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| Gary Wolcott's "Mr. Movie" column has appeared in the Tri-City Herald since 1992. The Tri-City native now lives in Portland, Ore., and watches about 250 movies each year. He believes movies are made to be seen on theater screens and should be seen there and not on television screens. Have a question for Mr. Movie? Click on "Add Comment" below. |
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closeMartin Ritt’s 1963 black and white classic Hud shows off three of the great talents of the 1960s: Paul Newman, Patricia Neal and Melvyn Douglas.
Newman got Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for doing Hud Bannon, and co-stars Patricia Neal and Melvyn Douglas won Oscars.
Ritt, whose career includes Hombre, Norma Rae, Murphy’s Romance and a bunch of other mega-hit movies, does Hud. It feels more like a play than a movie and is an outstanding representative of the dialogue writing of the times. Once you get into the rhythm, it is obvious why this is considered a classic.
Newman — who I greatly admire and miss — is the most natural actor in the history of cinema. Later in his career, he evolved into different types of characters and was more hero or anti-hero material, but early on Newman’s characters were unhappy rebels and self-absorbed narcissists.
He’s brilliant in “Hud” but slightly upstaged by Douglas and Neal — and by Ritt’s exceptional storytelling.
Mr. Movie rating: 5 stars
Not rated. Probably PG-13. It plays Friday, October 9 only at the Battelle Auditorium at 8 p.m.
5 stars to 4 1/2 stars: Must see on the big screen
4 stars to 3 1/2 stars: Good film, see it if it's your type of movie.
3 stars to 2 1/2 stars: Wait until it comes out on video.
2 stars to 1 star: Don't bother.
0 stars: Speaks for itself.
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