Wednesday, 31 May 2017
Tuesday, 23 May 2017
Clint at Cannes 2017
Clint Eastwood Says ‘We’ve Lost
Our Sense of Humour’ and hints at a return to acting.
It’s great to see Clint returning
to the Cannes Film Festival. There have been a few stories this week, so I have
gathered some together here to provide an overall perspective. Eastwood told a rapturous
Cannes audience on Sunday that he will return to acting in front of the camera.
Eastwood was giving a master class at the Cannes Festival and received a
three-minute ovation from those able to get in to the packed auditorium, in a
crowd that included Warner Bros. boss Kevin Tsujihara.
The star notably did not address
the political situation in the U.S., focusing on his long career in front of
and behind the camera. He did say that his first “Dirty Harry” movie was
considered politically incorrect, and was the start of an ongoing era of
political correctness. “We’re killing ourselves by doing that, we’ve lost our
sense of humour,” he said.
Having mostly eschewed acting for
directing in recent years, Eastwood’s last on-screen performance was in 2012’s
“The Trouble With the Curve.” He said he missed performing “once in a while but
not often,” but added he plans to return at some point, “I did a lot of it for
a long time. I’ll visit it again someday.”
Eastwood, 86, spoke about growing
up in Depression-era America. “At 5 or 6, you didn’t notice and didn’t know any
different,” he said. “Once you got old enough to understand the time, you
realize how much you appreciate [your parents] because they had to go through
that.”
He added: “Everyone thinks this
last recession was bad, but they don’t know what it is like.” Los Angeles Times film critic Kenneth
Turan asked Eastwood about his reputation for relying on his gut as a director:
“Your instincts are sometimes better than your intellect,” Eastwood said.
“Intellectualizing, or pseudo-intellectualizing, can get you in a real box.”
“Film is an emotional art form,
not an intellectual art form at all.”
Asked about current movies and
directors he admires, the star said that between working on recent projects,
“American Sniper” and “Sully,” he has not gotten to see new movies, but he did
recently revisit “Sunset Boulevard.”
Stewart Clarke, Variety, MAY 21st, 2017
Clint Eastwood tells Cannes he might act again some day
CANNES, France (AP) — Clint
Eastwood regaled the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday with stories from his long
career, predicted a possible return to acting and decried the rise of political
correctness.
Eastwood was honoured with
several screenings of his films, including one marking the 25th anniversary of
"Unforgiven." In a staged conversation on Sunday, the 86-year-old
director said he would revisit acting "someday." The last time
Eastwood appeared on screen was 2012's "Trouble With the Curve."
Before that, he starred in his own 2008 film, "Gran Torino."
Eastwood didn't talk about
current political events, but while discussing his then-controversial 1971 film
"Dirty Harry," he waded into a topic he's touched on before: so-called
political correctness.
"A lot of people thought it
was politically incorrect," Eastwood said of "Dirty Harry."
''That was at the beginning of the era that we're in now, where everybody
thinks everyone's politically correct. We're killing ourselves by doing that. We've
lost our sense of humour."
Sofia Coppola's remake of Don
Siegel's 1971 film "The Beguiled," which starred Eastwood, is to
premiere this week in Cannes, but Eastwood sounded unfamiliar with Coppola's
movie.
He's currently preparing to
direct "The 15:17 to Paris," about the foiling of a 2015 Islamic
State group attack on a train heading to the French capital from Brussels. Three
Americans, two of them off-duty members of the military, contributed to the
subduing of the gunman. Eastwood said the film suited today's "strange
times." Festival-goers mobbed Eastwood's talk. Warner Bros. executives,
including studio head Kevin Tsujihara, sat in the front row. Much of the conversation,
moderated by Los Angeles Times film critic Kenneth Turan, touched on Eastwood's
attitudes about moviemaking.
"If you have good luck with
your instincts, you might as well trust them," Eastwood said. "It's
an emotional art form. It's not an intellectual art form at all."
New York Daily News
Watch Clint Eastwood's Cinema
Master Class
Clint Eastwood treated Cannes
festival goers to a Cinema Master Class over the weekend. Eastwood served as
President of the Jury at Cannes Film Festival in 1994.
The Oscar winning filmmaker spoke
at the Debussy Theatre to present the restored copy of Unforgiven, which is
celebrating its 25th anniversary at the Festival with Warner. On the 21st, he inaugurated the
70th ANNIVERSARY MASTERCLASS with a discussion in the company of American critic
Kenneth Turan in the Buñuel screening room. The legendary actor and director
freely spoke about his films, childhood and beginnings.
Clint Eastwood: ‘We are killing ourselves’ with political
correctness
Legendary actor and film director
Clint Eastwood told a crowd at the Cannes Film Festival Sunday that political
correctness is killing the entertainment industry.
The Western film icon, who was
visiting the festival in southern France for a 25th anniversary screening of
his 1992 film “Unforgiven,” said America’s obsession with political correctness
started around the time of the release of his 1971 movie “Dirty Harry,”
according to The Hollywood Reporter.
“It was far-out at that time, so
I brought it to [director] Don [Siegel], and he liked it,” Mr. Eastwood said.
“A lot of people thought it was politically incorrect. That was at the
beginning of the era that we’re in now with political correctness. We are
killing ourselves, we’ve lost our sense of humor. But I thought it was
interesting and it was daring.”
Mr. Eastwood made the comments
during a master class conducted by Los Angeles Times film critic Kenneth Turan.
Mr. Eastwood, who went to Cannes to introduce the screening of “Unforgiven,”
said he initially hadn’t planned to sit through the entire movie.
“I thought I’d just sit through
the first five minutes, but after a while I thought, ‘This isn’t so bad, so
maybe I’ll stay for it,’” he said, THR reported. “I enjoyed it. I saw a lot of
things that I’d forgotten.”
Mr. Eastwood’s current movie
project is “The 15:17 to Paris,” the Warner Bros. Pictures’ retelling of the
2015 heroics of three Americans who stopped an Islamic State attack on a train
from Brussels to Paris.
By Jessica Chasmar - The
Washington Times - Monday, May 22, 2017
Clint Eastwood does not rule out
a return to Westerns
CANNES, May 21 — Clint Eastwood
does not rule out making another Western, he said yesterday as he presented a
25th anniversary restored copy of Unforgiven at the Cannes Film Festival.
“When I read the (Unforgiven)
script 25 years ago, I always thought that this would be a good last Western
for me to do,” said the 86-year-old actor-director.
“And it was the last Western,
because I have never read one that worked as well as this one since that. “But
who knows, maybe something will come up in the future,” said Eastwood, who made
his name in the TV series Rawhide and the so-called spaghetti Westerns of the 1960s,
now considered classics. Unforgiven won four Oscars including Best Picture and
Best Director for Eastwood who also starred. — Reuters
Clint Eastwood Decries P.C.
Culture in Cannes: "We've Lost Our Sense of Humour"
The director took part in a
master class as he visited the fest for a 25th anniversary screening of
'Unforgiven.'
As far as Clint Eastwood is
concerned, society’s current obsession with political correctness began with
his 1971 movie Dirty Harry.
Coming in the wake of his three
Sergio Leone Westerns that began with 1964’s A Fistful of Dollars, the violent
San Francisco-set cop story consolidated Eastwood’s growing stardom, and he
makes no apologies for it.
“It was far-out at that time, so
I brought it to [director] Don [Siegel], and he liked it,” Eastwood recalled
Sunday during a visit to the Cannes Film Festival. “A lot of people thought it
was politically incorrect. That was at the beginning of the era that we’re in
now with political correctness. We are killing ourselves, we’ve lost our sense
of humour. But I thought it was interesting and it was daring.”
That was about as political as
Eastwood got as he discussed his films in a master class, answering questions
posed by Los Angeles Times film critic Kenneth Turan.
The veteran actor/director came
to Cannes to introduce a screening of a restored version of his 1992
Oscar-winner Unforgiven, which unspooled as part of the Cannes Classics sidebar
to mark the film’s 25th anniversary.
“I thought I’d just sit through
the first five minutes, but after a while I thought, ‘This isn’t so bad, so
maybe I’ll stay for it,'” Eastwood admitted. “I enjoyed it. I saw a lot of
things that I’d forgotten.”
The filmmaker recounted how David
Webb Peoples’ script first came to him as a writing sample around 1980, and he
immediately thought, “This would be a great last Western for me.” But after
optioning it, it sat in his desk for 10 years before he finally got around to
making it.
During the course of the
discussion, Eastwood paid tribute to his two mentors, Leone and Siegel. “Sergio
had a different way of looking at the size and scope of films. I learned a lot
from him,” he said. “Don Siegel was extremely efficient, he was faster than
anyone I’ve ever seen, but that’s because he thought faster.”
Eastwood called his reputation
for quickly shooting as few takes as possible “a lie,” but then admitted, “I
like to always shoot the first take. I like to see the what the mechanism is in
[the actors’] faces the first time it comes out of their mouths. If it works on
the first take and you print it, everybody gets in that mood — 'Okay, we’re
going somewhere.'”
Eastwood explained how he likes
to keep his sets calm and drama-free. On other films on which he’d work, he
noticed how an assistant director would go around yelling, “Quiet on the set!.”
But after a visit with one of the many U.S. presidents he’s known — he said it
was probably Gerald Ford — he was impressed by how quietly the Secret Service
agents communicated with each other through their lapel mikes and ear-pieces,
and so he adopted that practice on his own sets.
And, Eastwood explained, it’s
always been important for him to set the tone, saying, “If the director is not
positive about where he’s going, the whole crew becomes sedate and nobody moves
forward.”
As for why he decided to make so
many of the specific films he’s made, the laconic director said simply, “If you
have good luck with your instincts, you might as well stick with it.
Intellectualizing or pseudo-intellectualizing, you can get yourself in a real
box.”
Eastwood is currently readying
the next project he will direct, The 15:17 to Paris, which is the true story of
three American friends who defeated an attempted terrorist attack on a train
bound from Brussels to Paris in 2015.
VALERY HACHE – The Hollywood
Reporter 5/21/2017
Monday, 15 May 2017
Alternative High Plains Drifter artwork design by Ron Lesser
I was very happy to recently discover this alternative
design of Ron Lesser’s artwork for High Plains Drifter (1973). This
newly found artwork illustrates segmented movement in the arm of the stranger
(Clint Eastwood) holding his pistol. The drawing also depicts the mayhem of
exploding buildings and destruction of the town during the film’s memorable and
exciting climax.
Ron Lesser’s talent has always been admired and loved by
Eastwood fans, with High Plains Drifter always being among the most popular of
Eastwood’s film poster designs. New York painter Ron Lesser used to create
movie art, including award-winning posters and storyboards for some classic
western films including The Way West and A Man Called Horse. He has also
painted pieces for the covers of books by legendary western writers such as
Louis L’Amour. These days, however, Lesser devotes much of his time to creating
paintings of Native Americans, cowboys, and the Civil War. “I am trying to tell
a story,” he says. “I like people to look at one of my paintings and feel like
they could step into the scene.”
Lesser is known for his attention to detail and for
capturing the high drama of life in the West in the 19th century. Native
American figures, whether they are posed or engaged in battle, are often set
against the magnificent mountains and luminously coloured skies of the frontier
terrain. “I am always trying to make the work authentic, like it may have
looked back then,” Lesser says. To achieve this accuracy, the artist reads,
researches, and consults with experts.
Lesser says he is inspired by the works of some of the
country’s top artists as well as illustrators such as Norman Rockwell and N.C.
Wyeth. He is represented by B&R Art Gallery, Canyon Country, CA.
Friday, 21 April 2017
Clint Eastwood Sets ‘The 15:17 to Paris’ As next Warner Bros Film
In the last few hours Eastwood
has apparently confirmed his next project. It was first announced by Deadline
Hollywood, followed by Variety.
Clint Eastwood has confirmed the
next film he will direct. He’ll helm a drama based on the book The 15:17 To
Paris The True Story Of A Terrorist, A Train, And Three American Heroes. The
book was written by Anthony Sadler, Alek Skarlatos, Spencer Stone and Jeffrey
E. Stern; the life rights of the heroes Sadler, Skarlatos and Stone are part of
the package. Newcomer scribe Dorothy Blyskal wrote the script, and Eastwood
will begin casting right away to start production later this year. Eastwood
will produce with Tim Moore, Kristina Rivera and Jessica Meier. This keeps Eastwood on the track of building crowd-pleasing movies out
of true stories about ordinary men in extraordinary situations. That included
Sully, the hit film about Chesley Sullenberger (Tom Hanks), the heroic airline
pilot who landed US Airways flight 1549 in the Hudson River after the engines
were damages by birds right after takeoff. Before that, Eastwood directed the
blockbuster American Sniper, about Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle (Bradley Cooper)
and the toll his precise shooting in Iraq took on himself and his family.
Here, Eastwood makes room for a trio of heroes in Sadler, Skarlatos
and Stone. In August 2015, anISIS terrorist boarded train #9364 from Brussels
to Paris. Armed with an AK-47 and enough ammo to kill more than 500 people, the
terrorist might have succeeded except for three American friends who refused to
give in to fear. Stone was a martial arts enthusiast and airman first class in
the U.S. Air Force, Skarlatos was a member of the Oregon National Guard, and
all three pals proved fearless as they charged and ultimately overpowered the
gunman after he emerged from a bathroom armed and ready to kill. They most
certainly averted a mass tragedy.
Eastwood had been previously
linked to “Impossible Odds” which followed humanitarian worker Jessica
Buchanan, who was kidnapped while working in Somalia and later rescued by a
group of Navy Seals.
Amazon’s synopsis on the book The 15:17 to Paris
An ISIS terrorist planned to kill more than 500 people. He would have
succeeded except for three American friends who refused to give in to fear. On
August 21, 2015, Ayoub El-Khazzani boarded train #9364 in Brussels, bound for
Paris. There could be no doubt about his mission: he had an AK-47, a pistol, a
box cutter, and enough ammunition to obliterate every passenger on board.
Slipping into the bathroom in secret, he armed his weapons. Another major ISIS
attack was about to begin. Khazzani wasn't expecting Anthony Sadler, Alek
Skarlatos, and Spencer Stone. Stone was a martial arts enthusiast and airman
first class in the US Air Force, Skarlatos was a member of the Oregon National
Guard, and all three were fearless. But their decision to charge the gunman,
then overpower him even as he turned first his gun, then his knife, on Stone, depended
on a lifetime of loyalty, support, and faith. Their friendship was forged as
they came of age together in California: going to church, playing paintball,
teaching each other to swear, and sticking together when they got in trouble at
school. Years later, that friendship would give all of them the courage to
stand in the path of one of the world's deadliest terrorist organizations. The
15:17 to Paris is an amazing true story of friendship and bravery, of near
tragedy averted by three young men who found the heroic unity and strength
inside themselves at the moment when they, and 500 other innocent travellers, needed
it most.
Thursday, 13 April 2017
Deborah Hooper – The woman who dresses Eastwood
Deborah Hopper started her
costume-design career in the fantasy/make-believe worlds of opera and ballet.
Now, renowned for her down-and-dirty, true-to-life style, she is a perfect
match for filmmaker Clint Eastwood, and her 32-year run with the director proves
it. Beginning in the wardrobe department on Malpaso productions such as Tightrope
and Pale Rider, Deborah progressed through films including Heartbreak Ridge,
Bird and The Dead Pool. In 2000 she became Malpaso’s costume designer working
on Space Cowboys, Million Dollar Baby, Letters from Iwo Jima, Mystic River,
Flags of Our Fathers and Sully, all of which reflect her relentless research
and her penchant for including the vision of actors in her creative process.
“Clint trusts me and trusts my
work,” says the designer. “I use resources like Sears & Roebuck, back
issues of Life magazine, high school yearbooks that give me a snapshot of
everyday life. With the work that I do with Clint, his movies are basically
everyday life, so the costumes that I deal with are everyday clothes. The
costumes, in a way, have to be invisible. If they show then I think it’s kind
of distracting. It should be more about the story”
Deborah received the
Distinguished Collaborator Award during the 14th annual Costume Designers Guild
Awards on February 21st 2012 at the Beverly Hilton. Clint was of
course in attendance to present her with the award along with actor Ken
Watanabe and actress Marcia Gay Harden.
Deborah has become a reliablle and integral
part of the Malpaso family; it is a collaboration which has stood the test of time and
long may it continue to do so.
Deborah Hopper / Clint Eastwood
credits
Costume and Wardrobe Department: True
Crime, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, Absolute Power, The Rookie, Pink
Cadillac, The Dead Pool, Bird, Heartbreak Ridge, Ratboy, Pale Rider, Tightrope
Costume Designer: Sully, American
Sniper, Jersey Boys, Trouble with the Curve, J. Edgar, Hereafter, The Eastwood
Factor (as herself), Invictus, Gran Torino, Changeling, Letters from Iwo Jima, Flags of Our
Fathers, Million Dollar Baby, Mystic River, Blood Work, Space Cowboys
Flashback: Clint Eastwood takes home Akira Kurosawa Award from S.F. Film Festival
Flashback: Clint Eastwood takes home Akira Kurosawa Award
from S.F. Film Festival
Dateline: Friday, April 27, 2001
They played "Misty" for
him as the former Man with No Name -- who became one of the biggest names in
Hollywood -- strode to the stage to accept the San Francisco International Film
Festival's Akira Kurosawa Award for directing. Clint Eastwood told the sold-out
crowd at the Argent Hotel on Wednesday night that winning a prize named for the
Japanese master has special meaning. "He was the guy I really idolized
when I was young. I had always hoped to work with him."
The closest Eastwood came was to
star in "A Fistful of Dollars," an Italian remake of Kurosawa's
"Yojimbo." "The only problem was the Italians forgot to buy the
rights. When it was sorted out, Mr. Kurosawa got all the profits from its
release in Asia." That must have made his day.
When the man of the moment
returned to his table, he got a big hug from his wife, Dina Ruiz Eastwood.
These two really are lovebirds. "We just had our five-year anniversary,
and we still hold hands all the time. We're disgusting, " she said,
laughing.
Eastwood, 70, is devoted to his
36-year-old wife and their 4-year-old daughter, Morgan. "After my last
movie, 'Space Cowboys,' took so much time because of the special effects, I
decided I didn't want to do that anymore. I'm spending my time at home,"
the star told me.
Still, he approves of his wife
going back to work hosting "Candid Camera" because it takes her away
from their Carmel home only one weekend every few months. "Suzanne Somers
used to be the co-host, but I don't think they can afford her anymore. I
definitely come cheaper," Ruiz Eastwood said.
Thursday, 6 April 2017
The passing of legendary comic Don Rickles
A short time ago I received the
sad news that legendary U.S. comic Don Rickles has died, he was 90. I have provided a piece from Richard Natale, Variety, April 6th
2017
Rickles died Thursday morning at
his home in Los Angeles from kidney failure, his longtime publicist Paul
Shefrin confirmed. He would have turned 91 on May 8. Though he appeared in
films and on television, Rickles’ mainstay was always nightclub performances,
appearing in Las Vegas and elsewhere into his late 80s. He also found late
success as the voice of Mr. Potato Head in the “Toy Story” films, which were exceptional
box office performers, and popped up frequently on late night talk shows.
Rickles’ career had its ups and
downs as comedic tastes changed, and his curmudgeonly persona was sometimes out
of kilter with audience tastes, but he survived long after many of his
contemporaries had disappeared into retirement. And when he was hot, he was a
potent club headliner, insulting his audience with his two key signature phrases
“dummy” and “hockey puck.” His attempts at series TV did not succeed because of
the astringency of Rickles’ personality. His serious side, however, was
occasionally put to good use in guest starring roles in episodic TV and the
occasional dramatic role in movies such as his first, “Run Silent, Run Deep,”
and Martin Scorsese’s 1995 film “Casino.”
Donald Jay Rickles was born in
Manhattan and studied acting at the Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York after
serving in the Navy during WWII. He began appearing in nightclubs during the
’50s but didn’t really break through until his first appearance on “The Tonight
Show With Johnny Carson” in 1965. In the meantime, he worked in movies. After
his debut in WWII submarine drama “Run Silent, Run Deep” (1958), he appeared in
the Tony Curtis-Debbie Reynolds romantic comedy “The Rat Race” and various AIP
beach movies with Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon. After the Carson appearance, he
achieved headliner status in Vegas, Reno and Lake Tahoe, and he was frequently
seen in the company of Frank Sinatra’s Rat Pack. He took to the stage in the L.A. production of Neil Simon’s “The Odd Couple,” playing Felix. Later he took
“The Don Rickles Show” on tour around the country. He also made more movies,
including Carl Reiner’s “Enter Laughing” and WWII heist comedy “Kelly’s Heroes”
playing the charismatic rouge Crapgame alongside Clint, Donald Sutherland and
Telly Savalas. His first try at a TV
series, CBS’ “Kibbe Hates Finch” in 1965, never got beyond a pilot. Variety
series “The Don Rickles Show” lasted a single season in 1969-69, and his
mid-’70s sitcom “C.P.O. Sharkey” lasted two. He co-hosted reality clip show
“Foul-Ups, Bloops and Blunders” with Steve Lawrence for a single season in
1983-84 on ABC. His last attempt was Fox’s 1993 sitcom “Daddy Dearest”
co-starring Richard Lewis, which quickly folded.
More successful were his guest
starring appearances on TV in a variety of shows including comedies such as
“Archie Bunker’s Place,” “The Lucy Show,” “F Troop” (in a recurring role as
Bald Eagle), “Get Smart,” “Newhart” and, in 2011, “Hot in Cleveland.” He also
acquitted himself on TV dramas like “Medical Center” and “Chrysler Theater.” He
guested on “The Single Guy” and “Murphy Brown” in the late ’90s, appeared in a
supporting role in 2004 telepic “The Wool Cap” and appeared as himself within a
dream sequence in a 2007 episode of CBS drama “The Unit.”
In January 2005, Rickles appeared
with Bob Newhart, whom he considered his best friend, on “The Tonight Show With
Jay Leno” the day after Johnny Carson’s death to reminisce about their many
guest appearances on Carson’s show. During
the late ’70s and a good part of the ’80s, Rickles’ humor was out of fashion,
and while he continued appearing at casinos, the luster of his star had faded.
Then, things turned around again, and a new generation of comedians that he had
influenced came into favor. Rickles was once again in vogue. Rickles’ humor,
while enjoyed better in person, also landed on record with albums such as
“Hello Dummy!” and “Don Rickles Speaks.”
In Scorsese’s 1995 film “Casino,”
Rickles had a substantial role as a trusted cohort to Robert De Niro’s casino
owner. And the “Toy Story” animated features kept Rickles busy, voicing Mr.
Potato Head in the 1995 original, the 1999 sequel and the enormously successful
third entry in 2010. He reprised the role in a 2011 short called “Hawaiian
Vacation,” and he voiced the Frog character in the 2011 live action/animated
hybrid “Zookeeper,” starring Kevin James and Rosario Dawson.
The comedian’s memoir, “Rickles’
Book,” was published in 2007. John Landis directed a documentary on Rickles,
“Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project,” which debuted on HBO the same year. For
his performance in the documentary, Rickles won an Emmy for individual
performance in a variety or music program. In May 2014 the funnyman was saluted
by the likes of David Letterman, Jerry Seinfeld and Jon Stewart in the Spike TV
special “One Night Only: An All-Star Comedy Tribute to Don Rickles.”
Survivors include Rickles’ wife
of 52 years, Barbara; a daughter and a son; and two grandchildren. In lieu of
flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Larry Rickles
Endowment Fund at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
Our sincere condolences and thoughts
are of course with Don’s family RIP
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