Monday, December 5th, 12th, and 26th | 26 Films
In 1972, Douglas Sirk reflected back on his decision to leave Hollywood after the massive success of what turned out to be his final feature. "I felt a totally new Hollywood would soon be in the making, a Hollywood open to pictures like Easy Rider (1969) – at any rate, pictures of a very different brand, and a different style. But I felt I wasn't young enough anymore to wait this out…." Sirk stepped away from a long and successful filmmaking career on his own terms but that's not always the case, even with some of the greatest of filmmakers. Careers end for any number of reasons: age, illness, new interests, creative frustrations, failing faculties and in some cases an inability to evolve with the times. Turner Classic Movies presents the final features of 26 filmmakers over three nights and the stories behind them are as individual at the directors themselves.
The career of W.S. Van Dyke reaches back to the birth of the American feature film. He served as D.W. Griffith's assistant director on The Birth of a Nation (1915) and as a director in his own right he earned the moniker "One-Take Woody" for his speed and efficiency. He was battling cancer and heart disease while directing the sentimental drama Journey for Margaret (1942), which launched the career of child actress Margaret O'Brien, and died soon after at 53.
Mitchell Leisen brought elegance and style to glossy melodramas and romantic comedies alike as one of Paramount's most reliable directors for decades but ended up with second-rate projects by the end of the 1950s. After The Girl Most Likely (1958), a remake of the 1941 romantic comedy Tom, Dick and Harry, he transitioned to the small screen and helmed episodes of The Twilight Zone (1959-1960) and Wagon Train (1961), among other shows, before ill health forced him to retire.
You could call the wholesome, heartwarming The Singing Nun (1966) a throwback to the old studio days but production was anything but rosy as star Debbie Reynolds clashed with the producer. Director Henry Koster called it "probably the most difficult thing I ever did…. I decided that this was the last thing I'd ever do." He retired and devoted his final years to painting.
The World War I epic The Big Parade (1925) brought director King Vidor into the top ranks of Hollywood filmmakers and he ended his career with another epic. Solomon and Sheba (1959) was hit with tragedy when leading man Tyrone Power died of a heart attack and weeks of footage had to be reshot with the new leading man, Yul Brynner, elevating the already costly production by millions. Despite the disastrous setbacks, the film was a moneymaker but Vidor was tired of compromising himself on studio spectacles and stepped away when he couldn't interest the studios in his more personal projects.
Imitation of Life (1959) can be seen as the culmination of Douglas Sirk's cinematic exploration of American culture, slipping social commentary under the glossy surfaces of glamorous melodramas. This one took on race and prejudice through the story of an aspiring actress (Lana Turner) and a down-on-her-luck maid (Juanita Moore), both single mothers whose daughters grow up together almost like sisters. It became Universal's biggest hit to date and Lana Turner's most successful film ever, giving new life to a career that had stalled in scandal. Yet at the height of his success the director tore up his contract and left Hollywood. "I most likely would have left even if illness hadn't coincided," he explained years later. "I had had enough." He returned to Europe, where he directed theater and briefly taught before retiring in Switzerland, content to read (until his eyesight failed) and write until his death at the age of 89.
Frank Capra's final feature Pocketful of Miracles (1961), a musical remake of his own 1933 comedy Lady for a Day, introduced American audiences to Ann-Margret, who made her screen debut at the age of 20, and marked the return of screen legend Bette Davis after a long hiatus. It was not a happy set—Capra fought with his coproducer and had his hands full managing the battling egos on the set—and his deteriorating health took its toll during production. After years of pitching projects to studio executives in a rapidly changing Hollywood, he finally retired from a business that he felt had left him behind.
Ida Lupino was sole actress of her day with a career both in front of and behind the camera, tackling provocative projects as a pioneering independent filmmaker. The Trouble with Angels (1966), a wholesome family comedy starring Hayley Mills and Rosalind Russell, was a different kind of film for the director and while it was a hit, Lupino stepped away to focus on acting.
A Matter of Time (1976) gave the legendary Vincente Minnelli an opportunity to direct his daughter, Liza Minnelli, for the first and only time in his storied career. The production, which shot on location in Italy, was a happy experience for father and daughter alike. "I treated her just like I treated her mother," the director later reflected, "as a fine actress, marvelous comedian, and great tragedian." The film, however, was taken from Minnelli's hands by the producer and Minnelli disavowed the version released and retired for good.
George Cukor was celebrated as Hollywood's top "woman's director" and his final film, Rich and Famous (1981), harkens back to his golden age. He was a last minute replacement in a production already underway but the 81-year-old director was a good match for the material, the story of two friends (played by Jacqueline Bisset and Candice Bergen) who become literary and romantic rivals over the years. He proved adept at updating his style and sensibility for the modern world of sexual freedom but the production took a toll on his energy. According to biographer Patrick McGilligan, Cukor "knew that he would never have the stamina to direct again" and 50 years after directing his first film he gracefully retired.
The second day of the series begins with Tod Browning, who was known as "the Edgar Allan Poe" of cinema for his fascination with the macabre and the grotesque. His career struggled after the controversy over Freaks (1932) and while Miracles for Sale (1939), set in the world of stage magic and carnie folk, received good notices, audiences failed to respond and Browning retired to his Malibu mansion with his wife.
Max Ophuls' Lola Montes (1955), the highly fictionalized story of a legendary courtesan who was romanced by royalty and artists in 19th century Europe, was originally released in a compromised form, its intricate structure and swirling style butchered by producers. Though it was ultimately restored to its original form, Ophuls sadly didn't live to see it. He died in 1957 at the age of 54.
Five Days One Summer (1982) brought the Austrian-born filmmaker Fred Zinnemann back to the mountains of his youth for a story of mountain climbers in the Alps in 1930s. It was a demanding production for the 74-year-old filmmaker and, stung by what he called "a degree of viciousness in the reviews," he chose to retire after its release.
Confidentially Yours (1983) was a labor of love for director Francois Truffaut, quite literally. He developed the breezy comic mystery as a showcase for his muse Fanny Ardant. It was a lark for the director, a playful mix of romance and thriller that channeled his love of Alfred Hitchcock, but soon after the film's release a brain tumor took the eternally youthful filmmaker at the age of 52.
There was a 14 year hiatus between Ryan's Daughter (1970) and David Lean's final feature. He pursued A Passage to India (1984) with a passion and imposed his vision on it, rewriting the script his producer had commissioned and making significant changes from E.M. Forster's novel, and he clashed with actors and producers along the way. "I enjoyed doing this last picture," he confessed to biographer Kevin Brownlow, "but I didn't have any fun." While he never managed to direct another feature, he made his mark on the cinema on one final project: he oversaw the restoration of Lawrence of Arabia (1962).
Tony Richardson never lived to see the release of his final film Blue Sky (1994), a drama starring Jessica Lange and Tommy Lee Jones, when the production company went into bankruptcy and Richardson died of complications from HIV before the film's release three years later. And Anthony Mann was midway through shooting the Cold War thriller A Dandy in Aspic (1968) when he died of a heart attack. Leading man Laurence Harvey took over directing but in tribute to Mann, he did not take screen credit for his work.
Ernst Lubitsch had been battling heart problems for years when he embarked on what would be his final film. Refusing to slow down despite warnings from his doctor, he threw himself into That Lady in Ermine (1948), a musical comedy set in old Europe starring Betty Grable. Lubitsch was a month into shooting when he succumbed to a fatal heart attack, prompting the front page banner "LUBITSCH DROPS DEAD" from Daily Variety. Intentional or not, it was just the kind of headline you might find in one of Lubitsch's own wily comedies. Otto Preminger stepped in to complete the film. As for the famously autocratic Otto Preminger himself, he ended up personally bankrolling his final film, The Human Factor (1979), when his financers failed to deliver. He was planning his next production when he was injured in a traffic accident, bringing his almost 50-year film career to an end.
The final night of the series celebrates the work of Hollywood pros whose long, successful careers began in the silent era. Clarence Brown stepped away from directing after the exhausting ordeal of making the American epic Plymouth Adventure (1952) but his retirement was anything but idle. Among other activities, he piloted a jet beyond the sound barrier at the age of 71. Sam Wood sadly died of a heart attack soon after completing Ambush (1950), a rugged western that gave actor Robert Taylor a second act as a cowboy star. William Wellman mined his own experiences as a fighter pilot in World War I for Lafayette Escadrille (1958) and was so frustrated at studio tampering with his story that he left the business for good.
Raoul Walsh built a career making tough, robust movies with impressive action sequences and he was in his element with the western A Distant Trumpet (1964) even at the age of 76. Though he was offered more movies, he joked to an interviewer that "my lovely wife talked me out of it" and he spent his retirement watching critics rediscover his career.
Lewis Milestone took over the troubled production of Mutiny on the Bounty (1962) from director Carol Reed and clashed with star Marlon Brando, which made a technically challenging production all the more frustrating. Declining health finally forced him into retirement as it did John Ford, who ended a career of more than 100 films over 50 years with Seven Women (1965), an unusual project for the director best known for his westerns and films celebrating the American spirit. William Wyler similarly tackled something new with The Liberation of L. B. Jones (1970), a downbeat drama of bigotry in a Tennessee town. "Making a picture is just too goddam much work," he decided and, 45 years after directing his first feature, he stepped away to spend his last decade enjoying life with his family.
The reflective Madadayo (1993) was a fitting farewell feature for Akira Kurosawa, who was 81 when principal photography began. The title translates to "Not yet" and the director wrote in his autobiography that he wanted to work to the very end of life. While illness prevented him from making another film, Kurosawa continued to develop projects until the end.
