Comments on: Sugar Water: Sydney Pollack (1934-2008)

By: Box Office Flashback: January 9, 1992 | Popdose

Box Office Flashback: January 9, 1992 | Popdose — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:57:32 +0000

[...] ended up trading it to Scorsese for Schindler’s List, a project he’d first offered to Sydney Pollack and then to Scorsese because he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to do it justice. Once [...]

By: Box Office Flashback: January 28, 1982 | Popdose

Box Office Flashback: January 28, 1982 | Popdose — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 20:33:58 +0000

[...] 1982 Pollack returned to cinemas with Tootsie. It’s the only comedy he ever directed — Pollack died in 2008 — but it just so happens to be one of the best comedies of all time. // var so_1085803832 = [...]

By: Box Office Flashback: October 29, 1996 | Popdose

Box Office Flashback: October 29, 1996 | Popdose — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 19:32:19 +0000

[...] The Associate (Buena Vista; $12.8 million)A racial variation on Tootsie, this comedy stars Ted Danson in blackface as a man who– … No? You’re sure about [...]

By: Soundtrack Saturday: “Scrooged” | Popdose

Soundtrack Saturday: “Scrooged” | Popdose — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 16:25:38 +0000

[...] too deep to describe the movie’s plot. Directed by Richard Donner (Murray reportedly asked Sydney Pollack, who directed him in 1982’s Tootsie, to take the reins first), with a screenplay by Mitch [...]

By: Bottom Feeders: The Ass End of the ’80s, Part 63 | Popdose

Bottom Feeders: The Ass End of the ’80s, Part 63 | Popdose — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 11:31:37 +0000

[...] country may not be my thing, but this is a really nice song off his soundtrack to Sydney Pollackâ€™s The Electric Horseman. Gotta love it when Willie starts talking about picking up hookers in the [...]

By: Sugar Water: Jesus Saves (Money) | Popdose

Sugar Water: Jesus Saves (Money) | Popdose — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 07:03:03 +0000

[...] novel inspired by the current depression. Or see if the library’s video collection includes Sydney Pollack’s They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Or enter a dance marathon like the one in the movie! [...]

By: Sugar Water: Harrison Ford | Popdose

Sugar Water: Harrison Ford | Popdose — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:11:40 +0000

[...] it in second place at the year-end box office between Steven Spielbergâ€™s Jurassic Park and Sydney Pollackâ€™s The [...]

By: The Three Strike Rule: An Interview With Elvis Mitchell | Popdose

The Three Strike Rule: An Interview With Elvis Mitchell | Popdose — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 13:30:54 +0000

[...] first interview program. In the first installment, taped last year, Mitchell talks with the late Sydney Pollack, and in coming weeks he sits down with Bill Murray, Laurence Fishburne, and Quentin Tarantino, [...]

By: rwcass

rwcass — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 18:02:13 +0000

Some of Pollack's obituaries took shots at Grusin's “elevator muzak” for “Tootsie” and “Random Hearts.” Yes, the music in “Tootsie” can be syrupy, but it works, especially the main theme, “An Actor's Life,” which is on “Cinemagic.” It helps sustain the comic energy as well. I love his music for “Condor” too.

By: terje

terje — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:03:01 +0000

I really enjoyed this article, Robert. Thanks. For me, it was music who first introduced me to Sydney Pollack. I've been a fan ever since I rented most of his 1970s movies on VHS in 1987 after reading about the collaboration between Pollack and composer Dave Grusin in the liner notes of Grusin's soundtrack compilation “Cinemagic”. They collaborated on a number of films – in 1987 Grusin had scored six Pollack movies and they continued working together throughout the 1990s.

In more ways than one, Grusin is the music equivalent of Pollack. A multi-talented musician equally at home in jazz, pop and soundtracks – but always with a commercial flair, and always with the subdued, workmanlike approach to figure out what serves the movie best. “On Golden Pond” – protestant hymns, “The Firm” – solo piano blues, “The Champ” – opera, “The Fabulous Baker Boys” – jazz, “The Goonies” – faux classical and so on. And I probably went through the same thing you did when I defended Grusin's commercial (and often sentimental) approach against the prejudices and generalizations of the “taste mafia”.