Comment by Ivailo Noizi Tsvetkov:
It's a little sad – the very world image of Gatsby has left, with apologies to DiCaprio. Before I recall who Redford was, I wonder what he was like in his best years and whether, given the lack of information in the 1970s, people in our country knew about his great films; in my opinion, no, but I remember from my mother that together with Alain Delon he was absolutely the most beautiful actor in the world.
We don't know his great films in our country, but I'll recall them anyway: a breakthrough as a bisexual in 1965 in “Inside Daisy Clover”, with the beautiful Natalie Wood, and a nomination for a Golden Globe. The next big one is that cowboy nonsense about Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, nominated for 7 Oscars (but none for the actors). We also have “The Way We Were“ with Barbra Streisand herself, and “The Sting“ with the wonderful friend Newman.
Movies and characters that we will remember forever
From there, just the idea that the great movie about “Watergate“ with Dustin Hoffman is great in itself. That is, this is Pakula's movie, with which some of us will remember him. And I will say that all of us who love Fitzgerald, we adored precisely his image of Gatsby. Moreover, he became the absolute Jay; This is one of those cases where you read the book, but after watching the Jack Clayton film, with Mia Farrow as Daisy, Sam Waterston as Nick Carraway and Bruce Dern as Tom Buchanan, you can imagine exactly those images forever.
However, in Bulgaria there is a special cult of Redford, mostly because of his beautiful symbolism in the 70s beyond the Soviet Union; without necessarily knowing his films, then in our country he is like from another planet, because there is no way to get to him in any way. The only film allowed is “The Sting“, where he plays with the other great handsome man of the era, Paul Newman.
Psychology hidden below the surface
And in this sense we have missed everything about this great actor who says that “it is not his fault that he looks good“ (in response to Woody Allen that the beautiful dominate in Hollywood). Do you remember his main films, besides Gatsby? His breakthrough in 1965 with “Inside Daisy Clover”, where he played a bisexual with Natalie Wood, and for the first time he was nominated for a “Golden Globe”. Here are some more: the cheerful Sundance Kid, again with Newman, as well as “Barefoot in the Park“; from there – – – – – How We Were” with Barbra Streisand, the aforementioned –;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; There are others, of course, like “Ordinary People“, based on the novel by Judith Guest, which won four Oscars, including one for director Redford.
This, please, is one of the giants of classic Hollywood. The greatest praise for him comes from Sydney Pollack, with whom the actor made seven films (including the aforementioned “Three Days of the Condor“) - as “an interesting metaphor for America, a golden boy with a dark side“.
He added an ironic humor to many of his roles, capable of suggesting, through subtle nuances, a more complex psychology hidden beneath the surface. Many did not sense it, simply because in the 70s this was literally the most beautiful man in the world and, accordingly, they thought he was not a good enough actor. But Redford did not just refute them – he also became an additional icon in the history of cinema, founding the alternative film festival “Sundance“ in the late 1970s.
One of the most beloved actors for decades
Robert was ultimately not interested in the money, but in how to help young directors, while still being one of the favorite leading men in Hollywood for decades, whether in comedies, dramas or thrillers; he had a wide range, to be honest. All the old girls probably remember him with Meryl Streep in “Out of Africa“ (1985).
And they still ask themselves, generation after generation, whether it is possible for an American actor to be so handsome (of course, Brad Pitt, but the original blond inhuman remains Bob). And that's the thing. Today we can remember him at length, but the question is what, in the end, his contribution was.
Here it is: at the age of 40, already a star, he turned to directing and won an “Oscar“ for his first film “Ordinary People“ (1980), telling the story of the disintegration of an upper-middle-class family after the death of their son - a story that echoes the repressed grief and emotional silence in his own family after the death of his mother when he was a teenager. “Ordinary People“ won three “Oscars“, including Best Picture.
Encouraging new talent
But perhaps Redford's greatest cultural influence has been as an independent film impresario. In 1981, he founded the Sundance Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to fostering new film talent. In 1984, he took over the management of a struggling film festival in Utah and a few years later renamed it after the institute. (He had lived there since 1961, having spent part of his early acting fees on two acres of land in Provo Canyon.
He often said that he liked Utah because it gave him a sense of peace and was the antithesis of Hollywood's superficiality.)
And this absolute non-human handsome man most modestly created opportunities for people without opportunities in film, just as he thought of them. In that sense, let's take a look at who we've lost.
There are none now.