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lint Eastwood is known for playing craggy, solitary, unblinking heroes. But it’s his work behind the cameras as director that will be the focus for the latest Oriental Film Festival at the Old Theater.

Starting this Sunday night, January 8, and continuing on Sundays through the month, the Old Theater will present “The Art of Clint Eastwood” by showing four of the films that Eastwood directed.

First up in this month’s “Oriental Film Fest: Art of Clint Eastwood” is “Unforgiven” a Western. Film critic Roger Ebert says that as with the other genres of films Eastwood’s directed, he uses the Western “as a way to study human nature.”

The lead-off film this week will be “The Unforgiven” for which Eastwood won Best Director and Best Picture Oscars. It’s only the third Western to win the high honor at the Academy Awards.

In the line-up in coming weeks will be “Mystic River” on January 15. (It won Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Actor in a Supporting Role; “Million Dollar Baby” on January 22, a film that also won Best Picture and Best Director awards as well as Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor. The series wraps up on January 29 with “Flags of Our Fathers”.

Clint Eastwood and Hillary Swank in the Eastwood-directed “Million Dollar Baby,” third selection in the four-week Oriental Film Festival.

As with last fall’s Oriental Film Fest: “Tribute To The American Musical,” the “Art of Clint Eastwood” was put together by Roger Bullis. He chose the four films (out of 34 Eastwood directed) for the Sunday night showings this month. A professor of film at University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point before retiring to Oriental, Roger will introduce each film and lead a discussion afterward.

In a Q&A with TownDock.net, Roger Bullis gave some background about why he chose to organize this Oriental Film Festival around Clint Eastwood

Q: Why Clint Eastwood?

Roger Bullis: I was looking for a popular director who I think will join that group of Great American Directors. That is, “who are the new John Fords, Howard Hawkses, and Alfred Hitchcocks?”

(BTW, I would include as worthy contemporaries to Eastwood, Woody Allen, Steven Spielberg, Joel and Ethan Coen, and on a good day Martin Scorsese (Hugo in 3D is fantastic!).

Q: For those not familiar with Eastwood’s work as a director, what do you think they’d find most surprising?

Roger Bullis: I’ve chosen films which I think show an filmmaker’s artistic vision, which we will discuss, but also these films which are very thoughtful. And that thoughtfulness about social and political issues, human behavior and dilemmas which stick with an audience after they walk out of the screening may be a surprise.

Q: One character he’ll forever be associated with is Dirty Harry. In what way is his directing most like that role?

Roger Bullis: A director/producer like Eastwood has to have complete control of the set/situation, just like Detective Harry Callahan. But hopefully without a Magnum .44 pistol. On most days.
Trivia point. In Dirty Harry (directed by Don Siegel) when the opening confrontation moves out into the street, the movie marquee in the background reads: “Play Misty For Me” which was Eastwood’s first directing effort and was created with the tutelage of Siegel while Dirty Harry was being shot. So Eastwood had to jump day by day from Harry to Director and back again.

Q: In what way is his directing least like his character, Dirty Harry?

Roger Bullis: A director has to exude empathy with cast and crew and audience. Harry just exudes.

Tickets are $6 per film or a series ticket for all four movies for $20. They are available at Nautical Wheelers and the hardware store. (Old Theater members can get a discount on the series ticket price.) Tickets also available at the box office which will open at 6:30. Movies start at 7p.

The Oriental Film Fest was made possible by a grant to the Old Theater from the NC Arts Council and support from the Pamlico County Arts Council.

Posted Friday January 6, 2012 by Melinda Penkava

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