The great film director Richard Donner has died at the age of 91.
Donner had a long and very successful career. He began making commercials in the 1950s, transitioned to television in the 60s and (after a few misfires) to features in the 1970s. Donner was not an auteur director, but an expert maker of big, mainstream commercial entertainments -- he was terrifically skilled working with both actors and with the camera and he knew how to orchestrate action, comedy, characters, and spectacle for maximum audience impact. He worked across many genres and was the last of a noble breed -- the studio director.
He was also, by all accounts (including my own), a wonderful man. Physically big, with a deep, booming voice, Donner could come across as gruff and commanding, but none of that could cover up his big heart and generous spirit. He was known for his kindness, his loyalty, and tremendous generosity. Donner also had a tremendous sense of fun and his practical jokes both on and off set are legendary. As was his love and devotion to his wife -- producer Lauren Shuler-Donner.
Donner made a number of truly memorable films, including 1976's The Omen, 1985's The Goonies, 1985's Ladyhawke, and 1987's Lethal Weapon and its three sequels. He also made 1980's overlooked but very worthy Inside Moves, as well as the extremely entertaining big screen adaptation of the TV series Maverick, as well as Scrooged, starring Bill Murray. Donner's ouvre also contains some offbeat films that weren't quite as successful, but were never less than interesting, including 1997's Conspiracy Theory and 2006's 16 Blocks.
But anyone who knows me or has read my posts knows my favorite Donner film is 1978''s Superman: The Movie, which I also think is Donner's best work and his most personal.
Superman is a magical movie. It is certainly a film that does a great job of telling the story of the famous comic book character. But it is also a marvelous technical achievement that brought together some of the greatest talents of the British film industry, all of whom were orchestrated by Donner to create a sumptuous visual spectacle. It also made stars of its stars: Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder and featured one of the best scores by the maestro John Williams.
But the element that makes the film so special is its heart -- the is a film that is full of fun and excitement and spectacle and emotion and a genuine sense of wonder. And that all came from Donner, who -- in a two year production cycle in which he had to face and overcome many creative, technical, and business challenges -- never lost sight of the sense of joy he wanted the film to impart to its viewers. That he succeeded marvelously is why I feel the film is a personal one for Donner -- the movie tells the story of Superman, but it is Donner's spirit that radiates off the screen, nowhere more than in the film's final shot in which Superman flies past the camera and smiles at the audience to thank them for coming and sharing in the experience.
One of my fondest movie going experiences is when I first saw Superman in the theater. There was a young boy -- he looked to be about 6 -- sitting with his mother in the row in front of me. When Superman revealed himself for the first time, the boy came up out of his seat and said to his mom with excitement that had his entire body trembling: "Look Mom -- it's SUPERMAN!" He believed -- he really believed. There can be no greater tribute to a filmmaker than that.
I was fortunate enough to meet Donner twice. The first time was when I was working at Paramount and he was on the lot shooting SCROOGED. I was a huge fan and wanted to watch him work, so I snuck onto the soundstage with the intention of watching from the sidelines while he directed a scene. At this point I should mention that I had no idea what the movie was about. From the title, I assumed it was a retelling of A CHRISTMAS CAROL, so I was not surprised when I got on the stage and saw a bunch of people dressed in Victorian costumes. Figuring they were characters in the movie, I went to stand with a bunch of people in modern dress, assuming they were onlookers and that I could blend in with them while the scene got underway. What I did not realize was that this was the final scene of the film, which was set in a TV studio in which characters in modern dress mingled with actors shooting a period version of ACC. So, the group of people I was standing with were actual actors in the movie. And brilliant me was standing right in the front of them. Donner came over and looked through the camera and saw me -- someone he did not recognize and who certainly not part of his scene -- standing in the middle of his shot. "Who the fuck is that?" he boomed. "Get out of my fucking shot!" So I got out of the fucking shot. And off the fucking soundstage.
The second time I met Donner was about 5 years ago, when I got to formally interview him in his office in Beverly Hills. It was a really great conversation and I will forever be grateful that he gave me his time that afternoon (especially since he was suffering from terrible TMJ-induced jaw pain that day). As we were finishing up, I told him we had actually met once before and told him the story of my soundstage faux pax. When he heard my tale of ruining his shot, he let out a booming laugh and slapped me on the back.
A great man. A great filmmaker. RIP to one of the giants of the industry.
