The author’s versatility and personal gaze were unique qualities in the cinema of the 70s and 80s. To prove it the movies in streaming that you find below.
Fifteen years have passed since the disappearance of Sydney Pollack, and the void it left has not yet been filled. Nor probably will. Who among today’s American filmmakers possesses the versatility, the precision in their gaze, the ability to make any type of genre faced elegant? And this without ever becoming or feeling like an “author”, he who has always been an author in the round. We have selected the usual five film in streaming to pay homage to him, but never as in this case are not enough. Review everything you can about Sydney Pollack, even the less successful or lesser known works. You will find that in each case there was something personal and precious that was worth (re)discovering. Enjoy the reading.
Five great streaming movies directed by Sydney Pollack
- Red Crow you will not have my scalp
- How we were
- The three days of the Condor
- Tootsie
- My Africa
Red Crow You Shall Not Have My Scalp (1972)
The atypical western that sees a vibrant Robert Redford isolating oneself from society and fighting with nature for one’s survival immediately becomes an object of worship. Red Crow you will not have my scalp it is in its own way a highly political film, a work that speaks of individualism and confrontation with a social fabric no longer considered the bearer of healthy values. Moments of great cinema and an enigmatic, precious ending. One of the most beloved titles in Pollack’s filmography. Available on Amazon Prime Video, NOW.
The Way We Were (1973)
The romantic drama that defined a generation of moviegoers. Robert Redford and a lavish one Barbra Streisand they make of How we were a film with throbbing emotions, a concentration of feelings with incredible attention to the passage of time, to the small changes in the psychology of two people who have to face everything that is thrown at them. Epic film, splendid and painful. One that Pollack will forever be remembered for. Available on Amazon Prime Video.
Three Days of the Condor (1975)
One of the greatest thrillers in the history of cinema, with a first sequence of devastating power and never even come close. Still Redford fugitive and hunted by everyone, first of all the great and cold hired killer Max von Sydow. The three days of the Condor it works from every point of view, even in the impossible love story between the protagonist and Faye Dunaway. What a perfect clockwork, telling of the disillusionment of an era like no other film has been able to do. Absolute masterpiece. Available on Infinity +Amazon Prime Video.
Tootsie (1982)
Again, using the term masterpiece is not an exaggeration at all. Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Terry Garr, Bill Murray and all the other actors of Tootsie they make it a comedy that rises above all else, a tongue-in-cheek play that speaks to the battle of the sexes more wittily and profoundly than ever before. An avalanche of Oscar nominations, only the Lange statuette for supporting role. And to the film, to the direction, to the screenplay and above all to Hoffman? What are we kidding? Erroraccio…To be reviewed every time, it gets better and better…Available on CHILI, Google PlayAmazon Prime Video.
Out of Africa (1985)
The film that brings Pollack to an Oscar is a costume melodrama of beauty and romance far above average. Meryl Streep is outstanding lead in the role of Karen Blixen, and brings My Africa at levels of emotional intensity unknown for this type of production, as demonstrated by the final sequence of farewell to the continent. Robert Redford E Klaus Maria Brandauer they are perfect supporting characters for a majestic, passionate and poetic film. Truly the best of a Pollack that lets itself go to the feeling. Exemplary. Available on Google Play, Amazon Prime Video, NOW.
