Sorry for the lack of updates this last week, but I didn’t get Covid again, just very busy. But with these two bits of news today, I knew I had to post something.
Probably making more of the headlines is the passing of director David Lynch. While I’ve never been a huge fan of his work, he is a filmmaker that I have a lot of respect for. It’s not often when a director can make the kind of impact throughout his entire career, as Lynch did. I remember seeing Eraserhead (1977) for the first time and couldn’t remember the last time a film hit me like that one did. Definitely didn’t walk away with a bunch of warm and fuzzy feelings, that is for sure. But what a punch! I do remember seeing The Elephant Man (1980) and though tragic, I really enjoyed it. Then in the ’80s, renting Blue Velvet (1986) and watching it with my future wife and her mom . . . very interesting! But it is a sad day for cult fans because there aren’t too many people like Lynch. His voice will be missed.
We also had the passing of Jeannot Szwarc, a French director that I had seen plenty of his work as a kid, even though I had no idea what a director did at the time, let alone remember his name. I was an avid fan of The Night Gallery TV series and would watch that whenever I had a chance. Szwarc directed 19 episodes of that series! He also directed another early TV movie called The Devil’s Daughter (1973), which featured a huge all-star cast, including Shelley Winters, Belinda Montgomery, Robert Foxworth, Jonathan Frid, Joseph Cotton, Abe Vigoda, and Robert Cornthwait, all about modern day Satan worshippers! Great stuff. He also made the best flaming cockroach film that ever existed, with William Castle’s Bug (1975). But it was Jaws 2 (1978), where he had to step in and start the production all over after the producers fired original director, John Hancock, because the film pretty much wasn’t the same as the original. But I still have a fondness for what Jaws 2 is, even though that original script would have been pretty cool, not to mention so different.
But again, Szwarc was a talented director, who’s visions and talent will live on in the films and TV shows that he worked on. Same with Lynch. The benefit of these two is that they have left us with hours upon hours of their work to continue to enjoy, develop new fans, and have their appreciation continue with each new generation. Our thoughts go out to their friends and families during this difficult time.
