Richard Corliss
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Bibliography
Biography
Prolific film reviewer and journalist Richard Corliss was Time magazine's longest-running movie critic, penning approximately 2,500 articles and features for the magazine, while also serving as one of the leading proponents of film theory that placed the screenwriter on an equal level of importance with the director. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on March 6, 1944, Richard Corliss was the son of businessman Paul William Corliss and his wife, Elizabeth, a schoolteacher. He saw his first movie at the age of 5 and despite the rigorous Jesuit teachings of his formative education, he continued to be fascinated by them into his teenage years. At 16, he discovered the work of Ingmar Bergman and other filmmakers from the vibrant European arthouse cinema scene of the 1950s and '60s; pictures like "The Seventh Seal" (1956) would have a profound impact on his understanding of cinema's possibilities. After graduating from St. Joseph's College in Philadelphia, Corliss moved to New York, where he did graduate work at Columbia and New York University. He also began publishing film reviews in magazines like The National Review and Maclean's. In 1970, Corliss became the editor of Film Comment, where he established his long-standing belief that the screenwriter was as important a figure in the development of a motion picture as the director. That thesis stood in direct conflict to the "auteur theory" of Andrew Sarris, his former professor at New York University, as well as the core of Pauline Kael's criticism. In 1980, Corliss joined the editorial staff at Time, where he would remain its chief film critic for more than three decades. His work displayed a diverse palate in terms of genre and style: he loved Disney animation and the films of Steven Spielberg with the same level of devotion he displayed for Bergman and Werner Herzog. He heaped equal praise on violent dramas by Quentin Tarantino and intimate drawing-room romances, but had little patience for overly sentimental films or broad comedies. But no matter what the assignment - which, over time, included theater reviews, music coverage and even the famous "Who Shot J.R.?" storyline from "Dallas" (CBS, 1978-1991), which put him on Time's cover - Corliss brought enthusiasm, insightfulness and a gift for extraordinary use of language to his work. In addition to his print work for Time, Corliss also wrote for the magazine's web presence, for which he penned a column on pop culture of the past called "That Old Feeling." He also wrote three books, including 1974's essay collection Talking Pictures, and Lolita (1995), which examined both the Vladimir Nabokov novel and the film adaptation by Stanley Kubrick. Corliss was also a consistent presence at film festivals, most notably Cannes, and on television talk shows and film documentaries. In 2015, Corliss suffered a major stroke that would eventually claim his life on April 23, 2015. His passing was mourned by figures throughout the film production and journalism worlds.
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Misc. Crew (Feature Film)
Cast (Special)
Life Events
1966
Was film critic for NATIONAL REVIEW
1974
Publishes first book, Talking Pictures
1980
Wrote film reviews for SOHO WEEKLY NEWS
1980
Joined staff of TIME as associate editor; promoted to senior writer in 1985
1995
Publishes third and final book, Lolita
Family
Companions
