AFI Life Achievement Award

jjkrogs

New member
Anyone watch this tonight? Not only was it a pretty neat event, but there can be NO doubt that Indy 4 is very real. Hell, the big 3 were sitting right next to each other, and granted, each helped "make" each other's career, but clearly they're in full swing for a 4th movie. The wait is nearly over, my friends. And I must say, Ford looks pretty good. He's a little goofy on the personal side it seems, but he's still got the look and attitude. That's probably the single-biggest reason I watched the thing. Man, to see those 3 sitting at the same table-- how can you not be in awe?

Anyway, I did kind of pick up on a couple themes, and most have been discussed already on this board. Lucas really seems to be in a career mode where character backstory is almost an obsession. I see a lot of this going into the new Indy movie. I think it's, now, more a question of who, rather than if, a young Indy will be introduced. Hopefully Spielberg has more of a say than GL, lest we see another Hayden Christiansen-type casting. To me, the part of Indy is much harder, and more imperative, to hit perfectly than that of young Darth.

But the Indy spot of the awards show did point something out to me that I hadn't thought about-- what's the new antagonist swarm of creature this time? We've got spiders, snakes, "bugs" and rats. My guess is sharks or other potentially deadly aquatic creature. Water's played a HUGE part of every Indy movie, and if the timeframe of mid-50's is still a go, I'm guessing the setting is Asia. Historically, that's the most active area of the world in this time period, provides some great bad guys, and gives way to an almost unavoidable water scene or two. I'm reaching here, but hey.

Just wondering what you guys thought of the Lucas, Spielberg, Ford bits of the show, if you watched it.
 
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Ska

New member
I, too, was able to catch the Lifetime Achievement Award for Mr. Lucas. Like jjkrogs mentioned, seeing the three sitting there in the spotlight was goosebump worthy. And for all the naysayers out there, Ford seems to have plenty spunk and energy to play the part. Did you see him run off stage, down the steps to thank the creator of Magnum P.I. for casting Selleck so he could play Indy? Mind you there was no boulder chasing him...but he still moved pretty well. And look at the determination in his face when he tells Lucas to get a move on it w/ Indy IV so that Sean can still play his father.

If you haven't caught the show, do yourself a favor and do so. I believe it is being replayed this coming Sunday, from 9am to 11am est.
 

jjkrogs

New member
temple of john said:
It's almost impossible for me to imagine anyone but Ford as Indy. I actually think that River Phoenix would have done well as a young Indy (in a full length feature I mean).


Yeah, but as I mentioned in another post, I'd rather see a "new" Indy introduced in a movie with Ford, than have the franchise shelved entirely after #4.
 
"Lifetime Achievement Award for Mr. Lucas"

I like the idea that this is the kind of award you give people when they're gonna stop whatever it was they did... Especially in GLs case...
 

Moedred

Administrator
Staff member
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/y4Z1BXALdwI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

10 years ago Ford gave it to Connery. Next week see who hands it to John Williams. (Is there any other film like Last Crusade that involved 5 or more honorees?)
2016 AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to John Williams at the Dolby Theatre on June 9, 2016 in Hollywood, California. Tribute show airing Wednesday, June 15, at 10:00 p.m. (EST/PST) on TNT.
 

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
Moedred said:
(Is there any other film like Last Crusade that involved 5 or more honorees?)

I think that might be breaking new ground.

Most I can think of, up until now, is 4 for <I>How the West Was Won</I>, with a segment directed by John Ford and with featured roles for Henry Fonda, James Stewart, and Gregory Peck.

Also, less conventionally, there's <I>That's Entertainment</I>, which had segments filmed for it featuring Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, Elizabeth Taylor, and James Stewart, but that's a documentary. There's also Peter Bogdanovich's re-edited version of his <I>Directed by John Ford</I>, which adds interviews with Clint Eastwood, Steven Spielberg, and Martin Scorsese to those already existing with John Ford, James Stewart, and Henry Fonda and a narration delivered by Orson Welles, for a grand total of 7.
 
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Joe Brody

Well-known member
I took a look at the past AFI honorees and it's a cr*p old white guy's list of conformists and baby boom era celebrities. Tom F-ing Hanks in 2002 (?!?) but no Jodie Foster, Spike Lee, Sean Penn, Quentin Tarantino, Gene Hackman, Coen Brothers, Wes Andersen, Bill Murray/Harold Ramis, etc., etc. Where are the risk takers and innovators that truly advance the art?

I get only one recipient a year and so many worthies but the sample (with a few exceptions) of winners is suspiciously mass market and white bread.
 

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
Pale Horse said:
While I don't disagree, I can't think of anyone shamelessly missing. ...

I think the main thing they did wrong was jumping to young candidates earlier than they ought to have, like a 46-year old Tom Hanks.

The Wikipedia page for this, which I've been spending a shocking amount of time on lately (I like film cast puzzles), has this enlightening section.

Notable Omissions
Politics also seems to be a factor in the award, as that likely was behind the notable omissions of Charles Chaplin, exiled from America during the Cold War for his left-wing sympathies, director Elia Kazan, controversial due to his testimony before the House Un-American Activities Committee during the Cold War, and Charlton Heston, whose presidency of the National Rifle Association made him unpopular in many circles.

Other notable omissions were Claudette Colbert, Audrey Hepburn, Bob Hope, Paul Newman, Laurence Olivier, (all of whom are recipients of a Lincoln Center Gala Tribute), Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman, Marlon Brando, Marlene Dietrich, Irene Dunne, Greta Garbo, Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, Stanley Kramer, Stanley Kubrick, Myrna Loy, Sidney Lumet, Ginger Rogers, Mickey Rooney, Shirley Temple, John Wayne and Robin Williams.

Several living people who appeared in or directed films in the top 10 of the AFI's 100 Years…100 Movies list have yet to receive the award including Francis Ford Coppola, Stanley Donen, Faye Dunaway, Olivia de Havilland, Diane Keaton and Debbie Reynolds. One living actress who was listed on AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars has not received the award: Sophia Loren.

I think everyone they got to before John Wayne's death in '79 were sensible choices, but they had decades to get to Brando and Katherine Hepburn and never did.

Stanley Donen co-directed <I>Singin' in the Rain</I>, and is still living. But who's going to tune in to watch a tribute to Stanley Donen?

And apart from that, Joe has certainly mentioned some people who could be sensible options. Wes Anderson and Tarantino both seem a little young to me, but Spike Lee's been working since 1983.

I think they'll get to Bill Murray, though, if they haven't already offered it to him.
Diane Keaton is also an obvious choice, but I could see the centrality of Woody Allen to her career as an obstacle.

They should give it to Gena Rowlands. Maybe Liza Minelli. Or Faye Dunaway.

If Julianne Moore doesn't have one in 10 years, the whole thing's a failure.

Odd if nobody's thought of Robert Duvall. Donald Sutherland would be a bit more off-beat but still in their wheelhouse. And maybe Jerry Lewis?
 

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
That's a great list, but I think, (not to put words in Joe's mouth however) Joe is saying that is still a white-washed list.

At some point though, we have to acknowledge that right or wrong, there hasn't been a plethora of diversity in the industry. It's only recently changing, and because it's recent, there will be not any life-time achievers from diverse backgrounds for some time.
 

Moedred

Administrator
Staff member
Also from the Wikipedia page: it's a tv show, which moved to basic cable the year Hanks was awarded.
All Life Achievement Award ceremonies have been televised. Agreeing to appear at the televised ceremony apparently is part of the AFI's criteria for selecting the award. The televised ceremony generates income for the AFI, which is no longer funded by the US government. Due to the exigencies of television, the popularity of the award recipient in terms of potential ratings likely is a factor in selecting the Life Achievement Award honoree.
Some honored elsewhere have been snubbed. Perhaps Academy credits aren't transferable at the "Institute."
 

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
Pale Horse said:
That's a great list, but I think, (not to put words in Joe's mouth however) Joe is saying that is still a white-washed list.

At some point though, we have to acknowledge that right or wrong, there hasn't been a plethora of diversity in the industry. It's only recently changing, and because it's recent, there will be not any life-time achievers from diverse backgrounds for some time.

Well, Joe only mentioned floated one non-white name and one non-male name; I think his critique is two-fold: it's white, but it's also white bread.

Sidney Poitier was the 20th recipient; Morgan Freeman was the 39th. I'd hope to see Lee getting it before they hit the 58th award. Denzel Washington seems solidly in their wheelhouse, and with Mel Brooks and Steve Martin both being awarded in the recent past, Eddie Murphy might have an outside chance.

The Lean and Connery awards look pretty questionable in retrospect: Alfred Hitchcock spent most of his career in America, but Connery is questionable (he's not getting honored without Bond and <I>Man Who Would Be King</I>) and Lean is highly dubious, as has been well-discussed whenever his British films get waved into the AFI movie lists. Still, if they're set on being open to non-American filmmakers who somehow seem to fit, things could get interesting. There's arguably less of a tradition in the United States (compared to, say, France or Poland, to name 2), at least in recent decades, of films being led or built around women. At least New Zealander Jane Campion is Anglophone.

Awarding John Williams is definitely a step in the right direction, as the first non-actor, non-director recipient. Screenwriters and cinematographers could open things up somewhat.

They've already awarded Beatty and Hoffman: give them to Elaine May and Isabelle Adjani: <I>Ishtar</I>'s a masterpiece.

Independent cinema is also an interesting avenue they could go down. Roger Corman and John Sayles have enough popular titles and/or associates to be worth looking at.

Juliette Binoche and Catherine Deneuve, to name two, have done their share of work in English.
 
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Joe Brody

Well-known member
Wow. Better feedback than my post deserved. I admit I'm mad at the film industry and the institutions around it.

I don't want to take anything away from Moedred's initial observation about LC.

LC has a magic all its own -- and counter to all my rants, not everything has to be dark or cutting edge to be a classic.

I'll admit, I wasn't happy with myself for only referencing Spike and not others of non-Eurpean origin. On film work alone, I don't think Eddie Murphy rates but if TV is included, I think his SNL work was groundbreaking and would qualify him.

Also, I agree with Sean Connery being thin. If he, why not Sir Anthony Hopkins. More range there.
 
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