The death of Sydney Pollack came to a shock to me, I didn't even know he was sick. At any rate, we've lost a very good director and one of the best character actors around. Pollack has been responsible for some of the best mainstream films since the late 60s, my personal favorite might be "3 Days of the Condor" with Robert Redford and Max Von Sydow playing one of the most memorable hitmen in modern film. Redford was one of his favorites, as he appeared in seven of Pollack's films.As an actor, I found Pollack even more impressive always being able to stand out above most in the films he was in. I think my favorite Pollack performance was in Stanley Kubrick's "Eyes Wide Shut" where he plays a not so innocent influential friend to Tom Cruise. The last film I saw him in was as George Clooney's boss in "Michael Clayton". He never had the standout speeches like the Oscar golden boys Clooney or Tom Wilkinson, but he was just as memorable, he didn't have to be flashy, and that's my favorite kind of actor. Pollack will be missed.
1 comment:
I too think that Pollack was a heck of an actor in addition to his main claim to fame as a director. He's perfect as the agent in TOOTSIE (Hoffman insisted he play the part) and he's very impressive in Woody Allen's HUSBANDS AND WIVES-- an Oscar-worthy supporting role. Gotta go with TOOTSIE as his best movie as director.
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