarly as my "Psycho" poster, whereby Janet Leigh, during a visit in 2000, personalized her signature, "To David -- Psycho-tically yours, Janet Leigh." -d. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___________________________________________________________________ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: [email protected] In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___________________________________________________________________ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: [email protected] In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
