Time to Get Wise

Every once in a while, I am approached by an author for the purposes of reviewing a new book of theirs in exchange for a copy. I've occasionally agreed to do this, being a voracious reader of any sort of non-fiction book on television and film. Now I'm not a whore, darlin'...! I have to already have a level of interest in the subject matter in order to agree to such a thing. Such was the case when I profiled Mr. Novak and The Wizard of Oz (1939.) Recently it happened again when I was approached about a book about the films of skilled director Robert Wise. I have always been aware of Wise, as he directed one of my favorite movies, The Sound of Music (1965), along with other notable films, but really didn't know a great deal about him or his body of work.

Citizen Kane

The book "Robert Wise: The Motion Pictures" focuses primarily on the man's work rather than his life, though biographical details show up as the timeline progresses. Also, recollections about him from people who worked with him along the way paint the picture of a highly detailed and extremely personable and fair man. Most people are aware that Wise started out as an editor. He began in that capacity in 1939 and among his efforts are such notable films as The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939), My Favorite Wife (1940), The Devil and Daniel Webster (1941) and a little number called Citizen Kane (1941!) Associations with gifted filmmakers like Orson Welles and Val Lewton helped to forge his own way into the position of directing.

In his earliest years as a director, Wise was not permitted to select the projects he was assigned. He was a studio (RKO) contractee and was told which projects were his to helm. Thus, his early works were dotted with thrillers like The Curse of the Cat People (1944) and The Body Snatcher (1945) or potboilers such as Criminal Court (1946) and Mystery in Mexico (1948.) The book, by J.R. Jordan, however, gives each film that Robert Wise directed close to equal time and attention, allowing the reader to learn not only what the movie was about, but how Wise approached it and what touches he was able to give it.

With fiery (and later fired) co-director Jerome Robbins.

A pattern (which may please those who enjoy structure and consistency - or who perhaps are OCD!) is established right off the bat as each chapter for the given film is begun with a carefully selected quote, often unrelated to the film, which characterizes the nature of the piece. And each chapter has a plot rundown, a selection of dialogue from the script and then a segment devoted to delving further into the story and how and why decisions were made or highlighting symbolic motifs, etc... Once the movies begin edging closer to our current time, when participants from them may still be alive, someone associated with the production is interviewed regarding his or her experiences both with the movie in question and with Mr. Wise himself. I found these interviews to be the most compelling part of the book, even if some of the people called upon only enjoyed small roles in the project. They were there nonetheless.

Wise with Peter Fonda and Lindsay Wagner during Two People (1973.)

A few of the more notable names who were inter- viewed for this book are Janette Scott, George Chakiris, Heather Menzies-Urich, Gavin McLeod, Lindsay Wagner and Marsha Mason. It is through these and others that we really get an inside view of the dynamics that were going on behind the scenes. Scott, for example, was rightly mystified as to what Rossana Pedesta was doing in the title role of Helen of Troy. To a person, though, the recollections paint Wise as a thorough, polite and highly-prepared man.

Rossana Podesta, speaking phonetically and not exactly killing it in Helen of Troy.

If I were to come up with any negatives regarding the book, they are relatively minor. One might be the incon- sistency with regard to illustrations. The first chapter on The Curse of the Cat People is liberally sprinkled with photos, which might lead the reader to expect the same as the book goes on, but several films have far fewer pictures to represent them. And some of the plot summaries (particularly for the more obscure movies) can be hard to follow because the character names are unfamiliar and the writing in this portion can get a little formal and almost textbook-like. Yet one can hardly expect someone writing a virtual guide to someone's career to be snappy and snarky as I sometimes can be in my own (quite lengthy!) story-line descriptions.

With Paul Newman during Until They Sail.

What is remarkable about Wise is that he covered such a wide range of genres. He started in the afore- mentioned chillers and program- mers, then dabbled in everything from westerns (Blood on the Moon, 1948, Two Flags West, 1950, and Tribute to a Bad Man, 1956) to war movies (Destination Gobi and The Desert Rats, both 1943) to Oscar-caliber biopics (Somebody Up There Likes Me, 1956, and I Want to Live!, 1958.) Then there were dramas like So Big (1953), Executive Suite (1954) and Until We Sail (1957) and even a widescreen epic (Helen of Troy, 1956.) All of these movies, some of them enduring favorites among film buffs, were prior to a string of considerable successes that came later.

Wise with Natalie Wood during West Side Story.

Penetrating dramas include the racially-charged Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) and Two for the Seesaw (1962.) There was the submarine thriller Run Silent, Run Deep (1958) and the thought-provoking navy drama The Sand Pebbles (1966.) And, of course, his most famous projects include the musicals West Side Story (1961) and The Sound of Music (1965), for which he won two Oscars apiece as producer and director. A third go resulted in Star! (1968), which was a decided flop regardless of the content and lavish budget. 

Wise (and creator Gene Roddenberry) with the venerable Star Trek cast.

Also, having already provided a bonafide science-fiction classic in The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), he later directed other films of a para- normal or sci-fi nature such as The Haunting (1963), The Andromeda Strain (1971), Audrey Rose (1977) and Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), whose title inspired the name of this book and whose highly-troubled production signaled the beginning of the end of his esteemed directorial career.

Wise even stepped into disaster movie territory when he directed The Hinden- burg (1975), whose reputation has grown over the years since the advent of high-def widescreen DVD and the quality of the cast assembled within it.

McQueen insisted that many scenes be performed both Wise's way and his way. And often Wise preferred McQueen's.

Reading the book, I was reminded of how many of his movies I've personally enjoyed (one early one is 1950's Three Secrets, which had Patricia Neal, Eleanor Parker and Ruth Roman awaiting the fate of a little boy who is the child of one of them.) Strangely enough, just about the time the book arrived, I happened to have recently viewed for the first time Odds Against Tomorrow, which was very tight, and The Sand Pebbles, which included a great performance by Steve McQueen. The film garnered the actor his only Oscar nomination as Best Actor (Paul Scofield won for A Man for All Seasons.)

Beymer with Natalie Wood.

McQueen's role in Pebbles was fitting as Wise had given him one of his very earliest feature film assignments about a dozen years prior in Somebody Up There Likes Me. Time and again in Robert Wise: The Motion Pictures, we're shown examples of the director utilizing actors and actresses who he'd worked with before, giving them a bigger shot at a later date. For example, did you know that Richard Beymer of West Side Story had previously appeared in Wise's So Big? Granted, Beymer has his share of detractors, but when looking at Wise's trajectory, one can see why he might have had a bit of an edge going in, having worked amiably with the director on a prior movie. Similarly, Wise had worked with Robert Mitchum early on in Blood on the Moon and later selected him for Two for the Seasaw. Trivia like this, and much more, can be found in the book.

Keeping warm on location for The Sound of Music.

Robert Wise: The Motion Pictures is a book published by Bear Manor Media, who offer up countless show business related books of a sort that are unlikely to be spotted in a local bookstore (actually, these days, local bookstores can be hard to spot!)  They specialize in the type of books that you see and then remark, "Man, I thought I was the only person who would want a book on him!" I encourage you to read this book as it offers a wealth of information about a man whose career with movies spanned half a century and yielded a wide array of acclaimed movies. I learned a lot from it and left with a stronger appreciation for the man's cinematic contributions.