Clint Eastwood was honored by Warner Bros. February 17, 2010 for his 35 Films in 35 Years with the studio. A new box set of Eastwood DVDs just hit the shelves. Included in the set is a new documentary, The Eastwood Factor, which looks at the historic career of Clint Eastwood and his association with the Warner Bros. studio. The event was held at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Terry Semel, co-chair of LACMA, told the gathered audience of actors, entertainment industry insiders and friends that the night was to celebrate “The magic of a guy named Clint Eastwood.”
After screening The Eastwood Factor, from film critic and documentary filmmaker Richard Schickel, Clint Eastwood spoke to the audience about his illustrious career acting and directing, as well as his personal life.
Eastwood’s Early Days
“I think I always wanted to [direct],” he said. “Even back during the Rawhide days I always wanted to direct.” Eastwood described working in Italy on the “Spaghetti Westerns,” with Sergio Leone, and with Don Siegel, “an actor turned director, and I thought, gee, I’d really like to do this.” Don Siegel encouraged him to direct. The first film Clint directed was Play Misty for Me (1971), in which he also starred.
In his early days of filmmaking, Clint Eastwood worked closely with both Leone and Siegel. They gave him his boost in the movies. He compared the two directors. “Sergio was a much more visual guy and Don was a much more energetic guy. Sergio was energetic also, but he had a great eye for vistas.”
The Eastwood Way
Eastwood is known for fast filming. He is a no-nonsense director who does not drag things out. He would never want to spend four years making a film like Avatar. “I never want to do that,” he told the audience. “I think visual effects are really great and the fact that you can make a picture like Avatar or District 9 or something like that is great.” He admires those films, but as far as his films go, he is a storyteller. “I still love stories. I still love telling people’s stories.” He joked that four weeks on a film is much more satisfying than four years.
Although Clint Eastwood has had a lucrative and illustrious career, he says these days it isn’t the main focus of his life. “I like doing films but I also like having a life. I also like having a family life. I don’t want to turn around and have my 13 year old daughter be 21 someday and I’m sitting there [thinking] what did I miss?”
Every once in awhile he considers retiring for awhile then a good script comes along and he’s back in the game.
The new DVD box set includes all 35 films Clint Eastwood made with Warner Bros. A total of 19 discs (some double-sided) and many bonus features combine to make this a treasured set for movie lovers and Eastwood lovers.
During the evening it was clear that Eastwood felt humbled about the tribute that was afforded him. He is a low-key, easy-going guy who just happens to be one of the most popular film stars of all time. Yet for Eastwood, his family and his friends are what make his life truly enjoyable.
