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The essential Jack Nicholson
For ten years Jack Nicholson toiled in low-budget films and guest spots in such television shows as Dr. Kildare and The Andy Griffith Show before his breakout performance in Easy Rider. Despite “retiring” in 2010, Nicholson remains one of the most revered actors of the last half century. Nominated for twelve Academy Awards—the most of any male actor—Nicholson has received three Oscars and countless other honors. The Essential Jack Nicholson looks at the key films in the career of one of Hollywood’s biggest stars. After a brief profile of the actor, James L. Neibaur highlights each of Nicholson’s most important works, explaining why his performances are essential viewing. In addition to Easy Rider, the films discussed include Five Easy Pieces, The Last Detail, Chinatown, One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, The Shining, Reds, Terms of Endearment, Prizzi’s Honor, Ironweed, Batman, A Few Good Men, As Good as It Gets, About Schmidt, and The Departed. Neibaur also provides details about each film’s production, critical reaction, commercial reception, major nominations, and awards. A filmography of all of Nicholson’s movie roles (and select television performances) is also included. The Essential Jack Nicholson is a valuable source of information for fans of this iconic star and his films.
eBook
Acting
Screen performances entertain and delight us but we rarely stop to consider actors' reliance on their craft to create memorable characters. Although film acting may appear effortless, a host of techniques, artistic conventions, and social factors shape the construction of each role.
The chapters inActingprovide a fascinating, in-depth look at the history of film acting, from its inception in 1895 when spectators thrilled at the sight of vaudeville performers, Wild West stars, and athletes captured in motion, to the present when audiences marvel at the seamless blend of human actors with CGI. Experts in the field take readers behind the silver screen to learn about the craft of film acting in six eras: the silent screen (1895-1928), classical Hollywood (1928-1946), postwar Hollywood (1947-1967), the auteur renaissance (1968-1980), the New Hollywood (1981-1999), and the modern entertainment marketplace (2000-present). The contributors pay special attention to definitive performances by notable film stars, including Lillian Gish, Dick Powell, Ginger Rogers, Beulah Bondi, Marilyn Monroe, Marlon Brando, Jack Nicholson, Robert De Niro, Nicholas Cage, Denzel Washington, and Andy Serkis.
In six original essays, the contributors to this volume illuminate the dynamic role of acting in the creation and evolving practices of the American film industry.
Actingis a volume in the Behind the Silver Screen series-other titles in the series includeAnimation;Art Direction and Production Design;Cinematography;Costume, Makeup, and Hair;Directing;Editing and Special/Visual Effects;Producing;Screenwriting; andSound.
eBook
The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood
Following the horrific Los Angeles murders, for which he was originally a suspect, he was effectively unemployable in the United States and went into temporary exile in Europe, where he skied; made an unprofitable film (What?); and shot a version of Macbeth in which he was able to give very detailed emotional directions to the actors about violence and the murder of family. When a 1930s murder mystery set in Los Angeles was dangled in front of him he accepted the bait and returned to the city that he said always looked at its best at night, from a distance. Wasson’s writing fizzes with the kind of atmospheric, Chandleresque, decorative description that distinguishes Towne’s work but now it’s about the writer himself in part 2, Eucalpytus: his early days as the son of a successful Jewish property developer who scorned his artistic ambitions; his romances, in particular the one with dancer Barrie Chase which has the contours of George Roundy’s relationship with Jackie in Shampoo, including the heartbreaking final parting; and his success as a mysterious script doctor of films in trouble. The energy both men brought to the table during their ten-hour days is well delineated, with Wasson giving Polanski a perfectionist streak justified by the rigours of the production to come: I have no time to think … to conceive and to analyse during the period of shooting.
Journal Article
Something's Gotta Give and the Classical Screwball Comedy
Nancy Meyers's Something's Gotta Give (2003) may have succeeded both critically and financially because it imitates the central conventions, characterization, and narrative structure of classical screwball comedies. Like its screwball predecessors, Something's Gotta Give presents a comparatively complex view of love and romance, which is represented by slapstick humor, verbal sparring, and characters who function both actively and passively. In addition, the film's creators pay careful attention to casting and the distinct character types and the narrative framework of the commitment comedy, a subgenre of the screwball comedy. Consequently, Something's Gotta Give, like the screwball comedies of the 1930s and '40s (and unlike most current romance films), appeals to a wide target audience, not just women.
Journal Article