Nicolas Roeg
Nicolas Roeg | |
|---|---|
 Roeg at the 43rdKarlovy Vary International Film Festivalin 2008 | |
| Born | Nicolas Jack Roeg 15 August 1928 St John's Wood,London, England |
| Died | 23 November 2018(aged 90) London, England |
| Other names | Nicholas Jack Roeg |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1947–2013 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 6 |
Nicolas Jack RoegCBEBSC(/ˈroʊɡ/ROHG;15 August 1928 – 23 November 2018) was an English film director andcinematographer,best known for directingPerformance(1970),Walkabout(1971),Don't Look Now(1973),The Man Who Fell to Earth(1976),Bad Timing(1980) andThe Witches(1990).
Making his directorial debut 23 years after his entry into the film business, Roeg quickly became known for an idiosyncratic visual and narrative style, characterised by the use of disjointed and disorienting editing.[1]For this reason, he is considered a highly influential filmmaker, cited as an inspiration by such directors asSteven Soderbergh,Christopher NolanandDanny Boyle.
In 1999, theBritish Film Instituteacknowledged Roeg's importance in the British film industry by namingDon't Look NowandPerformancethe 8th- and 48th-greatest British films of all time in itsTop 100 British filmspoll.[2]
Early life
[edit]Roeg was born inSt John's WoodinNorth Londonon 15 August 1928 to Jack Nicolas Roeg and Mabel Gertrude (néeSilk).[3]He had an older sister, Nicolette (1925–1987), who was an actress.[4]His father, of Dutch origin, achieved considerable success in the diamond trade, until a failed South African investment saw him suffer heavy financial losses.[3]Of his initial attraction to the film industry, Roeg suggested it was sparked by a recording studio located opposite his home.[5]Roeg was educated at theMercers' Schoolin London.[6][7]
Career
[edit]Cinematography
[edit]In 1947, after completing National Service, Roeg entered the film business as a tea boy moving up to clapper-loader, the bottom rung of the camera department, atMarylebone Studiosin London.[8]For a time, he worked as a camera operator on a number of film productions, includingThe SundownersandThe Trials of Oscar Wilde.[3]
He was a second-unit cinematographer onDavid Lean'sLawrence of Arabia(1962) and this led to Lean's hiring Roeg as cinematographer on his next film,Doctor Zhivago(1965); however, Roeg's creative vision clashed with that of Lean and eventually he was fired from the production and replaced byFreddie Young,who received sole credit for cinematography when the film was released in 1965.[9]He was credited as cinematographer onRoger Corman'sThe Masque of the Red DeathandFrançois Truffaut'sFahrenheit 451,as well asJohn Schlesinger'sFar from the Madding CrowdandRichard Lester'sPetulia;the latter is the last film on which Roeg was solely credited for cinematography and also shares many characteristics and similarities with Roeg's work as a director.[10]
Directing
[edit]In the late 1960s, Roeg moved into directing withPerformance,alongsideDonald Cammell.The film centres on an aspiring London gangster (James Fox) who moves in with a reclusive rock star (Mick Jagger) to evade his bosses. The film featured cinematography by Roeg and a screenplay by Cammell, the latter of whom had favouredMarlon Brandofor the James Fox role.[11]The film was completed in 1968 but withheld from release by its distributorWarner Bros.who, according toSanford Lieberson,"didn't think it was releasable."[11]The film was eventually released with anX ratingin 1970 and, despite its initial poor reception, has come to be held in high esteem by critics due to its cult following.[12]
He followed up withWalkabout,which tells the story of an English teenage girl and her younger brother who are abandoned in the AustralianOutbackby their father after his suicide and forced to fend for themselves, with the help of anAboriginalboy on hiswalkabout.Roeg castJenny Agutterin the role of the girl, his sonLucas the boy, andDavid Gulpililas the Aboriginal boy.[13]It was widely praised by critics despite its lack of commercial success.[14]
His next film,Don't Look Now,is based onDaphne du Maurier'sshort story of the same nameand starredJulie ChristieandDonald Sutherlandas a married couple inVenicemourning the death of their daughter who had drowned. It attracted scrutiny early on due to a sex scene between Sutherland and Christie, which was unusually explicit for the time. Roeg's decision to inter-cut the sexual intercourse with shots of the couple dressing afterwards was reportedly due to the need to assuage the fears of the censors and there were rumours at the time of its release that the sex was unsimulated.[15]The film was widely praised by critics and considered one of the most important and influential horror films ever made.[16]
Similarly toPerformance,he cast musicians in leading roles for his next two films,The Man Who Fell to EarthandBad Timing.The Man Who Fell to Earth(1976) starsDavid Bowieas a humanoid alien who comes toEarthto collect water for his planet, which is suffering from a drought. The film divided critics and was truncated upon its U.S. release.[17]Despite this, it was entered into theBerlin International Film Festivalwhere Roeg was nominated for theGolden Bear.It is today considered an importantscience fiction filmand is one of Roeg's most celebrated films.Bad Timingwas released in 1980 and starsArt Garfunkelas an American psychiatrist living inViennawho develops a love affair with a fellow expatriate (played byTheresa Russell,to whom Roeg was later married), which culminates in the latter being rushed to hospital due to an incident the nature of which is revealed over the course of the film. At first, it was disliked by critics, as well as by theRank Organisation,its distributor, who allegedly described it as "a sick film made by sick people for sick people."[18]Rank requested that their logo be taken off the finished film.[19]
Bad Timingmarked the beginning of a three-film partnership withJeremy Thomas.The second of these filmsEureka(1983) is loosely based on the true story of SirHarry Oakes;it received a largely limited release both theatrically and on home video.[20]It was followed up withInsignificance,which imagines a meeting betweenMarilyn Monroe,Albert Einstein,Monroe's second husbandJoe DiMaggioand SenatorJoseph McCarthy.Insignificancewas screened in competition at the1985 Cannes Film Festival,with the film being selected to compete for thePalme d'Or.[21]
In 1986, Roeg was approached by thenSecretary of State for Health and Social ServicesNorman Fowlerand the advertising agencyTBWAto direct the British government'spublic healthcampaignAIDS: Don't Die of Ignorance.[22]
His next two films,CastawayandTrack 29,are considered minor entries in his oeuvre[by whom?].[23]Roeg was selected to direct anadaptationofRoald Dahl's children's novelThe WitchesbyJim Henson,who had procured the film rights to the book in 1983.[24]This would prove to be his last major studio film and proved a great success with critics, although it was a box-office failure. Roeg made only three theatrical films followingThe Witches:Cold Heaven(1992),Two Deaths(1995) andPuffball(2007).[25]Roeg also did a small amount of work for television, includingSweet Bird of Youth,an adaptation of theTennessee Williamsplay, andHeart of Darknessand an episode ofGeorge Lucas'sYoung Indiana Jones.[26][27]
Roeg did not make any more films after 2007, but published a memoir,The World Is Ever Changing,in 2013.[25]
Style and influence
[edit]Roeg's films are known for having scenes and images from the plot presented in a disarranged fashion, out of chronological and causal order, requiring the viewer to do the work of mentally rearranging them to comprehend the story line. They seem to "shatter reality into a thousand pieces" and are "unpredictable, fascinating, cryptic, and liable to leave you wondering what the hell just happened..."[28]This is also the strategy ofRichard Lester's 1968 filmPetulia,which was Roeg's last film as a cinematographer only. A characteristic of Roeg's films is that they are edited in disjunctive and semi-coherent ways that make full sense only in the film's final moments, when a crucial piece of information surfaces; they are "mosaic-like montages [filled with] elliptical details which become very important later."[9]
These techniques, along with Roeg's foreboding sense of atmosphere, influenced later such filmmakers asSteven Soderbergh,[9]Tony Scott,[29]Ridley Scott,François OzonandDanny Boyle.[30]In addition to this,Christopher Nolanhas said his filmMementowould have been "pretty unthinkable" without Roeg and cites the finale ofInsignificanceas an influence on his ownInception.[31]In addition to this, Steven Soderbergh'sOut of Sightfeatures a love scene that is visibly influenced by that inDon't Look Now.[32]
A further theme that can be seen to be running through Roeg's filmography is characters who are out of their natural setting.[33]Examples of this include the schoolchildren in the Outback inWalkabout,the men and women in Venice inDon't Look Now,the alien on Earth inThe Man Who Fell to Earth,and the Americans in Vienna inBad Timing.
Roeg's influence on cinema is not limited to deconstructing narrative. The "Memo from Turner"sequence inPerformancepredates many techniques later used in music videos. The "quadrant" sequence inBad Timing,in which the thoughts of Theresa Russell andArt Garfunkelare heard before words are spoken set toKeith Jarrett's piano music fromThe Köln Concert,stretched the boundaries of what could be done with film.[23]
Legacy and honours
[edit]Roeg's cinematic work was showcased at theRiverside Studiosfrom 12–14 September 2008. He introduced the retrospective withMiranda Richardson,who starred inPuffball.The programme includedBad Timing,Far from the Madding Crowd,The Man Who Fell to Earth,The Witches,Eureka,Don't Look NowandInsignificance.TheLondon Film Academyorganised this event for Roeg in honour of his patronage of the school.[34][35]
In 1994, he was awarded aBritish Film Institute Fellowship.In the1996 New Year Honours,Roeg was made a Commander of theOrder of the British Empire.[36][37]
Personal life and death
[edit]From 1957 to 1977, Roeg was married to English actressSusan Stephen.They had four sons: Waldo, Nico, Sholto and (film producer)Luc Roeg.Luc appeared as an actor, as Lucien John, inWalkabout,[38]Roeg's first film as solo director.[6]In 1982, Roeg married American actressTheresa Russelland they had two sons: Maximillian (an actor) and Statten Roeg. They later divorced.[6]Roeg was then married to Harriet Harper from 2005 until his death, from dementia, on 23 November 2018, at a nursing home inLadbroke Grove,London.[6][25]
ActorDonald Sutherland(who named one of his sons after Roeg) described Roeg as a "fearless visionary". FilmmakerDuncan Jones,the son of David Bowie, who starred inThe Man Who Fell to Earth(1976), also paid tribute to Roeg, calling him a "great storyteller" and "inimitable".[39]
Filmography
[edit]Roeg is credited on the following films:[40]
Films as director
[edit]| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1966 | Judith | 2nd unit director Directed byDaniel Mann |
| 1970 | Performance | Co-director withDonald Cammell Also cinematographer |
| 1971 | Walkabout | Also cinematographer Nominated –Palme d'Or |
| 1972 | Glastonbury Fayre | Co-director with Peter Neal Documentary |
| 1973 | Don't Look Now | Nominated –BAFTA Award for Best Direction |
| 1976 | The Man Who Fell to Earth | Nominated –Golden Berlin Bear Nominated –Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation |
| 1980 | Bad Timing | London Film Critics' Circle Award for Director of the Year Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award |
| 1983 | Eureka | |
| 1985 | Insignificance | Cannes Technical Grand Prize Nominated –Palme d'Or |
| 1986 | Castaway | |
| 1987 | Aria | Segment: "Un ballo in maschera" Nominated –Palme d'Or |
| 1988 | Track 29 | Nominated –Deauville Critics Award |
| 1990 | The Witches | Nominated –Fantasporto International Fantasy Film Award Nominated –Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation |
| 1991 | Cold Heaven | |
| 1995 | Two Deaths | Nominated –Gold Chicago Hugo |
| 2007 | Puffball |
Shorts
[edit]| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 1967 | Breakthrough |
| 1995 | Hotel Paradise |
| 2000 | The Sound of Claudia Schiffer |
Television
[edit]| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Ghost Squad | 2 episodes |
| The Pursuers | Episode: "The Frame" | |
| 1989 | Sweet Bird of Youth | Television film |
| 1993 | The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles | Episode: "Paris, October 1916" |
| Heart of Darkness | Television film | |
| 1995 | Full Body Massage | |
| 1996 | Samson and Delilah |
Films as cinematographer
[edit]| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Jazz Boat | Ken Hughes | Co-cinematographer withTed Moore |
| 1961 | Information Received | Robert Lynn | |
| 1962 | Dr. Crippen | ||
| Band of Thieves | Peter Bezencenet | ||
| 1963 | Just for Fun | Gordon Flemyng | |
| The Caretaker | Clive Donner | ||
| 1964 | The Masque of the Red Death | Roger Corman | |
| Nothing But the Best | Clive Donner | Nominated –BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography (Colour) | |
| Code 7, Victim 5 | Robert Lynn | ||
| The System | Michael Winner | ||
| 1965 | Every Day's a Holiday | James Hill | |
| 1966 | Fahrenheit 451 | François Truffaut | |
| A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum | Richard Lester | ||
| 1967 | Far from the Madding Crowd | John Schlesinger | Nominated –BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography (Colour) Nominated –National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Cinematography(3rd place) |
| 1968 | Petulia | Richard Lester | |
| 1970 | Performance | Himself Donald Cammell |
Also director |
| 1971 | Walkabout | Himself |
Additional photography credits
[edit]| Year | Title | Director | DoP | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | Lawrence of Arabia | David Lean | Freddie Young | 2nd unit photography |
| 1965 | Doctor Zhivago | Additional photography | ||
| 1967 | Casino Royale | Ken Hughes John Huston Joseph McGrath Robert Parrish Val Guest |
Jack Hildyard John Wilcox |
References
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ^"Nicolas Roeg – Biography, Facts, Films and Marriage to Theresa Russell".Encyclopaedia Britannica.Retrieved17 December2017.
- ^"Entertainment Best 100 British films – full list".BBC News.Retrieved24 November2018.
- ^abc"Nicolas Roeg: From tea-maker to director".BBC News.bbc.com. 24 November 2018.Retrieved25 November2018.
- ^"Nicolas Roeg obituary | Nicolas Roeg".The Guardian.Retrieved14 February2022.
- ^Rose, Steve (24 November 2018)."Nicolas Roeg, director of Don't Look Now and Walkabout, dies aged 90".The Guardian.Retrieved25 November2018.
- ^abcdBaxter, Brian (25 November 2018)."Nicolas Roeg obituary".The Guardian.Retrieved12 June2023.
- ^"Nicolas Roeg, film director whose dazzling style was best seen in 'Don't Look Now', 'The Man Who Fell to Earth' and 'Performance' – obituary".The Daily Telegraph.24 November 2018.Retrieved12 June2023.
- ^"Screenonline".British Film Institute (BFI).BFI.
- ^abcWood, Jason (3 June 2005)."Nicholas Roeg".The Guardian.Retrieved10 July2010.
- ^Danks, Adrian."The Art of Falling Apart:Petuliaand the Fate of Richard Lester ".screeningthepast.com.Retrieved12 June2023.
- ^abWatkins, Jack (21 July 2015)."James Fox and Sandy Lieberson: how we made Performance".The Guardian.Retrieved17 December2017.
- ^"Performance".Rotten Tomatoes.Retrieved25 November2018.
- ^Godfrey, Alex (9 August 2016)."How we made Walkabout".The Guardian.Retrieved24 November2018.
- ^"Walkabout: Cheat Sheet".11 August 2016.Retrieved24 November2018.
- ^"Nicolas Roeg on Don't Look Now".Film 4.Archived fromthe originalon 10 August 2011.Retrieved17 December2017.
- ^"British film director Nicolas Roeg dies aged 90".Independent.co.uk.24 November 2018.Archivedfrom the original on 20 June 2022.Retrieved25 November2018.
- ^"The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)".The Criterion Collection.Retrieved17 December2017.
- ^Hasted, Nick (15 August 2000)."Nicolas Roeg's Bad Timing".The Guardian.Retrieved12 June2023.
- ^"Pictures from Roeg's gallery".Retrieved25 November2018.
- ^"NICHOLAS ROEG – INTERVIEWED BY HARLAN KENNEDY".americancinemapapers.homestead.com.Retrieved25 November2018.
- ^"Official Selection 1985: All the Selection".festival-cannes.fr.Archived fromthe originalon 2 December 2013.
- ^Jonze, Tim (4 September 2017)."'It was a life-and-death situation. Wards were full of young men dying': How we made the Don't Die of Ignorance Aids campaign ".The Guardian.Retrieved21 November2020.
- ^ab"Nicolas Roeg – Great Director profile".Senses of Cinema.21 May 2002.Retrieved12 July2014.
- ^Jordan, Louis (20 August 2015)."Summer of '90: The Witches – The House Next Door".Slant Magazine.Retrieved17 December2017.
- ^abcSinyard, Neil (2022). "Roeg, Nicolas Jack (1928–2018), film director and cinematographer".Oxford Dictionary of National Biography(online ed.). Oxford University Press.doi:10.1093/odnb/9780198614128.013.90000380577.(Subscription orUK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^"ARTS / The horror, the horror]: Nic Roeg has just finished filming".Independent.co.uk.2 July 1993.Archivedfrom the original on 20 June 2022.Retrieved25 November2018.
- ^The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Demons of Deception (1999),retrieved27 May2023
- ^Steve Rose."'You don't know me.'",The Guardian,12 July 2008; accessed 12 July 2014.
- ^Ariel Leve."Interview with Tony Scott"Archived14 March 2010 at theWayback Machine,The Sunday Times Magazine.August 2005; accessed 12 July 2010.
- ^Adams, Tim"Danny Boyle: 'As soon as you think you can do whatever you want... then you're sunk'"The Guardian,5 December 2010.
- ^Gilbey, Ryan (10 March 2011)."Nicolas Roeg: 'I don't want to be ahead of my time'".The Guardian.Retrieved17 December2017.
- ^"Steven Soderbergh Interview".Mr. Showbiz.1998.
- ^"Where to begin with Nicolas Roeg".BFI.Retrieved26 November2018.
- ^"Film London News Bulletin – 12 September 2008".Archived fromthe originalon 17 December 2010.Retrieved24 November2018.
- ^Hubert, Andrea (5 September 2008)."Film review: Nicolas Roeg At Tyneside/Roeg At Riverside, Newcastle upon Tyne/London".The Guardian.Retrieved24 November2018.
- ^"BFI Fellows".British Film Institute.Retrieved17 December2017.
- ^"THE NEW YEAR HONOURS: Musicals top the bill".The Independent.30 December 1995.Archivedfrom the original on 20 June 2022.Retrieved17 December2017.
- ^Mawston, Mark."Talkabout Walkabout".Cinema Retro.Retrieved21 March2024.
- ^Noah, Sherna (24 November 2018)."Donald Sutherland leads tributes to 'fearless visionary' Nicolas Roeg".Independent.ie.INM Website.Retrieved25 November2018.
- ^"Nicolas Roeg".BFI.Archived fromthe originalon 6 March 2016.Retrieved24 November2018.
Sources
[edit]- Nicolas Roeg,Neil Feineman, Boston: Twayne, 1978ISBN9780805792584
- The Films of Nicolas Roeg: Myth and Mind,John Izod, Basingstoke, Macmillan, 1992ISBN9780312079048
- Fragile Geometry: The Films, Philosophy and Misadventures of Nicolas Roeg,Joseph Lanza, New York: Paj Publications, 1989ISBN9781555540333
- The Films of Nicolas Roeg,Neil Sinyard, London: Letts, 1991ISBN9781852381660
External links
[edit]
- Nicolas RoegatIMDb
- Nicolas Roeg biography and creditsat theBFI'sScreenonline
- Nicolas Roeg @ pHinnWeb
- Best British Directors: Nicolas Roeg
- Interview with Roeg from 1980by Gerald Peary; accessed 12 July 2014
- Tribute to Nicolas Roeg 2007,Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (photos.oscars.org); accessed 12 July 2014
- Book Review:The World is Ever Changingby Nicolas Roeg,independent.co.uk; accessed 12 July 2014
- Nicolas Roeg obituary: From tea-maker to director's chairat bbc.co.uk; accessed 24 November 2018
- Portraits of Nicolas Roegat theNational Portrait Gallery, London
