Tonight we bring you the latest episode in our weekly Guest Post series: Medium Cool with BGinCHI
In case you missed the introduction to the series:
Culture as a Hedge Against this Soul-Sucking Political Miasma We’re Living In
Tonight’s Topic: Fascinated by Sydney Pollack
Take it away, BG!
I’ve done a lot of research on my hometown for a novel and short stories (one in the forthcoming Midwest Review #8), but one of my most abiding fascinations is that the director/actor/producer Sydney Pollack was born there July 1, 1934. His parents were Russian/Jewish immigrants, and they didn’t stay in Lafayette all that long. But just being able to imagine the urbane, sophisticated Pollack running around in short pants there has always made me really happy.
That sense of connection has led me to linger over his films with more alacrity than I might normally have for a filmmaker seldom thought of as an innovator. As Roger Ebert wrote in his obituary for Pollack in 2008, “To mention the titles of some of his films is to stir smiles, affection, nostalgia, respect.” Pollack acknowledged not being the most avant-garde director, commenting that “My strength is with actors. I think I’m good at working with them to get the best performances, at seeing what it is that they have and that the story needs.”
His films attest to this, though I think he undersells how good his framing is of scenes and situations. He reminds me of a less-aggressive Soderbergh, who is so good at visual narrative we forget about the filmmaking. I’ve been contemplating a biography of him, but have been unsure whether it would be desired, and whether I’m capable of writing it.
So let’s take a look at his career. In his long list of films as a director are “They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?” “Out of Africa,” “Three Days of the Condor,” “Yakuza,” “Jeremiah Johnson,” and probably my favorite, “Tootsie.” There are many more, especially those in which he acted. I love him onscreen and he’s always terrific.
Here’s his filmography: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Films_directed_by_Sydney_Pollack
Curious what you all think about his work.
Paul M Gottlieb
And let’s not forget, he was a more than adequate actor when he wanted to be
Betty Cracker
Pollack was terrific in Tootsie, and I always figured his heart was really in that role because he got to complain about the neurotic behavior he encountered in real life in the industry.
Wasn’t there a blog back in the olden days that used to periodically review films that were 20+ years old? I don’t mean in an esoteric sense, like a study of nihilistic motifs in 1940s film noir — more like a consumer-grade review of Moonstruck, only written in 2007.
That was fun!
NotMax
One of his strengths, I think, arose from being trained in acting before moving on to directing.
That’s not to say all actors necessarily make good directors but in his case he seemed to intuitively harness his training and experience in order to gear the direction in service of the acting rather than try to push or mold the acting in service of the direction.
zhena gogolia
I was about to say “I love Sabrina,” then I realized . . . .
I liked Tootsie and Three Days of the Condor, but I can’t say I’m a connoisseur of his work.
Ruckus
He made some really good films. I haven’t seen all of them but I’ve seen, as best as I recall about 60% of them. And liked all of them. That says a lot about his work for me, as it’s unusual for me to like that much of any directors work.
BGinCHI
@Paul M Gottlieb: I think he’s a terrific actor, and would have been a great character actor had he not been directing so much.
BGinCHI
@NotMax: I think this is right.
It’s also his rep that when you needed a pro for a challenging project, Pollack was a go-to. He could make a risky project work.
Like Tootsie, or Yakuza, which was written by Paul Schrader who was paid a fortune for the script, then location shooting with legend actors, etc.
BGinCHI
@zhena gogolia: I don’t care for either Sabrina.
Honestly, it’s not that SP was a genius with a philosophy or particular story to tell. He was a craftsman who knew how to get the whole, messy ensemble to work together.
I don’t think we celebrate that talent often enough. It’s easy to ignore while chasing after shinier objects.
Delk
He voiced the foot fetish video director who couldn’t get enough of Peggy Hill’s size sixteen feet.
James E Powell
When I say I love Sydney Pollack’s work I mean L-U-V, LUV!
Favorites as director: Jeremiah Johnson, Three Days of the Condor, Absence of Malice, Tootsie.
Favorites as actor, however small the role: George Fields in Tootsie, the scene in the Russian Tea Room. Dick Mellon in The Player (“the rumors are always true”), Warren Feldman in Sopranos, Stage 5 episode (“Let me spare you the awkwardness. I killed my wife.”)
BGinCHI
@Delk: Grant Trimble!!
eric
love this scene
James E Powell
@BGinCHI:
Agree completely. And this applies to everything, not just films, not just entertainment.
eric
never saw this interview before
Mary G
He always seemed like a mensch in interviews, and I did love his acting.
BGinCHI
@James E Powell: I just re-watched The Player and I forgot that!
And I hadn’t remembered the Soprano’s appearance at all.
It took me a long time to recognize that everything I watched with him just lit up, for some reason I couldn’t explain. I have the same reaction to the character actor Luis Guzmán, whose filmography is gigantic.
Really pleased you like his work. I was afraid this thread might be a dud…….
BGinCHI
@eric: About the best 4 minutes of film ever in a comedy, for me.
WereBear
Love him as director and actor. Once said “80% of getting it right is casting.”
He could shoot the kind of film I normally don’t like and make it watchable. But adore Tootsie and Three Days of the Condor, especially since they are very different films.
So versatile.
Benw
I love his modern art. The splatter and drip technique was so evocative
BGinCHI
@eric: Whoa, hey, thanks!
He didn’t do very many.
BGinCHI
@Benw: Well, we almost got past 20 comments before that one.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
And I hadn’t remembered the Soprano’s appearance at all.
totally slipped my mind and in quarantine I’ve been on and off rewatching the Sopranos for the… 5th time? 6th?
I haven’t seen Absence of Malice in years, but every time I see the title referenced I think I should rewatch it. Underrated movie, as I recall. I know I’ve seen Three Days of the Condor, but it’s been so long it would be like seeing if for the first time again. And Jeremiah Johnson…. for this scene alone.
BGinCHI
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I’ve rewatched all of those apart from Absence, which I agree on: need to see again. Hardly remember it.
Just watched The Firm the other night. Excellent film, with a great cast, and Cruise doing some real acting.
Jeremiah Johnson was one of my favorite films as a kid. I love the quiet space in that film.
pajaro
I really liked Jeremiah Johnson and Absence of Malice, and he was great in Michael Clayton.
piratedan
I always conflated his style with drama like Sidney Lumet, in that he trusted his actors to inhabit their characters… also appeared to have a certain understanding with Robert Redford and managed to elicit some of his best dramatic performances from him…
of that list, I have to admit that Three Days of the Condor and Absence of Malice probably work the best for me due to the subject matter and how he handles characters who “lack control of their lives”.
BGinCHI
@pajaro: Totally agree on Michael Clayton, which I think is a very great film. Terrific screenplay for those who read them.
Tony Jay
I’m so ridiculously unobservant that I didn’t realise that was actually Sydney Pollack. He just looks like a proper character actor. Never plays the star, but nails the supporting actor spot every time.
I like a movie you can just relax into and trust that it’s going to tell whatever its story is without misfiring dialogue or jarring scenes. From his back catalogue it’s pretty evident that Syd P was damned good at that.
BGinCHI
@piratedan: A little less gritty than Lumet, but I see what you mean in terms of performances. Good point.
Kind of like Pakula too, though the latter’s genius was to get the greatest DP ever to shoot his best films.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@BGinCHI: Gene Hackman could bring just about everything and everyone up to his level. Though I haven’t been tempted to watch Welcome to Mooseport. It’s the kind of movie I would have dozed through with a hangover, in younger days.
debbie
I expect I’m in the minority here, but Out of Africa is one of my very favorite movies.
West of the Rockies
I haven’t seen it since the late 80s, but I very much enjoyed Out of Africa. Don’t know if it holds up or has become “problematic,” but I remember it threading the narrow path between intellect, emotion, and a sort of spirituality.
prostratedragon
Bravo! is what I think. Especially like Three Days of the Condor, but his list is full of pictures I like but might not have recalled that he was the director –e.g. The Firm, or They Shoot Horses, Don’t They for pete’s sake. Actually saw the latter at the State-Lake when it first came out.
Just recently watched Michael Clayton and was reminded of what a good actor he was. I think you have to be good to play a part memorably but not in a flashy way, and he did that often; also Victor Ziegler in Eyes Wide Shut, and that Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode, where he had the lead.
And I’m always forgetting that he was from Chicago, perhaps because he did New York proud in several of his movies (see also William Friedkin).
Roger Moore
@BGinCHI:
I think people tend to put too much emphasis on inspiration and creativity and too little on craftsmanship. I would personally prefer to see an unoriginal but well crafted movie over an inspired one with poor craftsmanship.
BGinCHI
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Strange role for Hackman in The Firm, but he makes the film better.
What was Gene’s last great role? Hmmm.
CaseyL
Until now I didn’t realize Sydney Pollack had directed all those movies, all of which I enjoyed. What’s amazing to me is how different they all are from one another. That, to me, is brilliance: being able to create movies with such differing themes, tones, and pacing – and all of them very, very good.
BGinCHI
@debbie: Not really my kind of film, but it’s really well-executed. Again, Pollack making it look easy…..
debbie
@BGinCHI:
Whattaya got against romantical???
BGinCHI
@prostratedragon: Yes, his career kind of sneaks up on you.
He wasn’t from Chicago, though, for the record. Grew up mostly in South Bend, IN (born in Lafayette, IN).
Phylllis
@BGinCHI: We went to Memphis on vacation last summer and enjoyed looking for movie locations for The Firm and Mystery Train (which is not a Sydney Pollack work, but a terrific Memphis film).
BGinCHI
@debbie: Character flaw, obviously.
rikyrah
The Way We Were
” She’s lovely, Hubbell.”
Love sometimes isn’t enough.
And, that movie made me realize that Robert Redford had no choice- he had.to become a movie star. He was too aesthetically beautiful not to.
Tootsie
Just loved it.
The Firm
Next to The Pelican Brief- my favorite Grisham adaptation. My favorite part is when he turned sweet Wilfred Brimley into a mean sunovabitch, telling Cruise that he could destroy his marriage with one envelope.
Sabrina
SABRINA??????
Oh, how I love that movie. I love the soundtrack. I love the visuals. I love Harrison Ford. I love Nancy Marchand..Richard Crenna. Julia Ormond.
‘Save me, Sabrina Fair. You’re the only one who can.’???
BGinCHI
Let’s add another film to this.
Anyone seen Bobby Deerfield? 1977, script by Alvin Sargent.
Sadly kind of forgotten.
BGinCHI
@Phylllis: Jarmusch!
Have you seen the series “Quarry”? From a great set of 70s detective novels, written and directed by a couple smart dudes, set in Memphis. It was one season on Cinemax, before those ASSHOLES cancelled it.
Seek it out.
BGinCHI
@rikyrah: I love your enthusiasm. Amazing how many different tones and genres SP got right (mostly). A pro’s pro.
Phylllis
@rikyrah: Re Sabrina, don’t forget Dana Ivey, who just slays with every line.
“World’s only living heart donor.”
“We were up to our elbows in your underwear drawer; it was like touching the Shroud of Turin.”
BGinCHI
@BGinCHI: Shout out to the actress Marthe Keller, who was in Bobby Deerfield as well as Black Sunday (Frankenheimer).
Great actress.
Phylllis
@BGinCHI: No, I’ll have to hunt it down. I become obsessed with films & TV that are set in places I’ve visited or lived.
prostratedragon
@BGinCHI: South Bend!
Well, anyway …
CliosFanBoy
Castle Keep was an interesting war film.
BGinCHI
@Phylllis: “Quarry” is tremendous. Seriously.
BGinCHI
@CliosFanBoy: I’ve never seen it! Am on the hunt for it, though.
Omnes Omnibus
Three Days and JJ would be good enough as high points of a career.
Phylllis
@BGinCHI: Amazon Prime has it for $14.99 for the season; I’ve certainly
pissed awaywasted more money on less satisfying things.prostratedragon
I see he was the director for Amazing Grace, which reminds me that I have to see it soon.
He has a strong list as executive/producer/not director as well: The Fabulous Baker Boys, Searching for Bobby Fischer, The Talented Mr. Ripley, etc., etc, …
Phylllis
@CliosFanBoy: Burt Lancaster. So yummy.
Steeplejack
Three Days of the Condor (1975) holds up very well. There’s a little gooey Stockholm syndrome stuff in there, but the first 20 minutes is riveting and locks you in. Looking at his list on IMDB, that’s my personal favorite. What strikes me is that he did good work in a variety of genres. Not a genius, but an extremely able craftsman in the late studio/post-studio era.
I probably need to watch Tootsie again, but I have to admit that I always found it kind of “broad.” Yes, it’s funny and very well acted, but all of the jokes feel kind of “teed up” in a way that, say, La Cage aux Folles doesn’t. Probably the script, not Pollack.
rikyrah
@Phylllis:
???
BGinCHI
@Omnes Omnibus: Agree. Plus Tootsie.
CliosFanBoy
@Phylllis: In an eyepatch yet!!
I like Peter Falk’s character, a baker in civilian life.
“I’m a baker.”
“I’m a baker’s wife.”
……a touching scene
BGinCHI
@Phylllis: You might be able to buy it on disk cheaper than that…..
rikyrah
@prostratedragon:
I bought Amazing Grace for less than $10 on Amazon video a few weeks ago
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@rikyrah: his Sabrina is good as remakes go, but you feel the difference without the original cast
I mean, how do you replace Nancy Kulp?
BGinCHI
@Steeplejack: Well, Tootsie was written by Larry Gelbart, with Barry Levinson and Elaine May (both uncredited), so I don’t see how it gets much better than that.
Its problem (if it has one) is that it’s a serious comedy, and that’s the hardest thing to pull off. So few get it right.
BGinCHI
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Why would anyone remake a Billy Wilder film?
Omnes Omnibus
@BGinCHI: Lost a bet.
Steeplejack
@BGinCHI:
I usually wouldn’t link Pollack with Pakula, but I admit that I checked to make sure that Pollack and not Pakula directed Three Days of the Condor. Shoe on the other foot, I could see Pollack directing Klute.
NotMax
@BGinCHI
Have always viewed it more as a live action cartoon.
Phylllis
@Steeplejack: And would probably have avoided the weakness of using the perspective of the killer to create suspense, which didn’t quite work. Having said that, we watched Klute a few months ago on TCM and the relationship between Klute and Bree was almost breathtaking in its richness. I wasn’t surprised to learn from Karina Longworth’s podcast that Jane and Donald were involved during the filming.
BGinCHI
@Steeplejack: It fits right in there with Pakula’s trilogy. Something in the air at that time, for sure…. So much New Hollywood greatness.
BGinCHI
@NotMax: It’s way better than that. Last quarter has to labor for a wrap-up, but even there, that climactic scene reveal in the soap opera is masterful.
It gets better every time I watch it.
BGinCHI
@Phylllis: I teach Klute regularly, and it is a brilliant, brilliant film. It takes time to get its rhythms down, I think.
One its main strengths is the way its script and Gordon Willis’s photography make a world that’s utterly different from any thriller like it. Bree’s character takes a lot of re-viewings (rewatching her therapy sessions and the way they’re shot is really important).
I LOVE that film.
Phylllis
@BGinCHI: OHMYGOD, I could not stop thinking about it after we watched it. I saw it a million years ago on cable and sort of missed the point of it the first time. Probably due to my youth and emotional inexperience.
As usual, Ebert nails it about Fonda: She has a sort of nervous intensity that keeps her so firmly locked into a film character that the character actually seems distracted by things that come up in the movie. You almost have the feeling, a couple of times in “Klute,” that the Fonda character had other plans and was just leaving the room when this (whatever it is) came up.
J R in WV
@debbie:
ME too. Great film, great tension, great scenery, great actors, great film.
BGinCHI
@Phylllis: GREAT quote.
It really, really deserves many viewings. It’s so fab.
BGinCHI
@J R in WV: OK, time to rewatch it……
zhena gogolia
@BGinCHI:
I saw it when it came out but have absolutely no recollection of it except that it involves Al Pacino.
zhena gogolia
@BGinCHI:
Oh, yeah, based on the Wikipedia article, I’ve seen that one too. I liked it. Anything with Bruce Dern.
NotMax
@BGinCHI
Interesting, and just shows to go ya.
Exactly the opposite for me; have found each subsequent viewing a lesser experience.
zhena gogolia
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
Oh, yes, Nancy Kulp. And that other one — Audrey something . . .
Wyatt Salamanca
For me, Three Days of the Condor is Pollack’s best film. After that, the ones that stand out most for me are The Slender Thread, This Property Is Condemned, Absence of Malice, Castle Keep, and The Interpreter.
Steeplejack
@zhena gogolia:
I got a crush on Marthe Keller and thought she was going to be big, but no. (I see that she went back to Europe and is still big there.)
piratedan
Gotta admit as films go… i’m not sure that I’ve ever seen a supporting actor completely take over a movie the way Wilford Brimley did in Absence of Malice… he’s in the movie maybe 10 minutes but the use of his character as the mechanism of destruction wielded by Newman’s character almost makes you wanna smoke a cig after that unfolds…
James E Powell
@BGinCHI:
Most people will say Royal Tenenbaum.
My own favorite late career Hackman is Joe Moore in Heist.
Joe Moore: Anybody can get the goods. The hard part’s getting away.
Bergman: Uh-huh.
Joe Moore: You plan a good enough getaway, you could steal Ebbets Field.
Bergman: Ebbets Field’s gone.
Joe Moore: What did I tell you?
Phylllis
@BGinCHI: Do you ever discuss Bree’s cat that appears out of nowhere and doesn’t make the cut for the trip to Pennsylvania?
BGinCHI
@Wyatt Salamanca: The Interpreter is really solid.
BGinCHI
@James E Powell: Both great contenders. Tenenbaums, for me.
BGinCHI
@Phylllis: Isn’t one of them carrying a cat carrier/cage thing at the end?
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@James E Powell: @BGinCHI: he was scary good in The Unforgiven
Nora Lenderbee
How do you linger with alacrity?
hueyplong
Love this thread. Was telling my daughter last week that Sidney P in Michael Clayton was the most realistic law firm name partner in movie history.
Narrow niche, but still.
BGinCHI
@Nora Lenderbee: Intense lingering, with a can-do attitude, but held in reserve, is my brand.
BGinCHI
@hueyplong: He just slays in those opening scenes. Like everyone else in the film is genuinely afraid of him. And then the scene at his house. Like Sydney is always busy with something then a crisis shows up, he solves it, and then resumes the search for his other sock or whatever.
Wyatt Salamanca
@James E Powell:
I’m huge fan of films in the heist genre and Heist is among my favorites (nice bit dialogue you selected). In addition to the performances of Gene Hackman and Delroy Lindo, I loved Ricky Jay and wish he’d been in many more films.
@BGinCHI:
Yes, I thought Pollack did a masterful job in creating lots of dramatic tension and I loved the casting of Sean Penn and Nicole Kidman.
columbusqueen
@J R in WV: Not to mention great music. I think John Barry’s score for Out of Africa is by far his finest.
Wyatt Salamanca
@hueyplong:
Totally agree, Sydney Pollack always delivered solid acting performances. I especially liked Pollack’s performance in Eyes Wide Shut. I read somewhere that Harvey Keitel was originally chosen for that role but got fired.
Also too, let’s not forget that Sydney Pollack had a cameo on The Sopranos!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAlMCR2foL0
columbusqueen
@Wyatt Salamanca: What about They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?
Wyatt Salamanca
@columbusqueen:
I liked that film as well, just not to the same extent as the others I cited.
Brachiator
Sorry I missed this thread. I often suggest that people do a double feature of Jeremiah Johnson and Gravity. Gravity is set almost entirely in space and goes deeper into that region of the universe. Once Jeremiah heads into the mountains, he never returns to the flatlands of civilization. Both films set their films in extreme environments.
Three Days of the Condor is problematic today because of the way that the film brings the leads together for an obligatory “romantic scene,” but the film is still one of the leanest and best spy thrillers ever made.
Pollack is a superior craftsman who has made a number of great films. And great with actors. He got a great, largely nonverbal performance from Redford in Jeremiah Johnson, and crafted a deft verbal comedy in Tootsie.
Caphilldcne
Late again. I apparently have seen few pollack movies. I barely know who he is and I’m 54. I saw Tootsie when I was maybe 15 and I thought it was funny I guess but it also scared me because I was gay and you don’t want to play around with gender when you are gay, 15, living in a catholic, military, household in Omaha, Nebraska in the 80s. You know I read these cultural posts and realize I’m missing huge parts of life but I truly find it hard to care. Sorry. Feeling bitter tonight.
Wyatt Salamanca
@BGinCHI:
Speaking of films, do you have any favorite film lists that you’d recommend to a film junkie? Such as a list from a film critic or film historian that you respect or from an organization or publication? As far as content, it could be anything that comes to your mind such as10 greatest films, 10 greatest film noirs, 10 greatest films of the 1960’s, etc
Steeplejack
@Caphilldcne:
Offutt AFB, unless I miss my guess. My brother was you six years ahead of you (except for the Catholic part).
Wyatt Salamanca
@Brachiator:
That’s a valid point, but to my surprise they ended up going their separate ways.
I enjoy watching Three Days of the Condor as part of a double feature alongside The Parallax View.
BGinCHI
@Caphilldcne: I hear you.
There’s not always space to care about this kind of stuff.
It’s the kind of thing that’s always kept me going through hard times, though.
Hang in there.
Wyatt Salamanca
@Wyatt Salamanca:
Speaking of film lists, I forgot to include this link in my previous post on the subject.
This is Jonathan Rosenbaum’s alternative list to the AFI’s Top 100 List https://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/list-o-mania/Content?oid=896619
For anyone who’s never read Rosenbaum’s reviews but appreciates truly great writing, here’s his website https://www.jonathanrosenbaum.net/
AmIDreaming
@BGinCHI: Delighted to encounter another Luis Guzmán fan!
BGinCHI
@Wyatt Salamanca: There are SO many lists out there (like this one that ranks all the made-by-Netflix films).
I love Soderbergh’s work and it’s worth working through all the films he’s made (writing something on “Contagion” wright now). I also love Billy Wilder, and I’m working on an essay on “The Apartment” now as well. His films are not as uniform, but Double Indemnity, Sunset Blvd, Ace in the Hole, the Apt, Some Like It Hot, and Stalag 17, wow, what a run.
I love early Kurosawa (Stray Dog, High and Low, Drunken Angel, Lower Depths, Bad Sleep Well), and Bong Joon-ha has made an amazing list of films (if you only know Parasite, go back and watch everything else).
Maybe the best way to dig into a bunch of great stuff is to get a subscription to the Criterion Channel and just watch everything. So many good films there.
AmIDreaming
@BGinCHI: By coincidence, another conversation today about The Firm, specifically about the score by Dave Grusin and how good it was.
zhena gogolia
@AmIDreaming:
Me too. Out of Sight!
BGinCHI
@zhena gogolia: He’s SO GREAT in that!
BGinCHI
@AmIDreaming: Agreed.
Great film about corruption.
Caphilldcne
@Steeplejack: yep. dad was on the SAC IG team at offut. Papillon h.s. Which actually I loved. (Minor bginchi cultural note: the hs was the setting for the Reese Witherspoon/Matthew Broderick film “Election” – many many years after I left).
update: apparently the director of Election was someone named Alexander Payne (don’t know who that is) but I was kinda hoping it was Sydney Pollack cause how funny would that have been.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Election_(1999_film)
Caphilldcne
NotMax
@BGinCHI
Netflix’ original films are decidedly hit and miss, emphasis on the m word. Their track record with original series prgogramming is much better. IMHO.
Wyatt Salamanca
@BGinCHI:
Thanks for your suggestions! Several people have recommended the Criterion Channel to me and I plan to check it out. I’ve read some great posts on their blog.
The only Soderbergh films I’ve seen are Erin Brockovich and Ocean’s Eleven and I was very impressed with both of them.
I’m a big Billy Wilder fan as well. Parasite was not only the best film I saw in 2019, It was the best film I’ve seen in the past 10-15 years.
Speaking of streaming services, I recently discovered OVID.tv https://www.ovid.tv/
As a documentary film junkie, discovering OVID was like dying and going to heaven. It has tons and tons of documentaries!
Wyatt Salamanca
@AmIDreaming:
I loved The Firm and Dave Grusin did his usual brilliant job with the score.
Tehanu
@zhena gogolia: I do love Sabrina, if you mean the version with Harrison Ford and Greg Kinnear (who’s WAY more suited to the part than William Holden was). The original with Audrey Hepburn — well, she’s lovely, but the film doesn’t hold up very well because of the general sexism and her total lack of chemistry with Humphrey Bogart. As for Sydney Pollack, I agree with lots of others here — he was a terrific actor as well as a director, which is one of the reasons why Out of Africa works as well as it does.
@debbie: You’re not alone.
@Phylllis: Me too!
artem1s
@AmIDreaming:
best thing about that film (OK that and Holly Hunter). sometimes I stream it just to listen to the music.
NotMax
@Wyatt Salamanca
Large selection of documentaries included with Prime as well.
Not my list, but it’ll give a sense of the variety. When it comes to the realms of science and to war one can get lost in the sheer number available.
There’s also a Filmrise Documentary channel through Roku. Fair share of dross but there’s gems in there too.
Wyatt Salamanca
@NotMax:
Wow, fantastic list! Many thanks for sharing this link! Never heard of Filmrise Documentary channel, thanks for this suggestion as well.
AmIDreaming
@artem1s: “It’s not my best feature.”
If you’re interested there are a number of Youtube cuts of other people playing the score (pretty well too), along with the soundtrack album by Grusin himself.
BGinCHI
@Wyatt Salamanca: Criterion is SO WORTH the money.
BGinCHI
@Wyatt Salamanca: You need to watch The Limey and Traffic and Contagion. Side Effects and Haywire also good.
Plus both seasons of The Nick (which was on Cinemax).
Wyatt Salamanca
@BGinCHI:
Some time back, someone posted the first 3 episodes of The Knick on YouTube and I thought they were great! I’d love to catch up on that show.
I’m unfamiliar with the other shows you mentioned, but I’d love to check them out.