Pauline Kael (70 page)
Authors: Brian Kellow
124
“When she was on somebody’s side”:
Author interview with Lorenzo Semple, Jr., October 5, 2008.
“When she was on somebody’s side”:
Author interview with Lorenzo Semple, Jr., October 5, 2008.
124
“I’m going to bring a friend along”:
Ibid.
“I’m going to bring a friend along”:
Ibid.
124
“a habit of hers when she went out to dinner”:
Ibid.
CHAPTER ELEVEN“a habit of hers when she went out to dinner”:
Ibid.
125
“the spray of venom”:
Pauline Kael, “The Current Cinema,”
The New Yorker
(September 27, 1969).
“the spray of venom”:
Pauline Kael, “The Current Cinema,”
The New Yorker
(September 27, 1969).
125
“grotesque shock effects”:
Ibid.
“grotesque shock effects”:
Ibid.
125
“the simple,
Of Mice and Men
kind of relationship at the heart of it”:
Ibid.
“the simple,
Of Mice and Men
kind of relationship at the heart of it”:
Ibid.
126
“What is new about
Easy Rider
”:
Ibid.
“What is new about
Easy Rider
”:
Ibid.
127
“a basic decency and intelligence in his work”:
Ibid.
“a basic decency and intelligence in his work”:
Ibid.
127
“really seem to have the style for anything”:
Ibid.
“really seem to have the style for anything”:
Ibid.
127
“facetious Western”:
Ibid.
“facetious Western”:
Ibid.
127
“destroys one’s sense of mood and time and place”:
Life
(October 24, 1969).
“destroys one’s sense of mood and time and place”:
Life
(October 24, 1969).
127
“The dialogue is all banter”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(September 27, 1969).
“The dialogue is all banter”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(September 27, 1969).
127
“Listen, you miserable bitch”:
Letter from George Roy Hill to Pauline Kael, September 26, 1969.
“Listen, you miserable bitch”:
Letter from George Roy Hill to Pauline Kael, September 26, 1969.
128
“Americans talk a lot about marital infidelity”:
Columbia Pictures publicity handout,
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice.
“Americans talk a lot about marital infidelity”:
Columbia Pictures publicity handout,
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice.
128
“I felt obliged to note that I did not believe”:
New York
Daily News
, October 6, 1969.
“I felt obliged to note that I did not believe”:
New York
Daily News
, October 6, 1969.
128
“When it was offered to me”:
Author interview with Elliott Gould, June 13, 2009.
“When it was offered to me”:
Author interview with Elliott Gould, June 13, 2009.
128
“unpleasant”:
The New York Times
, September 17, 1969.
“unpleasant”:
The New York Times
, September 17, 1969.
128
“I read Canby’s review”:
Author interview with Paul Mazursky, September 2, 2009.
“I read Canby’s review”:
Author interview with Paul Mazursky, September 2, 2009.
129
“
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice
is a slick, whorey movie”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 4, 1969).
“
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice
is a slick, whorey movie”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 4, 1969).
129
“taken the series of revue sketches”:
Ibid.
“taken the series of revue sketches”:
Ibid.
129
“looks a bit like Lauren Bacall and a bit like Jeanne Moreau”:
Ibid.
“looks a bit like Lauren Bacall and a bit like Jeanne Moreau”:
Ibid.
129
“Someone tapped me on the shoulder from behind”:
Author interview with Dyan Cannon, June 13, 2009.
“Someone tapped me on the shoulder from behind”:
Author interview with Dyan Cannon, June 13, 2009.
129
“probably the most sophisticated intelligence”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 18, 1969).
“probably the most sophisticated intelligence”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 18, 1969).
129
“the most insidious kind of enemy”:
Ibid.
“the most insidious kind of enemy”:
Ibid.
129
“
High School
is so familiar”:
Ibid.
“
High School
is so familiar”:
Ibid.
130
“Many of us grow to hate documentaries”:
Ibid.
“Many of us grow to hate documentaries”:
Ibid.
130
“Joe is a very soft-spoken, kind guy”:
Author interview with Frederick Wiseman, October 8, 2008.
“Joe is a very soft-spoken, kind guy”:
Author interview with Frederick Wiseman, October 8, 2008.
130
“The impression I had was that she felt I didn’t need her”:
Ibid.
“The impression I had was that she felt I didn’t need her”:
Ibid.
130
“Dear Sir: I think I’ve figured it out”:
Letter from Cornelius Freeman to
The New Yorker
, November 28, 1969.
“Dear Sir: I think I’ve figured it out”:
Letter from Cornelius Freeman to
The New Yorker
, November 28, 1969.
130
“There was a time”:
Letter from Leslie E. Jones to
The New Yorker,
November 1969.
“There was a time”:
Letter from Leslie E. Jones to
The New Yorker,
November 1969.
130
“They’re looking for ‘truth’ ”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(September 27, 1969).
“They’re looking for ‘truth’ ”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(September 27, 1969).
131
“Grim”:
Author interview with Carrie Rickey, May 9, 2009.
“Grim”:
Author interview with Carrie Rickey, May 9, 2009.
131
“How’re you going to feed it?”:
James Poe and Robert E. Thompson, screenplay of
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?,
1969.
“How’re you going to feed it?”:
James Poe and Robert E. Thompson, screenplay of
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?,
1969.
131
“I’m tired of losing!”:
Ibid.
“I’m tired of losing!”:
Ibid.
131
“She doesn’t try to save some ladylike part of herself ”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(December 20, 1969).
“She doesn’t try to save some ladylike part of herself ”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(December 20, 1969).
132
“a good chance of personifying American tensions”:
Ibid.
“a good chance of personifying American tensions”:
Ibid.
132
“Somewhere along the line”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 3, 1970).
“Somewhere along the line”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 3, 1970).
132
“is alive to”:
Ibid.
“is alive to”:
Ibid.
132
“to be liberated from period clothes”:
Ibid.
“to be liberated from period clothes”:
Ibid.
132
“not using decadence as a metaphor for Naziism”:
Ibid.
“not using decadence as a metaphor for Naziism”:
Ibid.
132
“Visconti, though drawn to excess”:
Ibid.
“Visconti, though drawn to excess”:
Ibid.
132
“I have rarely seen a picture I enjoyed less”:
Ibid.
“I have rarely seen a picture I enjoyed less”:
Ibid.
133
“a B-25 pilot”:
Twentieth Century–Fox publicity handout,
M*A*S*H.
“a B-25 pilot”:
Twentieth Century–Fox publicity handout,
M*A*S*H.
133
“Bob had gotten fired from Warners”:
Author interview with George Litto, June 4, 2010.
“Bob had gotten fired from Warners”:
Author interview with George Litto, June 4, 2010.
133
“Did you hear that?”:
Author interview with Rene Auberjonois, September 2, 2009.
“Did you hear that?”:
Author interview with Rene Auberjonois, September 2, 2009.
133
“He was referring to a conversation”:
Ibid.
“He was referring to a conversation”:
Ibid.
134
“I remember the sound engineer”:
Ibid.
“I remember the sound engineer”:
Ibid.
134
“Donald Sutherland and I became very close during the process”:
Author interview with Elliott Gould, June 13, 2009.
“Donald Sutherland and I became very close during the process”:
Author interview with Elliott Gould, June 13, 2009.
135
“We were completely under the radar”:
Author interview with Rene Auberjonois, September 2, 2009.
“We were completely under the radar”:
Author interview with Rene Auberjonois, September 2, 2009.
135
“This picture wasn’t released—it escaped”:
Robert Altman, interview for Twentieth Century–Fox DVD release,
M*A*S*H.
“This picture wasn’t released—it escaped”:
Robert Altman, interview for Twentieth Century–Fox DVD release,
M*A*S*H.
135
“a marvelously unstable comedy”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 24, 1970).
“a marvelously unstable comedy”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 24, 1970).
135
“competence is one of the values the movie respects”:
Ibid.
“competence is one of the values the movie respects”:
Ibid.
135
“I’ve rarely heard four-letter words used so exquisitely well”:
Ibid.
“I’ve rarely heard four-letter words used so exquisitely well”:
Ibid.
135
“When the dialogue overlaps”:
Ibid.
“When the dialogue overlaps”:
Ibid.
135
“Many of the best recent American movies leave you feeling”:
Ibid.
“Many of the best recent American movies leave you feeling”:
Ibid.
136
“His pictures showed life taking its course”:
Author interview with Elliott Gould, June 13, 2009.
“His pictures showed life taking its course”:
Author interview with Elliott Gould, June 13, 2009.
136
“After so many movies that come on strong”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 4, 1970).
“After so many movies that come on strong”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 4, 1970).
136
“Pauline Kael is my favorite movie critic”:
The New York Times
, undated.
“Pauline Kael is my favorite movie critic”:
The New York Times
, undated.
137
“While I miss the polemics”:
Ibid.
“While I miss the polemics”:
Ibid.
137
“One doesn’t want to talk about how Tolstoi got his effects”:
Pauline Kael, “Trash, Art and the Movies”:
Harper’s
(February 1969).
“One doesn’t want to talk about how Tolstoi got his effects”:
Pauline Kael, “Trash, Art and the Movies”:
Harper’s
(February 1969).
137
“By neglecting to analyze technique”:
The New York Times Book Review,
February 22, 1970.
“By neglecting to analyze technique”:
The New York Times Book Review,
February 22, 1970.
137
“About film art”:
Ibid.
“About film art”:
Ibid.
137
“In her youth, as the author avows”:
Ibid.
“In her youth, as the author avows”:
Ibid.
139
“I never adapted to New York”:
People
(April 18, 1983).
“I never adapted to New York”:
People
(April 18, 1983).
139
“for her film criticism”:
Citation from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the National Institute of Arts and Letters, May 26, 1970.
“for her film criticism”:
Citation from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the National Institute of Arts and Letters, May 26, 1970.
140
“Gimme a P, Gimme a G”:
Letter from Michael B. Pulman, Department of History, Florida State University, to
The New Yorker
, May 23, 1971.
“Gimme a P, Gimme a G”:
Letter from Michael B. Pulman, Department of History, Florida State University, to
The New Yorker
, May 23, 1971.
140
“could focus under the most intense sedation—alcohol”:
Author interview with Jane Kramer, February 24, 2009.
“could focus under the most intense sedation—alcohol”:
Author interview with Jane Kramer, February 24, 2009.
141
“My sense was that they stayed out of each other’s way almost intentionally”:
Ibid.
“My sense was that they stayed out of each other’s way almost intentionally”:
Ibid.
141
“My personal feeling—more than personally—is that Pauline did not have any respect, particularly, for Penelope”:
Author interview with Sally Ann Mock, February 27, 2009.
CHAPTER TWELVE“My personal feeling—more than personally—is that Pauline did not have any respect, particularly, for Penelope”:
Author interview with Sally Ann Mock, February 27, 2009.
143
“there was an obvious hunger for film”:
Toby Talbot,
The New Yorker Theater and Other Scenes from a Life at the Movies
(New York: Columbia University Press, 2009), 53.
“there was an obvious hunger for film”:
Toby Talbot,
The New Yorker Theater and Other Scenes from a Life at the Movies
(New York: Columbia University Press, 2009), 53.
144
“at one end of the table were the intellectuals”:
Author interview with Judith Crist, July 17, 2008.
“at one end of the table were the intellectuals”:
Author interview with Judith Crist, July 17, 2008.
144
“I always felt that there was an assumption”:
Author interview with Kathleen Carroll, February 25, 2009.
“I always felt that there was an assumption”:
Author interview with Kathleen Carroll, February 25, 2009.
144
“Headliners and by-liners help us do the job”:
The New York Times
, September 15, 1968.
“Headliners and by-liners help us do the job”:
The New York Times
, September 15, 1968.
145
“I have slept through more productions of this dated play”:
New York
Daily News
, June 1, 1973.
“I have slept through more productions of this dated play”:
New York
Daily News
, June 1, 1973.
145
“Well, when he shows up at screenings”:
Author interview with Judith Crist, July 17, 2008.
“Well, when he shows up at screenings”:
Author interview with Judith Crist, July 17, 2008.
146
“Pauline! Of course,
you
come to all the finest pictures”:
Author interview with John Simon, March 6, 2008.
“Pauline! Of course,
you
come to all the finest pictures”:
Author interview with John Simon, March 6, 2008.
146
“There were a lot of directors”:
Author interview with Paul Schrader, August 31, 2009.
“There were a lot of directors”:
Author interview with Paul Schrader, August 31, 2009.
146
“It used to be that understood that no matter how low your estimate of the public intelligence was”:
Pauline Kael, “The Current Cinema,”
The New Yorker
(October 3, 1970).
“It used to be that understood that no matter how low your estimate of the public intelligence was”:
Pauline Kael, “The Current Cinema,”
The New Yorker
(October 3, 1970).
147
“no contemporary American subject provided a better test of the new movie freedom than student unrest”:
Ibid.
“no contemporary American subject provided a better test of the new movie freedom than student unrest”:
Ibid.
147
“the recently developed political consciousness”:
Ibid.
“the recently developed political consciousness”:
Ibid.
147
“slanted to feed the paranoia of youth”:
Ibid.
“slanted to feed the paranoia of youth”:
Ibid.
147
“members of the audience responded on cue”:
Ibid.
“members of the audience responded on cue”:
Ibid.
147
“manipulation of the audience is so shrewdly, single-mindedly commercial”:
Ibid.
“manipulation of the audience is so shrewdly, single-mindedly commercial”:
Ibid.
148
“not caring, and not believing anything”:
Ibid.
“not caring, and not believing anything”:
Ibid.
148
“She
owned
Gina”:
Author interview with Charles Simmons, June 29, 2009.
“She
owned
Gina”:
Author interview with Charles Simmons, June 29, 2009.
149
“tone deaf about the effects of things on people”:
Author interview with Dana Salisbury, September 20, 2009.
“tone deaf about the effects of things on people”:
Author interview with Dana Salisbury, September 20, 2009.
149
“I think George lifted Barbra, in a way”:
Author interview with Buck Henry, April 27, 2009.
“I think George lifted Barbra, in a way”:
Author interview with Buck Henry, April 27, 2009.
149
“Were Hepburn and Tracy this good together”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(November 14, 1970).
“Were Hepburn and Tracy this good together”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(November 14, 1970).
149
“to see Streisand”:
Ibid.
“to see Streisand”:
Ibid.
149
“like thousands of girls”:
Ibid.
“like thousands of girls”:
Ibid.
150
“a good idea in theory, a bad one in practice”:
Kevin Brownlow,
David Lean: A Biography
(New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1996), 585.
“a good idea in theory, a bad one in practice”:
Kevin Brownlow,
David Lean: A Biography
(New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1996), 585.
150
“no driving emotional energy”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(November 21, 1970).
“no driving emotional energy”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(November 21, 1970).
150
“gush made respectable”:
Ibid.
“gush made respectable”:
Ibid.
150
“a lousy lay”:
Brownlow, 586.
“a lousy lay”:
Brownlow, 586.
151
“We’ll give you color”:
Ibid.
“We’ll give you color”:
Ibid.
151
“The book has been promoted from the start”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(December 26, 1970).
“The book has been promoted from the start”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(December 26, 1970).
151
“should bring joy to millions”:
New York
Daily News
, January 12, 1971.
“should bring joy to millions”:
New York
Daily News
, January 12, 1971.
151
“It deals in private passion at a time when we are exhausted from public defeats”:
Ibid.
“It deals in private passion at a time when we are exhausted from public defeats”:
Ibid.
152
“You don’t want to be a minister”:
Paul Schrader,
Schrader on Schrader & Other Writings
(London: Faber & Faber, 1990), 291.
“You don’t want to be a minister”:
Paul Schrader,
Schrader on Schrader & Other Writings
(London: Faber & Faber, 1990), 291.
152
“some cold chitchat”:
Ibid., 292.
“some cold chitchat”:
Ibid., 292.
153
“I don’t trust critics who say they care only for the highest and the best”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 23, 1971).
“I don’t trust critics who say they care only for the highest and the best”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 23, 1971).
153
“free-spirited”:
Ibid.
“free-spirited”:
Ibid.
153
“have been so sold on Pop and so saturated with it that they appear to have lost their bearings in the arts”:
Ibid.
“have been so sold on Pop and so saturated with it that they appear to have lost their bearings in the arts”:
Ibid.
153
“In most cases, the conglomerates”:
Ibid.
“In most cases, the conglomerates”:
Ibid.
153
“they understand that their job is dependent on keeping everybody happy”:
Ibid.
“they understand that their job is dependent on keeping everybody happy”:
Ibid.
154
“I don’t have any doubts about movies being a great art form”:
Ibid.
“I don’t have any doubts about movies being a great art form”:
Ibid.
154
“summery richness”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 20, 1971).
“summery richness”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 20, 1971).
154
“no emotional head of steam”:
Ibid.
“no emotional head of steam”:
Ibid.
154
“Our desire for grace and seductive opulence is innocent”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 27, 1971).
CHAPTER THIRTEEN“Our desire for grace and seductive opulence is innocent”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 27, 1971).
156
“You have no say at all”:
Patrick McGilligan,
Backstory 2: Interviews with Screenwriters of the 1940s and 1950s
(Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991).
“You have no say at all”:
Patrick McGilligan,
Backstory 2: Interviews with Screenwriters of the 1940s and 1950s
(Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991).
157
“I hear you’re pretty good in seminars but boring as a lecturer”:
Author interview with Howard Suber, July 28, 2010.
“I hear you’re pretty good in seminars but boring as a lecturer”:
Author interview with Howard Suber, July 28, 2010.
158
“Why would the biggest film critic in America”:
Ibid.
“Why would the biggest film critic in America”:
Ibid.
158
“all the time, but not as a distinguished visitor”:
Author interview with Tom Mankiewicz, December 16, 2008.
“all the time, but not as a distinguished visitor”:
Author interview with Tom Mankiewicz, December 16, 2008.
159
“bitter experiences”:
Howard Suber interview with Sara Mankiewicz, housed at the Lilly Library, Indiana University.
“bitter experiences”:
Howard Suber interview with Sara Mankiewicz, housed at the Lilly Library, Indiana University.
159
“A brand-new bicycle”:
Ibid.
“A brand-new bicycle”:
Ibid.
160
“to write and produce a work of fiction”:
Deposition of Orson Welles, April 1949.
“to write and produce a work of fiction”:
Deposition of Orson Welles, April 1949.
160
“When an actor becomes the role offstage”:
Note written by Pauline Kael, housed at the Lilly Library.
“When an actor becomes the role offstage”:
Note written by Pauline Kael, housed at the Lilly Library.
161
“Well . . . it’s a trivial point”:
Author interview with Howard Suber, July 28, 2010.
“Well . . . it’s a trivial point”:
Author interview with Howard Suber, July 28, 2010.
161
“
Citizen Kane
is perhaps the one American talking picture”:
Pauline Kael, “Onward and Upward with the Arts,”
The New Yorker
(February 20/27, 1971).
“
Citizen Kane
is perhaps the one American talking picture”:
Pauline Kael, “Onward and Upward with the Arts,”
The New Yorker
(February 20/27, 1971).
161
“
Citizen Kane
. . . isn’t a work of special depth”:
Ibid.
“
Citizen Kane
. . . isn’t a work of special depth”:
Ibid.
161
“conceived and acted as entertainment in a popular style”:
Ibid.
“conceived and acted as entertainment in a popular style”:
Ibid.
162
“conventional schoolbook explanations for greatness”:
Ibid.
“conventional schoolbook explanations for greatness”:
Ibid.
162
“to miss what makes it such an American triumph”:
Ibid.
“to miss what makes it such an American triumph”:
Ibid.
162
“never been rivaled in wit and exuberance”:
Ibid.
“never been rivaled in wit and exuberance”:
Ibid.
162
“may for a brief period”:
Ibid.
“may for a brief period”:
Ibid.
162
“When I got into it”:
Ibid.
“When I got into it”:
Ibid.
162
“idiotic indiscretion”:
Ibid.
“idiotic indiscretion”:
Ibid.
163
“Men cheated of their due”:
Ibid.
“Men cheated of their due”:
Ibid.
163
“such worship generally doesn’t help”:
Ibid.
“such worship generally doesn’t help”:
Ibid.
163
“Welles isn’t in it”:
Ibid.
“Welles isn’t in it”:
Ibid.
163
“Gothic atmosphere”:
Ibid.
“Gothic atmosphere”:
Ibid.
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