Sad. But I do want to know what he died of - he was only 54 and, as yet, most reports simply say there are no further details... posted by rhymer at 7:26 AM on March 18, 2008
Thats exactly what I was thinking. I liked 'Cold Mountain' but really wasn't a fan of his other films, 'English Patient' included. However he does appear to have done a good job as chairman of the BFI, driven up film production and attendances and as a regular visitor to London's South Bank I can report that the new BFI cinema complex is excellent. So
Am shocked and saddened - he was one of the guys who really 'got it' - how to make big films - in an old-fashioned studio sense of an 'A' picture - a big film for Adults .
Ooh. The English Patient, despite its dulling reputation, is still one of my favorites (and is the rare book-to-film that worked well with a refocusing of the story). posted by kittyprecious at 8:43 AM on March 18, 2008
Oh! and The Talented Mr. Ripley got such a bum rap...I forgot that was his handiwork too. posted by kittyprecious at 8:48 AM on March 18, 2008
Truly sad. The guy was great.
(But can anyone explain to me why everyone is just posting a:)
. posted by stvspl at 8:52 AM on March 18, 2008
Movies get all the attention, but please credit him as a playwright as well as a flim director; he wrote the screenplays to several of his movies. He also directed theatre and at least one opera in addition to his film work. posted by CheeseDigestsAll at 9:02 AM on March 18, 2008
Very sad. Truly, Madly, Deeply is one of my favorite films ever. posted by tula at 9:33 AM on March 18, 2008
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This is very sad. My sister is good friends with his niece and they babysat his kids when he went to the Baftas to pick up a gong for Truly Madly Deeply. A very nice man by all accounts. posted by jontyjago at 9:37 AM on March 18, 2008
The Talented Mr. Ripley got a bum rap because the original (as well as the other ripley film American Friend) were much better. That said Truly, Madly, Deeply is one of my all-time favorites.
So sad and unexpected. I met him recently and he was the most charming, gentle-seeming guy. He will be very much missed, both by the people who loved him as a person and by others who were touched by his work in the industry. posted by vytae at 11:28 AM on March 18, 2008
I was at university with him, in Hull, and we worked on a few projects together, including his first film (long before he was famous) on the Isle of Wight where his parents are renown for their ice cream.
He was very charming, very talented and very hard working. One of those people who you feel deserved all the success he got. Very sad. posted by rolo at 11:43 AM on March 18, 2008
This is really sad, I loved his work. Ripley in particular I liked; it was not overly or distractingly styled, but extremely stylish. His adaptation of Beckett's Play for the Beckett on Film collection was just stunning. posted by thermogenesis at 1:26 PM on March 18, 2008
And not just a director and playwright and theatre and opera director but an actor: he had a cameo in Atonement, as the television interviewer in the almost-final scene.
He had surgery in Charing Cross Hospital for an elective procedure to do with a growth(?) in his neck.
The fact that he bled out so much a week post surgery suggests an infective bleed.
What a loss......... what a horrible loss.
Please don't let this be some bizarre surgical error, please....
He took on the task of translating my favourite novel to the silver screen, changed parts of it radically, and yet still managed to give me my third favourite film.
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posted by dobbs at 6:59 AM on March 18, 2008