Gene Hackman, who passed away in Santa Fe at the age of 95, was one of the most representative faces of the “Hollywood New Wave” of the Seventies, a movement that brings together a family of authors such as Coppola, Scorsese, Altman, Bogdanovich, Friedkin, Penn and so on.
Hackman has not appeared on screen for over 20 years, so it could be a face unknown to Gen Z, but previous generations, starting with the boomers, certainly retain a vivid memory of this often rough, impetuous and imposing American actor.
It is difficult not to agree with the words of condolence of Tom Hanks in his memory: “There has never existed an actor , Gene Hackman. There was only Gene Hackman“It is true, the recently deceased actor was truly a one-of-a-kind, like a meteorite that fell to earth.
An ending , Hackman
The rather mysterious way in which it occurred the death of Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa, a classical pianist, and a dog seems to have come out of a movie script, indeed it almost seems like a different, but plausible, ending to “The Conversation”.
Even though it was a natural death, as the investigators proved, that deprived us of the actor, his wife and his dog, the “crime scene” that showed up at the moment could really be a fragment of the sequel to the 1974 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola.
"The Conversation” (The Conversation), contains huge formal innovations such as the use of sound and an extraordinary topicality of content in the theme of surveillance, in the psychological analysis of the protagonist who is obsessed to the point of paranoia by what he does.
The ending, then, competes for the Oscar for best ending with films like “Zabriskie Point”, “The Passenger”, “Planet of the Apes” (1960), “Psycho”, “Inception”, “Barton Fink” and you will forgive me if I have forgotten others like the subtly ambiguous one of “Taxi Driver”.
Žižek's observation point
Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Žižek in his “The Perverse Guide to Cinema” (Prime Video) captures the meaning of “The Conversation” well when he states that Harry Caul (Hackman), despite all his sophisticated spy tools, turns into a “imaginary, fantasizing entity".
According to Žižek, the film at a certain point – precisely in the bathroom scene that provides Caul, we would say plastically and shockingly, with the sought-after evidence of the murder – clearly enters a hitchcockian territory, establishing an “intrinsic dialogue” with “Psycho”.
It manifests itself in an object, the shower drain. In “Psycho”, this element “through a fade transforms into the eye with which the observed object returns Marion’s glassy gaze”. The same visual and symbolic dynamic occurs between Caul and the toilet that overflows with blood.
In all roles: Hollywood's everyman
Although he did not have the physique du rôle of the great Hollywood star, Gene Hackman became one of the most famous actors, an interpreter who also escapes any classification. He said of himself that he seemed “an ordinary miner”. But it wasn't at all.
In fact, he had worked in a steel mill at the beginning of his career, joined the Marines and earned his living as a shoe salesman, truck driver, and doorman. He got his first major part at 40 and was considered so untalented that he was fired from the set of "The Graduate".
A very hasty judgment because Hackman can be any character: prisoner, sheriff, detective, member of the Ku Klux Klan, worker, spy, minister, prosecutor, mafia boss, war hero, grieving widower, submarine commander, basketball coach, president, absent father.
Hackman could act, like De Niro, in any role: dramatic, brilliant or farcical, villain or good guy, leading man or supporting actor. He could make extraordinary cameos. With De Niro, 15 years younger and 12 cm shorter, Hackman also shared a certain unmistakable gait.
In his performances, the good guys aren't always so likeable, and the bad guys, on the other hand, can exert a magnetic charm. And like De Niro, who shares this acting trait, "he seems to live his roles, not play them," observes critic McCarter.
A partial recognition
Ultimately, Hackman had something more than any Hollywood hunk, like Errol Flynn, his role model as a young Midwesterner. He had a dogged vitality that shone through in every performance, making him stand out more than any handsome face in studio cinema.
This powerful stage presence has given him 5 Oscar nominations with two awards: one for Popeye Doyle, the rough and ready cop in “The French Connection” and the second for the ferocious sheriff Little Bill Daggett in “Unforgiven”.
The richer the booty of Golden Globe, 9 nominations with three awards, including the one for his career. Inexplicably, the similar Oscar for his career was missing to honor his more than 100 films for cinema and television in 40 years of activity, from 1961 to 2004.
At this point, however, I would like to leave you with the cards of a group of films, available on streaming services, which according to Alex Marshall and Noel Murray of the “New York Times” constitute the high points of Gene Hackman’s career. The films are in the order proposed by the two critics.
Good vision!
The violent arm of the law (The French Connection)
detective / 1971 / 103 min
directed by William Friedkin
with Gene Hackman, Fernando Rey, Roy Scheider, Tony Lo Bianco
8 Oscar nominations with 5 awards (including one for Hackman), 5 Golden Globe nominations with 5 awards (including one for Hackman),
Disney+, RaiPlay, YouTube
Hackman’s breakthrough role was that of cop Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle. Critic Farber describes his character as “brutal, racist, foul-mouthed, mean, compulsive, lascivious,” but adds that “even in his most unpleasant aspects, he remains profoundly human.”
The Poseidon Adventure (The Poseidon Adventure)
catastrophic / 1972 / 117 min
based on the novel of the same name by Paul Gallico
directed by Ronald neame
with Gene Hackman, Ernest Borgnine, Stella Stevens, Red Buttons
9 Oscar nominations with 2 awards, 4 Golden Globe nominations with XNUMX award
Amazon Prime, YouTube
Hackman plays Reverend Scott, a tragic hero who leads a group of survivors to safety after the ocean liner capsizes. Ben Stiller wrote that seeing the film and Hackman's performance inspired him to pursue an acting career.
The conversation (The Conversation)
thriller / 1974 / 114 min
directed by Francis Ford Coppola
with Gene Hackman, John Cazale, Allen Garfield, Frederic Forrest
3 Oscar nominations, 4 Golden Globe nominations, Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival
Paramount+, YouTube, Apple TV, Prime Video
His career-best performance: an introverted surveillance expert who awkwardly navigates everyday social interactions. His instinctive paranoia takes on manic forms during a particularly arduous assignment.
Gangster story (Bonnie and Clyde)
detective / 1967 / 111 min
directed by Arthur Penn
with Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, Hene Hackman, Michael J. Pollard, Estelle Parsons
10 Oscar nominations with 2 awards, 7 Golden Globe nominations
YouTube, Apple TV, Prime Video
The film that inaugurated the “New Hollywood”, launching new talents and ambitious directors. Hackman, in the role of Buck, Clyde’s older brother, gives voice to the straightforward inhabitants of the Midwest, seduced by the allure of the outlaw and the exploits of Bonny and Clyde.
Blood Ring (I Never Sang for My Father)
drama / 1970 / 92 min
based on a stage play by Robert Anderson.
directed by Gilbert Cates
with Gene Hackman, Melvyn Douglas, Dorothy Stickney, Estelle Parsons
Apple TV, Prime Video
Hackman plays a middle-aged man emotionally entangled with his father and unable to assert his own identity and find the strength to face the authoritarian parent who continues to make his life impossible, leaving him in a limbo of insecurities and regrets.
Night Target (Night Moves)
thriller / 1975 / 100 min
directed by Arthur Penn
with Gene Hackman, Jennifer Warren, Edward Binns, Susan Clark
Daily motion, Apple TV, Amazon Video
A dark and melancholic atmosphere pervades the film, where Hackman plays a private detective engaged in a very complex investigation. It is not an action film, but rather a psychological film about a man in search of his dignity with a textbook interpretation by the actor.
Superman
action / 1978 / 183 min
based on the DC Comics comic created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster
directed by Richard Donner
with Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder, Gene Hackman, Marlon Brando
4 Oscar nominations with one award, one Golden Globe nomination
NowTV, Apple TV
In the 70s, Hackman established himself as one of Hollywood's most prolific actors, as evidenced by his participation in the “Superman” saga. While filming the first chapter, in the role of the evil Lex Luthor, the actor also shot scenes for the sequel, “Superman II”.
Winning shot (Hoosiers)
thriller / 1986 / 116 min
directed by David Anspaugh
with Gene Hackman Barbara Hershey, Dennis Hopper, Sheb Wooley
2 Oscar nominations, XNUMX Golden Globe nomination
Prime Video, Apple TV
In the 80s, Hackman stars in this sports drama that celebrates the success of a small Indiana school's modest basketball team. The actor, a determined coach, leads them to an impossible victory, showing that mistakes can be learned from.
Mississippi Burning – The Roots of Hate (Mississippi Burning)
drama / 1988 / 128 min
directed by Alan Parker
with Gene Hackman, Willem Dafoe, Frances McDormand, Brad Dourif
5 Oscar nominations with one award, 4 Golden Globe nominations, Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival for Gene Hackman
Amazon Video, Apple TV, Chili
Hackman's most important film of the 80s is the one in which he plays, with plausibility and intensity, an FBI agent who, in 60s Mississippi, investigates without too many scruples and with tenacious determination the brutal murder of three civil rights activists perpetrated by the Klu Klux Klan.
The ruthless (Unforgiven)
Western Drama / 1992 / 131 min
directed by Clint Eastwood
with Gene Hackman, Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, Richard Harris, Jaimz Woolvett
9 Oscar nominations with 4 awards (including one for Gene Hackman), 4 Golden Globe nominations with one award
Amazon Video, Apple TV, YouTube
Hackman plays a violent small-town sheriff who faces off against bounty hunters, including one played by Clint Eastwood. In his review, critic Vincent Canby notes a change in the actor's image: "He's not the good guy he used to be."
Red alert (Crimson Tide)
war / 1992 / 116 min
directed by Tony Scott
with Denzel Washington, Gene Hackman, Matt Craven, Viggo Mortensen
3 Oscar nominations
Disney+, Daily motion
This intense war drama draws its narrative power from Hackman's performance as Captain Ramsey, a submarine commander who, at a crucial moment in the mission, chooses to follow his instincts rather than adhere to military protocol.
The Coup (Heist)
thriller / 2001 / 147 min
directed by David Mamet
with Gene Hackman, Danny DeVito, Delroy Lindo, Sam Rockwell, Rebecca Pidgeon
Prime Video, TIMvision
Despite its commercial failure, this little noir gem by Mamet is brilliantly crafted with excellent performances. Hackman plays a clever, sharp-tongued thief who leaves his comfortable position as a pensioner to commit one last heist.
The Tenenbaums (The Royal Tenenbaums)
comedy / 2001 / 148 min
directed by Wes Anderson
with Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Ben Stiller, Gwyneth Paltrow, Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson
One Oscar nomination, one Golden Globe nomination
Disney+, Amazon Video, Apple TV
Hackman has also won over critics and audiences with his work in comedy. In 2001, he shines in Wes Anderson's film, playing a former lawyer who has been expelled from the bar and tries to reconnect with his eccentric children.
