Rowlands, the daughter of a wisconsin state senator, was blonde with elegant manners. Cassavetes went on to direct eight more films, including the aforementioned husbands 1970, a woman under the influence 1974 and opening night 1977, as well as love streams in 1984. John cassavetes was a genius, a visionary, and the progenitor of american independent film, but that doesnt begin to get at the generosity of his art. After the death of a common friend, three married men leave their lives together, seeking pleasure and freedom and ultimately leaving for london. It shows an important director not merely failing, but not even understanding why. Up to a woman under the influence 1974 he described his films as coming from plain, simple feeling. An interview with actress gena rowlands on the occasion of a john cassavetesrowlands retrospective at nycs metrograph. Cassavetes joins ben gazzara and peter falkboth of whom would become key collaborators of the directorsplaying a trio of middleaged long island family men who, following the sudden death of their close mutual friend. Director cassavetess doublededged trademarkbrilliant moments of intense acting amid the. Some of his earlier works, such as shadows 1959 and husbands 1970 grew directly out of his personal experiences.
Greekamerican actor and filmmaker john cassavetes 1929 1989 with his wife, actress gena rowlands right and britt ekland left, his costar in the film gli intoccabili the untouchables, aka machine gun mccain, during location filming in rome, italy, 3rd july 1968. American lofi pioneer john cassavetes shadows, faces already had his nofrills, improvisatory style locked down in 1970 when he made this boozy, sweaty d. John cassavetes and peter falk are at the top of their game in elaine mays tangy, talky classic about mobster lowlife published. Between the cinemas of john cassavetes and david cronenberg, a barthesian perspective robert furze b. When cassavetes finally and decisively returned to independence with faces 1968, the fact that he was now dramatically shifting his focus to the middleclass an emphasis that would be amplified in husbands 1970 altered what might be called his playing field for most of the remainder of his career, widening this focus mainly to. An influential figure in film history, john cassavetes is known as the father of independent film. By 1975 he felt he had exhausted this approach and consciously went in pursuit of. If the two ever found themselves miserable in a crowd. Then theres husbands, which starred falk, gazzarra and cassavetes, and chronicles the. With ben gazzara, peter falk, john cassavetes, jenny runacre. After coming to terms with columbia, cassavetes began work on 1970s husbands, which costarred peter falk and ben gazzara. Tribute to a great filmaker, john cassavetes here is a snip of his masterpiece 1971 duration.
Starting in new york with his first film shadows 1959, cassavetes moved on to the west coast with faces 1968, husbands 1970, minnie and moskowitz 1971, a woman under the influence 1974, the killing of a chinese bookie 1976, opening night 1977, gloria 1980, and love streams 1984. Husbands is a 1970 american comedydrama film written and directed by john cassavetes. Jun 07, 2016 john cassavetes and gena rowlands starting dating in december 1953. John cassavetes husbands is disappointing in the way antonionis zabriskie point was. Biography for john cassavetes turner classic movies. Mar 02, 2001 since his death in 1989, gena rowlands has been notoriously reluctant to discuss the work of her husband, john cassavetes. My cassavetes on cassavetes and shadows books were the first published attempts to separate the facts from the fictions in cassavetes life and work, and my current work continues this project. The show is playing at the public theater as part of the under the. John cassavetes was a greekamerican actor, film director, and screenwriter. Cassavetes is a place, jon voight remarks in a constant forge, a 2000 documentary that rounds out five films, a box set of movies directed by john cassavetes.
John cassavetes began his career in film in 1953 and ended it in 1986, between which times he was involved in every aspect of the film, television, and stage arts, including acting, directing, scoring, shooting, editing, producing, and marketing. However, his performance is also funny and compassionate. Cassavetes first experience with the filmmaking business. Lee examines spacial relationships in the directors first feature film shadows 1959, revealing how the indie icon uses space to establish the emotional states of two characters. The actress gena rowlands, photographed at the plaza hotel. Aug, 2014 cassavetes films, as a whole, are about aging. As a child, he appeared in two of his fathers films. Described by fine as perhaps john cassavetes most controversial film, husbands is also one of his loosest and most adventurous. John cassavetes puts a disintegrating marriage under the microscope in the searing faces.
Director john cassavetes uses photographs of himself with friends and costars ben gazzara and peter falk in his opening, including a fourth pal, played by david rowlands, the brother of cassavetes wife gena, whose funeral they attend in the first filmed scene, in husbands, 1970. Cassavetes made a number of movies with alcoholism as a backdrop, including opening night, which was allegedly about a broadway actress coming to grips with the aging process, but her alcoholism runs wild throughout the film. John cassavetes by gabriella oldham overdrive rakuten. But those who are able to give themselves over to cassavetes will find husbands immensely rewarding, an exhausting probe into the psyche of middleaged, middle class american males. For john cassavetes, his 1976 neonoir the killing of a chinese bookie marked a departure. She is best known for her 2007 film broken english. Cassavetes wrote and directed husbands, in addition to starring in it, it would have been unusual indeed if it turned out that he didnt think it was a good movie.
Once inside a cassavetes film, theres no mistaking it for anywhere else. It has good intentions, i suppose, but it is an artistic disaster and only fitfully. If the two ever found themselves miserable in a crowd, rowlands could use certain words or phrases as a. Cassavetes was the most fervent man i ever met, and he didnt have a copycat bone in his body. John cassavetesstatecollapsed to show the template collapsed, i.
Cassavetes was born in new york city in 1929 to nicholas john cassavetes and his wife, katherine demetre 19061983. In many areas of cassavetes life and art, the myths have completely blocked the view of the realities. Its been rumored the cassavetes destroyed what he believed to be the poorer versions of the film, opting to distribute the abbreviated twoandahalf hour version. His selffinanced films portray his interest in the human individual and his or her emotional experiences, while the works themselves exemplify the nontraditional ways that a filmmaker is able to take in order to bring a story onto the screen. Nov 18, 2014 early into their 35yearlong marriage, john cassavetes taught gena rowlands to speak greek. Whether this is artistically brilliant or pretentious and sophomoric depends upon the individual viewer. His films never reached wide audiences and some of his work was panned by critics but he was respected by those in the know.
Hons this thesis is submitted to dublin city university for the award of ph. Jan 07, 2010 doris mirescu and dangerous ground productions are bringing a similar sensibility think video cameras and projected closeups to the stage in john cassavetes husbands, a reimagining of cassavetess 1970 film about three men dealing with a friends death. Faces, shadows, opening night, woman under influence, husbands, love streams, gloria, and as actor. Husbands by ben gazzara, peter falk, jenny runacre. John cassavetes statecollapsed to show the template collapsed, i. Peter falk, john cassavetes, and ben gazzara run riot the dick cavett show duration. Featuring astonishingly nervy performances from marley, carlin, and.
What we get is three great actors mephistophelian bad boy cassavetes, wounded idealist falk, and in a filmstealing performance, glowering killjoy ben. Husbands 1970 and a woman under the influence 1974. This week, rowlands will appear twice at the metrograph theater on the lower east side, in honor. The five films in this collectionall of which the director maintained total control over by financing. It stars ben gazzara, peter falk and cassavetes as three middle class men in the throes of a midlife crisis following the death of a close friend. What always saves a cassavetes film from the precipice is that by the time the credits roll, we know his people as we know our own loved ones flawed, complex, mysterious. To mark a new retrospective of his films, she makes an exception for. Nicholas colasanto, john cassavetes, peter falk, 1972. Since his death in 1989, gena rowlands has been notoriously reluctant to discuss the work of her husband, john cassavetes. Peter falk, john cassavetes, and ben gazzara in husbands 1970 john. Nick cassavetes biography and filmography nick cassavetes.
John cassavetes wrote and directed this look at three middleaged men. John cassavetes and gena rowlands starting dating in december 1953. May 21, 1959 born and raised in the big apple, nick is the son of two actors father john was also a director, and grandson of actress katherine cassavetes. Husbands has all the confidence of cassavetes masterpiece, faces, but few of the other qualities of the film that preceded it. At one moment, he turns to his son that he hasnt seen since his birth while giving him beer for breakfast and explains, i dont like men. He is considered a pioneer of american independent film, as he often financed his own films.
Cassavetes creates a similar sense of unease in the viewer. Nicholas was an immigrant from greece, while katherine was. Husbands is his toughest, most exhausting film, but if you can take it, its worth the ride. Cassavetes was born in new york city, the son of actress gena rowlands and greekamerican actor and film director john cassavetes. After helming 1971s minnie and moskowitz for universal, he turned to selffinancing, creating his masterpiece a woman under the influence, which earned rowlands an academy award nomination in the best actress category. How gena rowlands met john cassavetes the new york times. Shot in highcontrast 16 mm black and white, the film follows the futile attempts of the captain of industry richard john marley and his wife, maria lynn carlin, to escape the anguish of their empty relationship in the arms of others. John cassavetes was inspired to write a woman under the influence when wife gena rowlands expressed a desire to appear in a play about the difficulties faced by contemporary women. His completed script was so intense and emotional she knew she would be unable to perform it eight times a week, so he decided to adapt it for the screen.
Identity in the films of cassavetes senses of cinema. These pages are dedicated to the great movie director john cassavetes through a great selection of original movie posters, storyboards, movie scripts, lobby cards and stills as director. A former theater actor fascinated by the power of improvisation, cassavetes brought his search for truth in performance to the screen. Probably the most fascinating and exhaustively indepth book on one filmmaker ive ever read. Gena rowlands on the work of her husband, john cassavetes. Shadows is as much about the seemingly infinite experience of youth as love streams is about the certainty of mortality. His compassion is like a tidal wave, but without a hint of sentiment. Those in the former camp get what cassavetes is all about. In 2008, ivo van hoves techheavy staging of cassavetess 1977 film, opening night, turned a stage at the brooklyn academy of music into an ersatz film set doris mirescu and dangerous ground productions are bringing a similar sensibility think video cameras and projected.
Rodney dangerfield at his best on the tonight show starring johnny carson 1983 duration. Its a locale where moods simmer and then boil, liquor flows at an unhealthy pace, and the camera shakes and. A woman under the influence 1974 directed by, written and directed by. She is the daughter of filmmaker john cassavetes and actress gena rowlands. Behind the scenes footage of john cassavetes directing husbands 1970. John cassavetess films include rosemarys baby, a woman under the influence, faces, opening night. The trailblazing independent auteur john cassavetes pushes his raw, uncompromising emotional realism to its limit in this unflinching portrait of masculinity in crisis. Ending up in london, the three must confront their own mortality and decide how to spend the rest of their lives. Nicholas david rowland cassavetes born may 21, 1959 is an american actor, director and writer.
Just check out this liquorfueled scene with cassavetes, gazzarra and rowland. If youre a master of camerawork like john cassavetes it can say a whole hell of a lot. Cassavetes next directorial effort was husbands 1970, a story about three married men cassavetes, peter falk and ben gazzara who embark on a wild jaunt to london while struggling to cope with the sudden death of a close friend. John cassavetes 19291989 was one of the most highly acclaimed independent filmmakers in america. John cassavetes and the making of husbands 1970 youtube. He was widely honored for motion pictures that successfully brought to the screen believable portrayals of real human emotion the younger of two sons of greek immigrants, nicholas and katherine cassavetes, he was born in new york city on december 9, 1929. Greekamerican actor and filmmaker john cassavetes with. Translating the films of the director john cassavetes for the stage is a novel concept, but not a new one. After the funeral, the three men decide that they need to get away from it all for a while.