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Entertainment
The Films of Haskell Wexler
Published 2:27 PM EST, Mon December 28, 2015
Haskell Wexler, who died December 27, was one of the top cinematographers in Hollywood, his work both part of award-winning movies and award-winning in its own right. ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,’ starring Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher, won the Oscar as best picture of 1975. Milos Forman directed.Wexler won his first of two Oscars for his work on 1966’s ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,’ starring George Segal, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. The movie, directed by Mike Nichols, was shot in black and white, its dramatic look heightening the fireworks between the characters.‘In the Heat of the Night,’ the 1967 film directed by Norman Jewison, was another Oscar best picture winner in Wexler’s filmography. Sidney Poitier, left, starred.‘The Thomas Crown Affair,’ from 1968, was a very different film for both Wexler and director Jewison. Instead of the shrouded colors of ‘Night,’ the pair went for bright colors and sharp angles, making it one of the most ’60s of ’60s films.Wexler combined documentary-like realism with fiction in 1969’s ‘Medium Cool,’ which he also directed. The film, starring Marianna Hill and Robert Forster, included scenes of the demonstrations that rocked the 1968 Democratic convention in Chicago.David Carradine plays singer Woody Guthrie in 1976’s ‘Bound for Glory,’ directed by Hal Ashby, which won Wexler his second Oscar. Though Carradine was apparently not a fan of the look, Wexler was highly praised for his imagery, some of which evoked Walker Evans’ Depression-era photographs.Ashby and Wexler re-teamed for ‘Coming Home,’ a 1978 film about returning Vietnam War veterans. Jane Fonda and Bruce Dern were among the cast, which also included Jon Voight.Wexler sometimes combined his progressive politics with his filmmaking. He found a kindred spirit in director John Sayles, who directed 1987’s ‘Matewan,’ about a West Virginia coal miners’ strike. Will Oldham was among the stars.
