As a moviegoer for
more than 70 years, I’ve seen some great movies, some not so great, some really
bad ones, some trying but failing to be deep and meaningful, some reveling in
their shallowness. I was born the year The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind were
released. My mother started taking me to the movies shortly after that. I saw
some movies that were definitely not PG rated. I can still remember being
afraid of The Thing.
Many times I disagree
with the critics. I don’t call them and tell him what I think of their reviews,
so now that there is an internet for anyone to babble on, I add my voice. I’m
sure there are many of you who will disagree with my assessments. Some of you
will agree. I hope to hear from all of
you.
By a very special request, I am focusing on the films of
Robert Redford this month. As I was reviewing these films, I discovered a few
things I had never noticed before: The best Redford films are those in which
his looks are incidental; he had a narrow range; his movies got worse as his
looks faded; he never played a villain. But he was in some really excellent
films, and he was an adequate actor.
I believe his body of
work, his creation of the Sundance Film Festival, the films he directed, his
work for the environment, and his image as an all ‘round good guy will provide
a lasting legacy.
1962: War
Hunt. Redford is an idealistic soldier (why am I not surprised?) during
the Korean War.
1965: Inside Daisy Clover. Redford is the
closeted-gay husband of Natalie Wood.
1965: Situation Hopeless – but not Serious.
Redford is a captured WWII soldier. Wacky Alec Guiness is his captor.
1967: Barefoot in the Park. Redford is the
uptight husband of free spirited Jane Fonda.
1969: Downhill Racer. Redford is a rookie
skier on the US Olympic team. One win and he thinks he’s god. The most negative
role he portrayed. He won the BAFTA (English Oscar).
1969: Tell Them Willie Boy is Here.
Redford is a sheriff leading a hostile posse after an Indian. He won another
BAFTA.
1969: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
Redford is the Sundance Kid and Paul Newman is Butch Cassidy. We all loved
these charming scoundrels.
1970: Little Fauss and Big Halsy. Redford
is a motorcycle racer. (Didn’t see this one.)
1972: Hot Rock. Redford is a jewel thief.
The film was nominated for an Oscar.
1972: The Candidate. Redford is a
candidate who is unwilling to run at first, compromises his ideals as he
decides he wants to win, and then when he has won not sure what to do next.
1972: Jeremiah Johnson. Redford is a
mountain man who just wants to be alone.
1973: The Sting. Redford is a grifter who,
with Newman, runs a perfect scam against Robert Shaw. The film won seven
Oscars.
1973: The Way We Were. Redford is a pretty
boy who hooks up with the annoying Barbra Striesand. What was the point of
this?
1974: The Great Gatsby. Redford is a
wannabe sophisticate who ends up in the pool.
1975: The Great Waldo Pepper. Redford is a
stunt pilot who, after his barnstorming days are through, heads to Hollywood.
1975: Three Days of the Condor. Redford is
a CIA researcher on the run. He takes Faye Dunaway hostage, but he’s not a bad
guy, really.
1976: All the President’s Men. Redford is
a reporter in a perfect film.
1977: A Bridge Too Far. Redford is a
soldier in an operation that fails to end WWII.
1979: Electric Horseman. Redford is a
rodeo champ and a drunk who steals a prize horse and wins the affections of
Jane Fonda.
1980: Brubaker. Redford is a prison warden
who goes undercover at the state pen. He tries to make things better, but ends
up antagonizing everyone.
1984: The Natural. Redford is an overage
rookie in a very silly film. But he looked good.
1985: Out of Africa. Redford is a bush
pilot who washes Meryl Streep’s hair.
1986: Legal Eagles. Redford is a lawyer in
a film that doesn’t get off the ground.
1990: Havana. Redford is a poker player.
His looks are fading fast.
1992: Sneakers. Redford is a spy. This
film is pretty good.
1993: Indecent Proposal. Redford is a
billionaire who must now pay for favors.
1996: Up Close and Personal. Redford is a
newsman who gives Michelle Pfeiffer a break.
1998: The Horse Whisperer. Redford is,
well, a horse whisperer, who cures a girl’s frightened horse. Ahhhh.
2001: Spy Game. Redford is a spy again in
a pretty good little film (even with Brad Pitt in it).
2001: The Last Castle. Redford is a
general court martialed for disobeying orders. While in prison he locks horns
with James Gandolfini.
2004: The Clearing. Redford is a hostage.
Don’t worry, it ends well.
2005: An Unfinished Life. Redford is a
crusty rancher who must come to terms with his son’s death and his
daughter-in-law. Formula.
2007: Lions for Lambs. Redford is — I
don’t know cuz I didn’t see it. Critics were cool.
2013: The Company You Keep. Redford is a
lawyer, but much, much more.
2014: Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
This film is not out yet, but I doubt Redford is Captain America.
