Picking Up the “Pieces”
- Details
- Published on Wednesday, 15 February 2012 14:38
- Written by Matt Robinson
Filmmaker Bob Rafelson coming to Suffolk’s Modern February 21
These days, much of the grandeur of that era is gone. Fortunately, some who remember and who contributed to it are willing to come back and bask in the glow of yesteryear.
Since reopening the Modern, Suffolk University has been hosting many such movie masters through their Suffolk Cinema Series (www.moderntheatre.com).
Among the noted auteurs and filmmakers Suffolk has included in its series since 2008 are Michael Cimino and Dennis Lehane. On February 21, Suffolk will bring award-winning writer/director/ producer Bob Rafelson to the Modern for a lively discussion with noted arts enthusiast and Suffolk Scholar-in-Residence Robert Brustein. In addition to working on such celebrated films as Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, The Postman Always Rings Twice, and The Black Widow, Rafelson was also involved with the hit TV series The Monkees.
Despite his acclaim, Rafelson admits that he was not confident as a young filmmaker. “I didn’t think I had the ability,” he explains. “It seemed to me that the guy who was in the booth, say for television, or on the floor for theater, behind the camera for a movie was a genius. And I didn’t feel like I was one.”
Perhaps that is why Rafelson tried his hand at so many parts of the process- working as a director, producer, editor, and actor. When asked which he enjoyed the most, Rafelson replied, “the only one of those that I could say I truly am devoted to is directing.” He notes, however, that a director has master several roles, including that of coauthor and/or head writer.
Among the other topics that fellow writer/director/producer Brustein will touch on during his conversation with Rafelson are the importance of casting, the excitement of “discovering” stars (Rafelson is credited with bringing Jack Nicholson, Jennifer Lopez, and Arnold Schwarzenegger to the screen), his lasting relationship with “Jack” and the tricks of the trade when it comes to directing sex scenes (such as the famous one from “The Postman Always Rings Twice”).
When asked about his own experiences with Rafelson, Brustein said that the first film he ever saw by his interlocutor was Five Easy Pieces and recalls being struck by “the power of the acting, the flow of the script, and the way Rafelson managed to plant a convincing Brando-type outsider inside a highbrow cultivated family.” When asked what he sees as the theme that runs through Rafelson’s work, Brustein’s suggests that it is “the link between popular culture and high art.”
Though Rafelson has not produced as much lately, Brustein also suggests that his work still holds up. In fact, he suggests, “I don’t know if a good film ever ages.” Even though the culture of America (and the world) has changed, Brustein says that the message of Rafelson’s films is as true as ever. “Tell the truth,” Brustein advises his fellow writers, “and your work will last.”
As Rafelson’s television work may not seem to coincide with his films, Brustein hopes to discuss with Rafelson the arc of his career and the creative choices he made. “I hope to talk about…the unexpected curve of his career from master film-maker to TV Monkee-maker,” Brustein says, admitting he “knows nothing” about the first music video stars, “and how he manages to combine so effortlessly the talents of rock singers, prizefighters, strippers, and movie stars.”
After Brustein interlocutes with Rafelson, the audience will also be allowed to address the Hollywood legend with questions of their own.
Just don’t ask him for a turkey sandwich!
