Play Misty for Me (1971)

The second film in my Essential Clint Eastwood marathon is Play Misty for Me, a psychological thriller in which Eastwood stars and makes his directing debut. He plays Dave Garver, a Carmel CA disc jockey, well-liked around town in spite of his inability to settle on one girl. He drives a sporty convertible, lives in a cool house on the edge of a cliff, works nights spinning discs and reading poetry, and he's on his way up, receiving notice in San Francisco, maybe even an offer to work there. Then he meets Evelyn in a bar, what looks like a chance meeting, but Evelyn is an obsessive fan, the one who calls in every night and asks Dave to "play Misty for me." Evelyn takes over Dave's life. What begins as an affair leads to threats and we see before Dave does that Evelyn is very unstable and even dangerous.

Play Misty for Me is a good, small film. Parts of it are excellent, but some scenes are ridiculously dated, like the long walk on the beach which indicates his re-involvement with an old love. Shot around Monterrey and Carmel, the film focuses on the beauty of the coast and the local hot stops. The scenes shot live at the Monterrey Jazz Festival are wonderful. A seminal film for Eastwood, it's a benchmark for his development as both an actor and director.

White Hunter Black Heart (1990)

(click to enlarge)

For the first film in my Essential Clint Eastwood marathon, I watched White Hunter Black Heart. Eastwood directed and starred in this feature. Some of my Filmspotting board members call it Eastwood's best directing and acting performance. While I may prefer my Eastwood as a grizzled son-of-a-bitch over the arrogant snob he portrays in White Hunter Black Heart, I can't fault Eastwood's performance. The film is based on a novel which is a thinly disguised account of John Huston's trip to Africa to shoot African Queen on location at a time when very few films were shot outside the US. Eastwood's character becomes sidetracked from film preparations by his determination to shoot an African elephant on safari. Eastwood plays Huston as a man of passion and self-indulgence, humanity and selfishness, brilliance and stubbornness. In a great scene from the film, Eastwood deliberately picks a fight he knows he will lose with a white racist in an exclusive African club. As he staggers away from the fight, he states the central theme of the film: sometimes you have to volunteer for losing causes or "your guts will turn to pus."

Personal Marathon #3: Essential Clint Eastwood

Again the Filmspotting forum recommended films for my next personal marathon: Essential Clint Eastwood.

Eastwood, now 78 years old, is saying in interviews that Gran Torino is his last starring role, so I included it on the list.

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly (1966) *
Paint Your Wagon (1969) *
Play Misty For Me (1971) **
Dirty Harry (1971) **
High Plains Drifter (1973) *
The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) **
White Hunter Black Heart (1990) *
Unforgiven (1992) **
Gran Torino (2008) *

**already seen at least once, but will watch again
* never seen and obtainable

Since all these films are available, I'm looking forward to finishing this marathon quickly!

UPDATE: Going to a sneak of Gran Torino on Saturday even though I feel like the preview shows me most of the film, oh well...