From the archive: The genius of Gene
In the wake of Gene Hackman's death at the age of 95, revisit this 2009 tribute from former film editor Andrew Collins, after the actor's retirement.
Paul Natkin/Getty
- Andrew Collins
This article was originally published in RT in June 2009.
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As a teenager, I designated Gene Hackman my favourite actor, in the same way that you might elevate a footballer or a pop star. I had always been movie mad and Hackman appealed to me at first sight, with his tough, marine’s build and no-nonsense demeanour, always offset with a certain twinkle in those squinty eyes. Long, long before the internet, I had to seek out information on him from magazines and books.
Once home video arrived, I filled in the gaps in his CV with gusto, renting a lot of substandard fare — the Foreign Legion potboiler March or Die and western Bite the Bullet were lowlights — but as long as Hackman was in it, I’d see it through to the end.
As long as Hackman was in it, I’d see it through to the end
I vividly remember celebrating his 51st birthday on 30 January 1981 (I think this was a solitary affair). He seemed old then, but little did I know that he would enter a genuine renaissance in his 60s, with Unforgiven, Crimson Tide and Twilight. In The Royal Tenenbaums, Hackman gave a career-best performance, aged 70, and my unconditional teenage devotion was paid back in spades. In this whimsical, New York-set family drama from writer/director Wes Anderson, he plays the titular roguish patriarch, estranged from his brood of unhappy child prodigies and keen to build bridges with them and his wife, Anjelica Huston, before he dies of cancer — although his illness is an invention manufactured to gain sympathy.
Gene Hackman in The Royal Tenenbaums Allstar
His children are played by Ben Stiller (a property speculating genius), Gwyneth Paltrow (a tortured writer married to remote psychologist Bill Murray) and Luke Wilson (a lovesick tennis champion). They live in the family’s big house, essentially in a world of their own — the television series Arrested Development always reminds me of the Tenenbaums.
The cast of 2001 film The Royal Tenenbaums. From left: Luke Wilson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Gene Hackman, Ben Stiller, Anjelica Huston, Danny Glover and Kumar Pallana. Allstar
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As with all of Anderson’s work, there is an unreal, nursery rhyme quality to the story (Alec Baldwin narrates from a book), and always a danger that connection with the eccentric characters will be blocked by irony. Ultimately, it’s a warm and tender film, thanks in part to Hackman’s full-bodied turn. He retired from acting last year, aged 78, but he’s still my favourite.
Authors
Andrew Collins
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