Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to another installment of Rhode Island Movie Corner’s ‘Directorial Retrospective’ series. In this ongoing series, I look at the complete filmography of any given director in the film industry. Past installments have covered the likes of Michael Bay, Christopher Nolan, David Fincher, Quentin Tarantino, Tim Burton, etc. And while today’s director admittedly doesn’t have an overly extensive directorial filmography, he is a long-time veteran of the film industry who’s had quite a lot of success over the years. Yes, today, we’re looking at the films of director Gary Ross. This week sees the release of his latest film, Ocean’s 8, a female-led continuation of director Steven Soderbergh’s trilogy of films that started with the 2001 remake of Ocean’s Eleven. Like the trilogy of films that came before it (as well as the original 1960 film that the first film was based on), this film features an all-star cast that features the likes of Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, and Mindy Kaling just to name a few. It is the fifth directorial effort from Ross, who got his start in the film industry in the late 80’s. Prior to 1998, he was mainly known as a writer, having penned several hit films and even earning a few Oscar nominations for them. He officially transitioned into directing in 1998, and since then, he’s experienced a solid amount of critical success with his films, which include everything from a tribute to nostalgic family sitcoms to the first installment of a major blockbuster franchise. So, without further ado, let’s delve into the films of director Gary Ross.
To start things off, we’re going to do something a little different by featuring a few films that Gary Ross only wrote instead of directed as a pair of ‘Bonus Reviews’. These two films in question are also the ones that earned Ross Oscar nominations for Best Screenplay prior to him fully transitioning into directing in the late 90’s…
BIG (1988)
First, we have director Penny Marshall’s 1988 film Big, which Ross co-wrote and co-produced with Anne Spielberg, sister of the one and only Steven Spielberg. The film centers on a young boy named Josh Baskin who uses an antique fortune-telling machine to wish that he was ‘big’. To his surprise, his wish comes true and he finds himself transformed into an older man (Tom Hanks) who must now navigate the perils of adulthood, including everything from the cut-throat world of business to a blossoming romance. And really, Tom Hanks is what truly sells the film. In what was arguably his official ‘star-making’ role, Hanks perfectly embodies the part of a 12-year old kid in a man’s body, and the film does a nice job of showcasing how Josh continually possesses his childhood innocence even when he finds himself in a serious situation. This, of course, paves the way for some hilarious moments that highlight Josh’s ‘fish out of water’ situation that are nicely balanced with all the film’s charming moments, from the scenes where he romances his co-worker Susan (Elizabeth Perkins) to the iconic sequence where he and his boss Mr. MacMillan (Robert Loggia) play ‘Heart and Soul’ and ‘Chopsticks’ on FAO Schwarz’ big floor piano. And that’s Big in a nutshell; it very much wears its heart on its sleeve and it all works thanks to Tom Hanks’ pitch-perfect performance in the lead role. This is arguably one of those instances where the film may not have worked quite as well as it did if another actor had been in the part. But, of course, that’s not the case here, and it’s easy to see why Big (which notably celebrated its 30th anniversary recently) is still considered a classic of the 80’s, as it’s one of the most unabashedly heartfelt films of all time without ever becoming too saccharine.
Rating: 5/5!
DAVE (1993)
Ross’ next Oscar nomination came through his collaboration with Ghostbusters director Ivan Reitman on the 1993 film Dave. In this political comedy, Kevin Kline stars as a temp agency worker named Dave who’s brought in by the Secret Service to take the place of the President, Bill Mitchell (also played by Kline), at a public appearance. However, when the President ends up incapacitated by a coma, Dave is forced to truly take over as the leader of the United States of America. Now, obviously, political comedy is a touchy subject nowadays given how the current political climate doesn’t really lend itself that well to humor. But, in the context of being an early 90’s political comedy, this film does succeed at being a light-hearted satire of politics at the time that’s not overly cynical while still having some edge to it. And while this ‘dramedy’ does tend to lean more towards the dramatic elements of its story than its comedic elements, the film does have a good amount of quality humor. Ultimately, though, the main selling point of the film is Kevin Kline in his dual role as Dave and President Mitchell. While the plot doesn’t really allow for any major opportunities for these two characters to interact with each other on-screen save for one moment in the beginning, Kline brings great charisma to the former role. He also has solid chemistry with Sigourney Weaver, who plays the First Lady, Ellen Mitchell. While Weaver technically doesn’t get that much to do in the film, the relationship that gradually forms between her and Dave is genuinely sweet. Plus, she does get to throw in a few great snarky comments here and there, specifically in the early parts of the film where it’s established that she and the real President aren’t necessarily ‘happily married’. In short, while Dave is very much a product of its time, it’s still worth checking out today (yes, even in these crazy political times) primarily thanks to the great lead performances from Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver.
Rating: 4/5
And now, onto Ross’ directorial efforts…
PLEASANTVILLE (1998)
For his first major foray into directing, Ross gave us a film that served as a tribute to classic 50’s era sitcoms like Leave it to Beaver and I Love Lucy. In Pleasantville, Tobey Maguire and Reese Witherspoon star as siblings David and Jennifer, who end up getting sucked into the world of David’s favorite TV show, the titular Pleasantville, via a special remote that puts them in the shoes of the show’s sibling characters, Bud and Mary Sue. And despite David’s best efforts to ensure that the two of them blend in properly, Jennifer’s devil-may-care personality soon leads to the town undergoing quite the colorful transformation (figuratively and literally). With that in mind, the best thing about Pleasantville is its use of color. As David and Jennifer spend more time in the world of the show, its black-and-white aesthetic is slowly but surely turned colorful, leading to plenty of great shots where black-and-white objects and characters interact seamlessly with those who are colored in. One can only imagine how arduous of a job the visual effects artists had to undertake to make this one of the best-looking films of its time that does a perfect job of representing the, for lack of a better term, overall ‘swellness’ of its old-school locale. At the same time, though, Pleasantville also offers some solid writing that delves into themes such as racism (e.g. whites separated from ‘colored’ folks) and freedom of speech. This is all paired nicely with terrific performances from Maguire, Witherspoon, Joan Allen and William H. Macy as their ‘in-universe’ parents Betty and George, and Jeff Daniels as Bud’s boss Mr. Johnson, owner of the local burger joint. Sure, some are bound to find a few plot holes here and there that put all the show’s changes into question, but all in all, Pleasantville is a charming tribute to a nostalgic past as seen through the eyes of an edgier modern mindset.
Rating: 4.5/5
SEABISCUIT (2003)
Half a decade later, Ross tackled his first historical drama with a film about one of the most famous racing horses of all-time, Seabiscuit. Based on the horse’s 2001 biography by author Laura Hillenbrand, the film follows the horse’s rise to fame in the 30’s and how it specifically affects three men; his jockey Red Pollard, his owner Charles S. Howard, and his trainer Tom Smith, all of whom end up overcoming their own personal demons along the way. Now admittedly, this film is a bit of a slow burn; heck, Seabiscuit doesn’t even show up until a little under an hour in as the film instead starts off by introducing and developing its three main leads. Still, for what it’s worth, the film is a generally engaging watch that does its job of conveying the importance of what Seabiscuit accomplished as a major underdog who inspired America whilst the country was forced to deal with the ramifications of the Great Depression. This is then balanced nicely with the storylines of Pollard, Howard, and Smith and their efforts to overcome their own personal struggles, from Pollard having to deal with partial blindness to Howard regaining his sense of optimism after a devastating tragedy to Smith just trying to prove his worth as a horse trainer. Because of this, the film is a prime example of a true ‘actors’ showcase’, benefitting from excellent performances from the lead trio of Tobey Maguire as Pollard, Jeff Bridges as Howard, and Chris Cooper as Smith. And while I’m aware that the film does tone down some of the darker elements of its true story (e.g. glossing over the ways in which jockeys maintain a proper weight), this doesn’t necessarily affect any of the story’s most essential moments. Thus, despite all the instances where it often ends up being a part of the generally predictable ‘sports film’ genre, Seabiscuit is a well-made biopic thanks to the solid direction from Ross and the excellent performances from its ensemble cast. And because of this, the film even managed to land a Best Picture nomination at that year’s Oscar ceremony along with six additional nominations, even though it ultimately didn’t win in any of its categories.
Rating: 4/5
THE HUNGER GAMES (2012)
Obviously, this is a film that I’ve talked about plenty of times before on this site. I did a review of it back in 2013 in time for the release of its immediate follow-up, Catching Fire, and then proceeded to ‘recap’ it as part of the ‘Story So Far’ post that I did for the franchise prior to the release of its big finale, Mockingjay Part 2. With that in mind, I won’t repeat myself too much here. Simply put, Ross did a solid job of adapting the first installment of author Suzanne Collins’ best-selling book series to the big-screen; with that said, though, this film has since become overshadowed by its three subsequent installments. The main reason why is quite simple, as many felt that director Francis Lawrence improved on the two biggest issues that they had with the first film, shaky-cam and quick cuts to tone down the most violent parts of this story of kids being forced to duel to the death in a nationally-televised event. I’ve personally never had much of an issue with these creative decisions, though it’s completely understandable as to why this was a problem for others. Heck, I’ll even fully admit that Francis Lawrence did fix these two issues once he took over the franchise, hence why I, like many, consider Catching Fire as the best installment of the film series. Still, like I said before, I do think Gary Ross deserves a lot of credit for at least getting the franchise started on a good note. In a time where the genre of films based on ‘young adult novels’ was dominated primarily by the likes of Twilight and several failed attempts at initiating similarly successful franchises, Hunger Games managed to vastly outshine its competition thanks to solid writing and a well-layered bunch of characters. It’s all highlighted by Jennifer Lawrence in her ‘star-making’ role as the series’ main protagonist, Katniss Everdeen, though she’s also backed by the likes of Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Wes Bentley, and Donald Sutherland just to name a few. Because of this, while the first Hunger Games isn’t necessarily the best installment of its film series, it’s still a satisfying start to this global behemoth of a franchise that managed to get better as it went on.
Rating: 4.5/5
FREE STATE OF JONES (2016)
To conclude this retrospective, we have Ross’ most recent directorial effort and his second historical drama, Free State of Jones. The film tells the story of Newton Knight, a member of the Confederate army who ended up deserting them during the Civil War and then proceeded to lead an army of his own made up of fellow runaways and slaves against the Confederacy, which culminated with them forming their own government in Jones County, Mississippi. Like Seabiscuit, the film manages to be a solidly engaging take on this moment in history even if it’s not exactly a 100% accurate retelling of it. However, also like Seabiscuit, this two-and-a-half-hour film is one of those ‘slow burn’ types of films, and unlike Seabiscuit, it does tend to drag at times, specifically during the last third of the film after Knight and co. establish the titular ‘Free State of Jones’. The film also tends to suffer from having a rather disjointed narrative, specifically due to a subplot which delves into a different moment in history in which Knight’s great-grandson Davis is put on trial in 1948 for attempting to marry a white woman while he himself is partially of black descent. These scenes with Davis are intercut with Newton’s story but are hastily edited in to the point where they’re really nothing more than brief cutaways that don’t contribute anything to the main plot. Because of all this, it feels like the film is trying to do a bit too much from a narrative perspective even with its hefty runtime in mind. It’s a shame, really, because the film is a decently entertaining period piece that features a trio of great performances from Matthew McConaughey as Knight, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as a slave named Rachel who he falls in love with, and Mahershala Ali as Knight’s confidant Moses Washington. Ultimately, though, while it’s not necessarily as bad as its 46% rating on Rotten Tomatoes may suggest, Free State of Jones would’ve worked a lot better had some parts of it been trimmed.
Rating: 3/5
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