Hollywoods bulldog

He created box office hits such as ‘Out of Africa’ and ‘Tootsie’. He hired stars like Robert Redford, Meryl Streep, and Dustin Hoffman. His movies received 48 Oscar nominations – and won 11 statuettes. But Sydney Pollack was also known as a director with a harsh tone and a rough manner.

Sydney Pollack directed box office hits ‘Out of Africa’ and ‘Tootsie’ and was infamous for his harsh way with actors and film crew alike.

Sydney Pollack was the director that Hollywood movie houses would hire if they wanted a smooth and hassle-free production. He was sure to make any deadline. Even if it took some harsh language and quarrels with actors and crew members to get there. Sometimes, it would even develop into regular word fights. So, at least, rumour said after Sydney Pollack shot Oscar nominated movie ‘Tootsie’ (1982) with star Dustin Hoffman. Here are two fames who could quarrel! But Sydney Pollack succeeded in convincing Hoffman into playing the part as agent of an unemployed actor. The tension between director and actor translated to the screen and resulted in the movies famous intensity.

In the Romance genre, ‘Tootsie’ was a success. Nevertheless, the Academy Award for Best Picture went to Gandhi, a movie starring Ben Kingsley.

But Pollack’s next movie – Out of Africa (1985) – was the success he had waited for: It won no less than seven Oscars. Amongst them was the award for Best Picture and Best Directing. However, Sydney Pollack does not seem to have left the same monumental artistic mark on the industry, as directors such as Quentin Tarantino, Martin Scorsese, and Stanley Kubrick undeniably have.

Pollack directed ‘The Firm’ (1993) starring Tom Cruise.

Assistant Professor Emeritus at Copenhagen University Peter Schepelern explains: “Sydney Pollack is a bit mainstream. Even though he created famous movies such as ‘Tootsie’, ‘Three Days of the Condor’ (1975), and ‘The Interpreter’ (2005) starring Nicole Kidman, he is not a director with a clear message or a special way with artistic effects.” Schepelern characterises Sydney Pollack as a talented and highly efficient director, who was good at making movies classifiable as ‘Hollywood mainstream’. “He was the guy Hollywood would call. And he has worked with enormous budgets and big stars such as Robert Redford, Barbra Streisand, and Meryl Streep. But the quality of the pictures fluctuated greatly. He could create a huge success, like ‘Out of Africa’, and totally fail on his next project.” Peter Schepelern ads.

Take for example the movie Havana (1990) starring Robert Redford and Lena Olin. According to Peter Schepelern, it lacks the little miracles that make great film. “You couldn’t ask for better technique. The plot seems perfect. But it just never really gets there.”

Barbra Streisand and especially Robert Redford were favoured actors of Sydney Pollack.

Still, Sydney Pollack is a big Hollywood name. “Admittedly, he has made fine pictures. Take ‘They shoot horses, don’t they?’ (1969), about a marathon dance competition set during the Depression, or ‘The Way We Were’ (1773). Here, he surely created little miracles.” In Hollywood, you do not often come across directors who are also hired as actors or producers for other people’s pictures. But Sydney Pollack produced, amongst others, ‘The Fabulous Baker Boys’ (1989) and ‘The Talented Mr. Ripley’ (1999).

Sydney Pollack died in 2008 at the age of 73. Nonetheless, a film shot at an Aretha Franklin concert premiered in 2018. Pollack had been director during what was also the live recording of the Amazing Grace record in 1972. To great dismay, the pictures and the sound turned out to be out of sync. New technology though enabled director Alan Elliot to create an 87 minute long movie of the legendary singer. Even though Pollack was never actually credited in the final picture (he did receive a ‘thanks to’ in the end credits), it is nonetheless the last minutes of film from one of Hollywood’s great directors.