Year: 1963
Length: 112 minutes
Director: Martin Ritt
B&W
Synopsis: An amoral cattle rancher clashes with his rigid father.
I choose Hud for movie night for mainly one reason-- James Wong Howe, one of the most acclaimed cinematographers. His career spans from the silent era to talkies to color films. As a Chinese American, he overcame plenty of racial obstacles in Hollywood. Besides his 2 Academy Awards and 10 nominations, he is also remembered for his numerous innovations in film. To name a few:
1. One of the first DPs to use deep focus and pioneered the use of low-hanging ceiling in Transatlantic (1931), 10 years before Citizen Kane was praised for using such innovations.
2. Filmed part of the boxing scenes by gliding in the boxing ring on roller skates with a handheld camera for Body and Soul (1947). Raging Bull has similar shots inspired by the film.
3. Master of low-key lighting which was widely associated with film noir.
George Clooney may think that Hollywood is a very progressive place ("talking about civil rights when it's not popular"), but all I can see is racism (and other forms of oppression) persists. Minorities continue to portray stereotypes in front of the camera. Behind the camera, the number of minority filmmakers are disproportionally low. I pay tribute to one of the great. One of a kind.
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