The director of photography doesn’t get the lion’s share of publicity in the movie world, although he’s a crucial part of the process. So a documentary about one of Hollywood’s most famous cameramen is worth celebrating.
| Interesting: A documentary about the Oscar-winning Hollywood cinematographer Haskell Wexler, made by his son, Mark. Their contentious relationship becomes the focus of the film, making it a very personal document.
Rated: R rating is for language, nudity. Now showing: Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave., Seattle; 206-329-2629. |
But this documentary has a twist. Far from being a career portrait, “Tell Them Who You Are” is an intensely personal take on Oscar-winner Haskell Wexler. That’s because it was made by his son, Mark.
Early in the process, Haskell advises his son to make the movie about the two of them – about their fraught relationship, about their personal differences. Mark, himself an experienced filmmaker, does just that: following dad around, provoking him at times, and pulling back the curtain on a fearsome control freak.
Haskell Wexler, now in his 80s, is legendary in Hollywood not only for his talent but for his prickly personality. In this film, he claims he could have made most of the movies he’s worked on better than the nominal directors he served.
Hmmm; no wonder he was fired off “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” an episode described by that film’s producer, Michael Douglas. Haskell clearly has a yen to take over his projects, including the documentary his son is making.
We watch father and son bicker over the changing light in a room, to the point that the moment is gone. Mark sneakily leaves the microphone on after an interview with Jane Fonda, and when he leaves the room he records Haskell speaking to Fonda condescendingly about Mark’s project.
Then there’s the issue of politics. Haskell Wexler, who was born into wealth, is an old-time radical lefty. His film “Medium Cool” (one he actually did direct himself) was shot on the streets of Chicago during the bloody Democratic convention in 1968.
Perhaps inevitably, given the reality of family dynamics, Mark is a dyed-in-the-wool conservative. He proudly talks about the work he did recently with the White House, and his photographs of himself with Bush administration officials are guaranteed to drive his dad up the wall.
Mark is smart enough to play some of this for comedy. Elsewhere, he captures poignant moments, such as a visit to a nursing home, where Haskell visits his ex-wife (Mark’s mother), who has Alzheimer’s.
There are interviews with stars and directors, including Julia Roberts, George Lucas (Wexler shot “American Graffiti”) and Paul Newman. Film clips give the flavor of Haskell’s talent, without delving very deeply into what makes him good.
I’d like to see a documentary that presented Haskell Wexler’s career in depth, and sometimes while watching this one I wanted to get back to the movies. But Mark Wexler’s got his own father-son story to tell, and it provides some sparks.
Filmmaker Haskell Wexler is doccumented in “Tell Them Who You Are.”
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