John Wilson is a maverick Hollywood film director with a reputation for self-destructive egocentric behaviour. His latest movie is a drama set in Africa and he hires Pete Verrill, a writer, to assist with the script. Pete soon discovers however that Wilson is much more interested in shooting an elephant than shooting a movie
Although the names have been changed, this is obviously a story about John Huston and the notoriously arduous shooting of his 1951 classic The African Queen. It's not really so much about the movie however as the man, and as a character study of the dictatorial, risk-taking temperament required to be a successful movie director it's first-rate. Aside from being tall, Eastwood does not resemble Huston either physically or professionally yet he does what any good actor can do and disappears into this persona. He seems larger than life, gleefully shocking polite society ladies and stubbornly refusing to behave like a professional, but by all accounts this was what Huston was like. He may be insufferable, but he is candid, honest, witty, and seizes life by the throat whilst others are simply swept along. It's one of Eastwood's most extreme and remarkable performances, and he is ably supported by the very capable cast, notably the underrated Fahey. Movies about movies are often either vacuous (America's Sweethearts) or pretentious (8½) but by concentrating on character, and filling out its story with satire and humour, this is one of the most interesting. Written by Peter Viertel, James Bridges and Burt Kennedy, based on a novel by Viertel (who was married to Deborah Kerr for fifty years). Photographed in beautiful locations in Zimbabwe and at West Wycombe Park in Buckinghamshire.
Although the names have been changed, this is obviously a story about John Huston and the notoriously arduous shooting of his 1951 classic The African Queen. It's not really so much about the movie however as the man, and as a character study of the dictatorial, risk-taking temperament required to be a successful movie director it's first-rate. Aside from being tall, Eastwood does not resemble Huston either physically or professionally yet he does what any good actor can do and disappears into this persona. He seems larger than life, gleefully shocking polite society ladies and stubbornly refusing to behave like a professional, but by all accounts this was what Huston was like. He may be insufferable, but he is candid, honest, witty, and seizes life by the throat whilst others are simply swept along. It's one of Eastwood's most extreme and remarkable performances, and he is ably supported by the very capable cast, notably the underrated Fahey. Movies about movies are often either vacuous (America's Sweethearts) or pretentious (8½) but by concentrating on character, and filling out its story with satire and humour, this is one of the most interesting. Written by Peter Viertel, James Bridges and Burt Kennedy, based on a novel by Viertel (who was married to Deborah Kerr for fifty years). Photographed in beautiful locations in Zimbabwe and at West Wycombe Park in Buckinghamshire.