Sydney Pollack died Monday of cancer at age 73. Recognized recently for playing belligerent bastards in Eyes Wide Shut, Michael Clayton (which he produced), and an episode of Entourage, and previously known for his Best Director Oscar and a host of dynamite movies in the 70s and 80s.
Tootsie. Out of Africa. They Shoot Horses, Don't They? Three Days of the Condor. The Firm. Absence of Malice.
Although we can't entirely pretend movies like The Interpreter, Havana, Sabrina, or his vague involvement with Made of Honor never happened, we are willing to overlook these duds because Sydney Pollack was basically a great Hollywood director and the star of those anti-cellphones-during-movies PSAs they cram between bad soda ads at multiplexes.
Here are links to some of his finest moments, courtesty of YouTube:
The trailer for They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, one of the most memorable damning of all dark comic satires.
One of Pollack's scenes with Dustin Hoffman in his own gem Tootsie, which if you haven't seen is frankly embarrassing.
And the opening titles for Three Days of the Condor with Robert Redford. This film is set up so masterfully, if you haven't seen it, then you cannot possibly appreciate this 3-minute clip's greatness. Watch it anyway.
Via the New York Times.