Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword, by Jonathan Rosenbaum
- Editor's Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: The Art and Craft of Interviewing
- I Going Hollywood: Masters of Studio Style
- 1 Angel in Exile: Allan Dwan
- 2 “An Unhappy Happy End”: Douglas Sirk
- 3 Somebody Up There Likes Me: Robert Wise
- 4 “The Greatest Movie the World Has Never Seen”: Peter Bogdanovich and Joseph McBride on Orson Welles' The Other Side of the Wind
- 5 “Plant Your Feet and Tell the Truth”: Clint Eastwood
- II Tickets to the Dark Side: Festival Favorites
- III Blows Against the Empire: Indie Godfathers
- IV Edgeplay: Avant-Garde Auteurs
- V Women in Revolt: Artist-Activists
- VI The Canon: Brilliance without Borders
- Contributor Biographies
1 - Angel in Exile: Allan Dwan
from I - Going Hollywood: Masters of Studio Style
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 March 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword, by Jonathan Rosenbaum
- Editor's Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: The Art and Craft of Interviewing
- I Going Hollywood: Masters of Studio Style
- 1 Angel in Exile: Allan Dwan
- 2 “An Unhappy Happy End”: Douglas Sirk
- 3 Somebody Up There Likes Me: Robert Wise
- 4 “The Greatest Movie the World Has Never Seen”: Peter Bogdanovich and Joseph McBride on Orson Welles' The Other Side of the Wind
- 5 “Plant Your Feet and Tell the Truth”: Clint Eastwood
- II Tickets to the Dark Side: Festival Favorites
- III Blows Against the Empire: Indie Godfathers
- IV Edgeplay: Avant-Garde Auteurs
- V Women in Revolt: Artist-Activists
- VI The Canon: Brilliance without Borders
- Contributor Biographies
Summary
In conversation as in filmmaking, Allan Dwan (1886–1981) is a master storyteller. He savors details, builds suspense, sketches characters broadly yet deftly, and never allows the pace to flag. A genuine affection for people–tempered by a mischievous sense of humor–illuminates every yarn. In a career spanning five decades starting in 1911, Dwan's attitude toward morally ambiguous characters remained sympathetic. Gamblers, loose women, outlaws and outcasts are presented with understanding. We're encouraged to enjoy the extravagant nastiness of the villains and to view simple folk without condescension. Although Dwan retained the pictorialism and the melodramatic plot devices of the silent screen, his generous stance defies time. He continued to grow during the sound era, enjoying a large measure of creative freedom making color westerns, adventures, and melodramas for producer Benedict Bogeaus. Even the slightest of the series (Pearl of the South Pacific and Escape to Burma [both 1955]) are graced by ravishing images and smoothly flowing narratives. Cattle Queen of Montana (1954) has almost nonstop action against magnificent locations. Even better is Passion (1954), a moving story of romance and revenge. Silver Lode (1954), Tennessee's Partner (1955) and Slightly Scarlet (1956) are masterpieces; human stories handled with total formal control.
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- Chapter
- Information
- Action! , pp. 3 - 16Publisher: Anthem PressPrint publication year: 2009