Pauline Kael (72 page)
Authors: Brian Kellow
195
“I replied that actually we wanted Sam Peckinpah to do the picture”:
Letter from John Gregory Dunne to Pauline Kael, November 20, 1972.
“I replied that actually we wanted Sam Peckinpah to do the picture”:
Letter from John Gregory Dunne to Pauline Kael, November 20, 1972.
195
“a simple matter of economics”:
Ibid.
“a simple matter of economics”:
Ibid.
195
“I confess a certain ambivalence about the book”:
Letter from John Gregory Dunne to Pauline Kael, December 5, 1972.
“I confess a certain ambivalence about the book”:
Letter from John Gregory Dunne to Pauline Kael, December 5, 1972.
196
“Sorry you didn’t get my crude attempt”:
Letter from Sam Peckinpah to Pauline Kael, February 21, 1973.
“Sorry you didn’t get my crude attempt”:
Letter from Sam Peckinpah to Pauline Kael, February 21, 1973.
196
“be made into such a shitty film”:
Ibid.
“be made into such a shitty film”:
Ibid.
196
“Rex and Judith loved”:
Ibid.
“Rex and Judith loved”:
Ibid.
196
“I trust instinct more than any study of logical conclusions”:
David Thompson,
Altman on Altman
(London: Faber & Faber, 2006), 74.
“I trust instinct more than any study of logical conclusions”:
David Thompson,
Altman on Altman
(London: Faber & Faber, 2006), 74.
196
“almost frighteningly non-repetitive”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(December 23, 1972).
“almost frighteningly non-repetitive”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(December 23, 1972).
197
“He made me sit down and write a postcard to Pauline Kael”:
Author interview with Rene Auberjonois, September 2, 2009.
“He made me sit down and write a postcard to Pauline Kael”:
Author interview with Rene Auberjonois, September 2, 2009.
197
“grimly controlled”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(December 30, 1972).
“grimly controlled”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(December 30, 1972).
197
“an unnecessarily confined and schoolmarmish performance”:
Ibid.
“an unnecessarily confined and schoolmarmish performance”:
Ibid.
197
“a new kind of hip and casually smart screen actor”:
Ibid.
“a new kind of hip and casually smart screen actor”:
Ibid.
198
“Jeremiah signals him back, giving him the finger”:
Ibid.
“Jeremiah signals him back, giving him the finger”:
Ibid.
198
“only assume that by that point you were so bored with the film”:
Letter from Sydney Pollack to Pauline Kael, January 5, 1973.
“only assume that by that point you were so bored with the film”:
Letter from Sydney Pollack to Pauline Kael, January 5, 1973.
198
“to save me the buck twenty”:
Letter from Robert Getchell to Pauline Kael, December 31, 1972.
“to save me the buck twenty”:
Letter from Robert Getchell to Pauline Kael, December 31, 1972.
198
“The idea should be for them to keep going with lots of engagement”:
Note by Pauline Kael on screenplay of
Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore
, 1974.
“The idea should be for them to keep going with lots of engagement”:
Note by Pauline Kael on screenplay of
Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore
, 1974.
199
“a record of the interaction of movies and our national life”:
Pauline Kael,
Deeper into Movies
(Boston: Atlantic–Little, Brown, 1973), xv.
“a record of the interaction of movies and our national life”:
Pauline Kael,
Deeper into Movies
(Boston: Atlantic–Little, Brown, 1973), xv.
199
“Right now, movie critics have an advantage”:
Ibid.
“Right now, movie critics have an advantage”:
Ibid.
199
“Right now, movie criticism in America seems livelier”:
The New York Times Book Review
, February 18, 1973.
“Right now, movie criticism in America seems livelier”:
The New York Times Book Review
, February 18, 1973.
199
“crisp sentences”:
Ibid.
“crisp sentences”:
Ibid.
199
“aggressive wit”:
Ibid.
“aggressive wit”:
Ibid.
199
“she brings to her movies a grounding in literary culture”:
Ibid.
“she brings to her movies a grounding in literary culture”:
Ibid.
199
“Sometimes she drops into a sort of brawling”:
Ibid.
“Sometimes she drops into a sort of brawling”:
Ibid.
199
“excessive praise”:
Ibid.
“excessive praise”:
Ibid.
199
“I suspect either that, as a result of seeing too many movies”:
Ibid.
“I suspect either that, as a result of seeing too many movies”:
Ibid.
200
“the worst movie that I’ve stayed to see”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 20, 1968).
“the worst movie that I’ve stayed to see”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 20, 1968).
200
“self-satire”:
The New York Times Book Review
, July 23, 1973.
“self-satire”:
The New York Times Book Review
, July 23, 1973.
200
“slow reaction time made her seem daffy”:
Ibid.
“slow reaction time made her seem daffy”:
Ibid.
200
“Who knows what to think about Marilyn Monroe ”:
Ibid.
“Who knows what to think about Marilyn Monroe ”:
Ibid.
200
“to cosmic proportions”:
Ibid.
“to cosmic proportions”:
Ibid.
201
“His strength—when he gets rolling”:
Ibid.
“His strength—when he gets rolling”:
Ibid.
201
“a rip-off all right”:
Ibid.
“a rip-off all right”:
Ibid.
201
“a runaway string of perceptions ”:
Ibid.
“a runaway string of perceptions ”:
Ibid.
201
“Mailer’s way to perform character assassination”:
Ibid.
“Mailer’s way to perform character assassination”:
Ibid.
201
“malevolence that needs to be recognized”:
Ibid.
“malevolence that needs to be recognized”:
Ibid.
201
“What for?”:
Pauline Kael, Introduction,
For Keeps
, (New York: Dutton, 1994), iii.
“What for?”:
Pauline Kael, Introduction,
For Keeps
, (New York: Dutton, 1994), iii.
201
“That’s right”:
Ibid.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN“That’s right”:
Ibid.
202
“I live in a rather special world”:
Newsweek
(February, 1973).
“I live in a rather special world”:
Newsweek
(February, 1973).
202
“The Watergate hearings”:
Pauline Kael, “The Current Cinema,”
The New Yorker
(October 1, 1973).
“The Watergate hearings”:
Pauline Kael, “The Current Cinema,”
The New Yorker
(October 1, 1973).
202
“The Vietnam War has barely been mentioned on the screen”:
Ibid.
“The Vietnam War has barely been mentioned on the screen”:
Ibid.
202
“there was no virtuous side to identify with”:
Ibid.
“there was no virtuous side to identify with”:
Ibid.
202
“a depressive uncertainty”:
Ibid.
“a depressive uncertainty”:
Ibid.
202
“When Vietnam finished off the American hero as a righter of wrongs”:
Ibid.
“When Vietnam finished off the American hero as a righter of wrongs”:
Ibid.
203
“corruption seems to be inescapable”:
Ibid.
“corruption seems to be inescapable”:
Ibid.
203
“perhaps someone in the head office at Fox”:
Ibid.
“perhaps someone in the head office at Fox”:
Ibid.
203
“I invited her to lunch”:
Author interview with Lamont Johnson, April 6, 2009.
“I invited her to lunch”:
Author interview with Lamont Johnson, April 6, 2009.
203
“I am sorry to say”:
Author interview with Judith Crist, July 17 2008.
“I am sorry to say”:
Author interview with Judith Crist, July 17 2008.
204
“a fuckin’ politician”:
Martin Scorsese and Mardik Martin, screenplay of
Mean Streets,
1973.
“a fuckin’ politician”:
Martin Scorsese and Mardik Martin, screenplay of
Mean Streets,
1973.
204
“a true original of our period”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 8, 1973).
“a true original of our period”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 8, 1973).
204
“breaks out so unexpectedly”:
Ibid.
“breaks out so unexpectedly”:
Ibid.
204
“the psychological connections”:
Ibid.
“the psychological connections”:
Ibid.
204
“We were easily discouraged”:
Joyce Maynard, “I Remember,”
New York
(August 18, 1975).
“We were easily discouraged”:
Joyce Maynard, “I Remember,”
New York
(August 18, 1975).
206
“It’s amazing how decisions are forced upon us willy-nilly”:
Arthur Laurents’s screenplay of
The Way We Were
, 1973.
“It’s amazing how decisions are forced upon us willy-nilly”:
Arthur Laurents’s screenplay of
The Way We Were
, 1973.
206
“it’s hardly the definitive film about McCarthyism”:
American Film
(April 1978).
“it’s hardly the definitive film about McCarthyism”:
American Film
(April 1978).
206
“a torpedoed ship full of gaping holes which comes snugly into port”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 15, 1973).
“a torpedoed ship full of gaping holes which comes snugly into port”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 15, 1973).
206
“bewildering”:
Ibid.
“bewildering”:
Ibid.
206
“miraculous audience empathy”:
Ibid.
“miraculous audience empathy”:
Ibid.
206
“caught the spirit of the hysterical Stalinist workhorses”:
Ibid.
“caught the spirit of the hysterical Stalinist workhorses”:
Ibid.
206
“defensive and aggressive in the same breath”:
Ibid.
“defensive and aggressive in the same breath”:
Ibid.
206
“a gradual conquest of the movie public”:
Ibid.
“a gradual conquest of the movie public”:
Ibid.
206
“hit entertainment and maybe even memorable entertainment”:
Ibid.
“hit entertainment and maybe even memorable entertainment”:
Ibid.
207
“Maybe the reason some people have difficulty getting into Altman’s wavelength”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 22, 1973).
“Maybe the reason some people have difficulty getting into Altman’s wavelength”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 22, 1973).
207
“He’s not a pusher”:
Ibid.
“He’s not a pusher”:
Ibid.
208
“when you hear the improvised dialogue”:
Ibid.
“when you hear the improvised dialogue”:
Ibid.
208
“But I understand Pauline”:
Author interview with Elliott Gould, September 9, 2009.
“But I understand Pauline”:
Author interview with Elliott Gould, September 9, 2009.
208
“an erratic comic genius”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(December 31, 1973).
“an erratic comic genius”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(December 31, 1973).
208
“found a nonaggressive way”:
Ibid.
“found a nonaggressive way”:
Ibid.
208
“essential sanity”:
Ibid.
“essential sanity”:
Ibid.
208
“the base from which he takes flight”:
Ibid.
“the base from which he takes flight”:
Ibid.
208
“without the lapses that had found”:
Ibid.
“without the lapses that had found”:
Ibid.
208
“Allen’s new sense of control over the medium”:
Ibid.
“Allen’s new sense of control over the medium”:
Ibid.
209
“The battered adolescent . . . still thinks that’s the secret of happiness”:
Ibid.
“The battered adolescent . . . still thinks that’s the secret of happiness”:
Ibid.
210
“When you see him on TV”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 7, 1974).
“When you see him on TV”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 7, 1974).
210
“learning about the Catholic Church while I was doing that film”:
Author interview with William Friedkin, May 10, 2008.
“learning about the Catholic Church while I was doing that film”:
Author interview with William Friedkin, May 10, 2008.
210
“no indication that Blatty”:
Ibid.
“no indication that Blatty”:
Ibid.
210
“The whole movie was balanced on that”:
Author interview with William Friedkin, May 10, 2008.
“The whole movie was balanced on that”:
Author interview with William Friedkin, May 10, 2008.
210
“I wonder about those four-hundred and ninety-nine mothers”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 7, 1974).
“I wonder about those four-hundred and ninety-nine mothers”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 7, 1974).
210
“the biggest recruiting poster”:
Ibid.
“the biggest recruiting poster”:
Ibid.
210
“I found it wrong-headed”:
Author interview with William Friedkin, May 10, 2008.
“I found it wrong-headed”:
Author interview with William Friedkin, May 10, 2008.
211
“I remember her walking in”:
Author interview with Joan Tewkesbury, February 4, 2009.
“I remember her walking in”:
Author interview with Joan Tewkesbury, February 4, 2009.
211
“What you got was this sense of women”:
Ibid.
“What you got was this sense of women”:
Ibid.
211
“the pensive, delicate romanticism of
McCabe
, but it isn’t hesitant or precarious”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(February 4, 1974).
“the pensive, delicate romanticism of
McCabe
, but it isn’t hesitant or precarious”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(February 4, 1974).
211
“saphead objectivity”:
Pauline Kael,
Time
(March 14, 1968).
“saphead objectivity”:
Pauline Kael,
Time
(March 14, 1968).
211
“Robert Altman spoils other directors’ films for me”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(February 4, 1974).
“Robert Altman spoils other directors’ films for me”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(February 4, 1974).
212
“Pauline Kael saved
McCabe & Mrs. Miller
”:
Letter from Grover Sales to Pauline Kael, October 22, 1973.
“Pauline Kael saved
McCabe & Mrs. Miller
”:
Letter from Grover Sales to Pauline Kael, October 22, 1973.
212
“In terms of the pleasure that technical assurance gives an audience”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 18, 1974).
“In terms of the pleasure that technical assurance gives an audience”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 18, 1974).
212
“If there is such a thing as a movie sense”:
Ibid.
“If there is such a thing as a movie sense”:
Ibid.
212
“an intellectualized movie—shrewd and artful”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 18, 1974).
“an intellectualized movie—shrewd and artful”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 18, 1974).
213
“I guess you didn’t know that Terry is like a son to me”:
Modern Maturity
(March–April, 1998).
“I guess you didn’t know that Terry is like a son to me”:
Modern Maturity
(March–April, 1998).
213
“Tough shit, Bill”:
Ibid.
“Tough shit, Bill”:
Ibid.
213
“Movie criticism is a happy, frustrating, slightly mad job”:
Pauline Kael, acceptance speech, National Book Awards, April 18, 1974.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN“Movie criticism is a happy, frustrating, slightly mad job”:
Pauline Kael, acceptance speech, National Book Awards, April 18, 1974.
214
“With her review of
Last Tango
, I think”:
Author interview with Howard Kissel, July 2, 2008.
“With her review of
Last Tango
, I think”:
Author interview with Howard Kissel, July 2, 2008.
214
“I would say film critics have power ”:
Ibid.
“I would say film critics have power ”:
Ibid.
214
“the reputations of virtually every writer in town”:
David Denby, “My Life as a Paulette,”
The New Yorker
(October 20, 2003).
“the reputations of virtually every writer in town”:
David Denby, “My Life as a Paulette,”
The New Yorker
(October 20, 2003).
215
“those who didn’t turn away in anger”:
Ibid.
“those who didn’t turn away in anger”:
Ibid.
215
“It’s shit, honey”:
Ibid.
“It’s shit, honey”:
Ibid.
215
“You’re too restless to be a writer”:
Ibid.
“You’re too restless to be a writer”:
Ibid.
215
“I’ve thought about this seriously, honey”:
Ibid.
“I’ve thought about this seriously, honey”:
Ibid.
215
“Ray, his face cast down into his shrimp and rice”:
Ibid.
“Ray, his face cast down into his shrimp and rice”:
Ibid.
216
“the emotional resources”:
Pauline Kael, “The Current Cinema,”
The New Yorker
(December 23, 1974).
“the emotional resources”:
Pauline Kael, “The Current Cinema,”
The New Yorker
(December 23, 1974).
217
“about midway”:
Ibid.
“about midway”:
Ibid.
217
“Is it our imagination”:
Ibid.
“Is it our imagination”:
Ibid.
217
“the physical audacity”:
Ibid.
“the physical audacity”:
Ibid.
217
“openhanded”:
Ibid.
“openhanded”:
Ibid.
217
“the sensibility at work”:
Ibid.
“the sensibility at work”:
Ibid.
217
“a magnificent piece”:
Letter from Penelope Gilliatt to Pauline Kael, December 17, 1974.
“a magnificent piece”:
Letter from Penelope Gilliatt to Pauline Kael, December 17, 1974.
217
“in a position”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(August 5, 1975).
“in a position”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(August 5, 1975).
217
“didn’t
plan
on
The Conversation
being a success”:
Ibid.
“didn’t
plan
on
The Conversation
being a success”:
Ibid.
218
“audiences like movies that do all the work for them”:
Ibid.
“audiences like movies that do all the work for them”:
Ibid.
218
“The movie companies used to give all their pictures a chance”:
Ibid.
“The movie companies used to give all their pictures a chance”:
Ibid.
218
“Perhaps no work of art is possible without belief in the audience”:
Ibid.
“Perhaps no work of art is possible without belief in the audience”:
Ibid.
219
“really care about the business end”:
Letter from Fred Goldberg to Pauline Kael, August 22, 1974.
“really care about the business end”:
Letter from Fred Goldberg to Pauline Kael, August 22, 1974.
219
“a hell of a writer”:
Ibid.
“a hell of a writer”:
Ibid.
219
“strikingly well-edited”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 14, 1974).
“strikingly well-edited”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 14, 1974).
219
“complete without us”:
Ibid.
“complete without us”:
Ibid.
219
“the secret of gambling ”:
Ibid.
“the secret of gambling ”:
Ibid.
219
“The poor bastard who buys a two-dollar ticket”:
Ibid.
“The poor bastard who buys a two-dollar ticket”:
Ibid.
219
“I always enjoy reading you”:
Author interview with James Toback, May 21, 2009.
“I always enjoy reading you”:
Author interview with James Toback, May 21, 2009.
220
“For a while I just felt awkward:
Ibid.
“For a while I just felt awkward:
Ibid.
220
“a lot of characters”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 14, 1974).
“a lot of characters”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(October 14, 1974).
220
“She never liked to talk about being Jewish”:
Author interview with James Toback, May 21, 2009.
“She never liked to talk about being Jewish”:
Author interview with James Toback, May 21, 2009.
220
“She thought, ‘I’m just what he was”:
Ibid.
“She thought, ‘I’m just what he was”:
Ibid.
220
“one of the rare films that genuinely deserve to be called controversial”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 13, 1975).
“one of the rare films that genuinely deserve to be called controversial”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(January 13, 1975).
221
“the first angry-young-woman movie”:
Ibid.
“the first angry-young-woman movie”:
Ibid.
221
“Burstyn appears to be”:
Ibid.
“Burstyn appears to be”:
Ibid.
221
“The trouble with Ellen Burstyn’s performance is that she’s playing against something instead of playing a character”:
Ibid.
“The trouble with Ellen Burstyn’s performance is that she’s playing against something instead of playing a character”:
Ibid.
221
“so many of those discordant notes”:
Ibid.
“so many of those discordant notes”:
Ibid.
222
“might have been no more than a saucy romp ”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(February 17, 1975).
“might have been no more than a saucy romp ”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(February 17, 1975).
222
“the emotional climate of the time and place”:
Ibid.
“the emotional climate of the time and place”:
Ibid.
222
“an easy role”:
Ibid.
“an easy role”:
Ibid.
222
“the most virtuoso example of sophisticated kaleidoscopic farce”:
Ibid.
“the most virtuoso example of sophisticated kaleidoscopic farce”:
Ibid.
223
“She was very entertaining and interesting and funny about herself”:
Author interview with Michael Murphy, October 15, 2009.
“She was very entertaining and interesting and funny about herself”:
Author interview with Michael Murphy, October 15, 2009.
223
“I always had a feeling about Pauline”:
Ibid.
“I always had a feeling about Pauline”:
Ibid.
223
“Bob was very flattered by how wonderful she thought he was”:
Author interview with Sue Barton, October 23, 2008.
“Bob was very flattered by how wonderful she thought he was”:
Author interview with Sue Barton, October 23, 2008.
224
“That’s what the screening was for”:
Jan Stuart,
The
Nashville
Chronicles: The Making of Robert Altman’s Masterpiece
(New York: Simon & Schuster, 2000), 281.
“That’s what the screening was for”:
Jan Stuart,
The
Nashville
Chronicles: The Making of Robert Altman’s Masterpiece
(New York: Simon & Schuster, 2000), 281.
224
“Is there such a thing as an orgy for movie-lovers”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 3, 1975).
“Is there such a thing as an orgy for movie-lovers”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 3, 1975).
224
“
Nashville
isn’t in final shape yet”:
Ibid.
“
Nashville
isn’t in final shape yet”:
Ibid.
224
“The great American popularity contest”:
Ibid.
“The great American popularity contest”:
Ibid.
225
“all of those things”:
Ibid.
“all of those things”:
Ibid.
225
“Altman wants you to be part of the life he shows you”:
Ibid.
“Altman wants you to be part of the life he shows you”:
Ibid.
226
“no longer singing”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 17, 1975).
“no longer singing”:
Kael,
The New Yorker
(March 17, 1975).
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