Pollock
2000 · United States · 123 min
- Director
- Ed Harris
- Screenplay
- Barbara Turner
- Producer
- Ed Harris
- Music
- Jeff Beal
- Cinematography
- Lisa Rinzler
- Editing
- Kathryn Himoff
- Based on
- Jackson Pollock: An American Saga
Awards: Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress · 2 nominations
Cast
What it is about
Pollock follows painter Jackson Pollock, played by Ed Harris, from his first attempts to make a name for himself in the New York art scene of the 1940s to the mid-1950s. The film portrays his complicated personality, his struggle with alcoholism and his marriage to painter Lee Krasner, alongside figures such as Willem de Kooning, Peggy Guggenheim and critic Clement Greenberg. Within a few years Pollock goes from an unknown painter to one of the most important artists of his era, and the film shows that rise along with its contradictions.
How it was made
The project was a long-held passion for Ed Harris, who thought about adapting it for nearly a decade after his father gave him a copy of the biography by Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith. The screenplay by Barbara Turner, with Susan Emshwiller, adapts that book, and Harris also directed, produced and played the lead. Filming took about 50 days, with a six-week break so the actor could gain weight and grow a beard. Harris painted all the canvases seen on screen himself. Jeff Beal composed the music and Lisa Rinzler shot the film.
Reception and legacy
Critics responded favorably: Metacritic assigned it a weighted score of 77 out of 100 based on 31 reviews, and Roger Ebert gave it four stars out of four. Marcia Gay Harden won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for playing Lee Krasner, and Ed Harris was nominated for Best Actor. The film grossed about 10.5 million dollars worldwide after a very limited opening in December 2000. Its main interest lies in bringing Pollock's story to a wide audience and in confirming Harris as a director.
Stills
Trailer
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Trivia
Origin in a biography
Ed Harris first encountered Pollock's life through a copy of the biography his father gave him. Turning the idea into a film took almost ten years.
The actor painted the canvases
Ed Harris painted all the works seen in the film himself rather than relying on another artist.
Short shoot with a break
Filming lasted about 50 days, with a six-week pause so Harris could gain around thirty pounds and grow a beard.
More films by Ed Harris
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