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Tag Archives: Making Movies
Sidney Lumet: Actors and Writers
Sidney Lumet: Sometimes the relationship between actors and writers gets very testy indeed. As the director, I have to be very careful here. I need them both. Most writers hate actors. And yet stars are the keys to getting a … Continue reading
Sidney Lumet: Working With the Writer
Excerpt from Making Movies: Sidney Lumet: What do I owe the writer? A thorough investigation and then a committed execution of his intentions. What does the writer owe me? The selflessness that Frank Pierson showed on Dog Day Afternoon or … Continue reading
Lumet Receiving Honorary Oscar
I was very excited to hear the news that this year Sidney Lumet will receive an honorary Oscar “brilliant services to screenwriters, performers and the art of the motion picture.” The first film he directed was 12 Angry Men. He … Continue reading
Sidney Lumet: The “Rubber-Ducky” School of Drama
Excerpt from Making Movies: Sidney Lumet: In the early days of television, when the “kitchen sink” school of realism held sway, we always reached a point where we “explained” the character. Around two-thirds of the way through, someone articulated the … Continue reading
Sidney Lumet: On Dialogue
Excerpt from Making Movies: Lumet’s movies always have a lot of talking in them. One of the greatest examples is “Network”. Sidney Lumet, unlike many other directors, does not shy away from a lot of dialogue. Here he explains why: … Continue reading
Sidney Lumet: Being “The Boss”
Excerpt from Making Movies: Sidney Lumet: So how independent am I? Like all bosses and on set, I’m the boss I’m the boss only up to a point. And to me that’s what’s so exciting. I’m in charge … Continue reading
Posted in Directors
Tagged Al Pacino, Henry Fonda, Making Movies, Sidney Lumet
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Sidney Lumet: What Is the Movie About?
Excerpt from Making Movies: Sidney Lumet: Having decided, for whatever reason, to do a movie, I return to that all-encompassing, critical discussion: What is the movie about? Work can’t begin until its limits are defined, and this is the first … Continue reading
Posted in Directors
Tagged Dog Day Afternoon, Eugene O'Neill, Long Day's Journey Into Night, Making Movies, Network, Sidney Lumet
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Sidney Lumet: Accepting A Job
Excerpt from Making Movies: Sidney Lumet: There are many reasons for accepting a movie. I’m not a believer in waiting for “great” material that will produce a “masterpiece”. What’s important is that the material involve me personally on some level. … Continue reading
Recommended Reading: Theatre/Film
(See my Recommended Fiction here, and my Recommended Non-Fiction here. These are not static lists. I already want to go into these two and add stuff, take stuff away. But so be it.) Theatre/film a huge genre, obviously, and there … Continue reading