Film Screenings / Programs / Series
ELMORE LEONARD (1925-2013)
July 10 – July 27
This July we pay tribute to the venerable Elmore Leonard, a uniquely gifted author whose peerless work redefined the western and crime genres. His prolific output was frequently mined for cinematic adaptation, and when he wasn’t busy writing one of the almost 50 novels and countless short stories that he penned before his death last year, Leonard found time to craft a number of screenplays of his own, including both adaptations of his stories and original works.
Though most celebrated in literary and cinematic circles for his crime fiction, Leonard first made his name as a writer of Westerns. His early Hollywood credits demonstrate Leonard’s decisive take on the genre, including such landmarks as Budd Boetticher’s THE TALL T, Martin Ritt’s HOMBRE, and Delmer Daves’s 3:10 TO YUMA, all of which came either directly or indirectly from his pen. After a five-year hiatus from writing, Leonard turned towards contemporary crime fiction in the late 1960s, and from that point onwards he issued an astonishing range of stories that earned him canonical status among readers and moviegoers alike.
Leonard’s screenplays, as well as the films adapted by others from his writing, offer an eclectic take on his often comedic, always tricky cast of characters. From classics such as Richard Fleischer’s MR. MAJESTYK and contemporary neo-noir gems like Tarantino’s JACKIE BROWN and Soderbergh’s OUT OF SIGHT, to rarely-screened curios like the Burt Reynolds-directed STICK, Jim McBride’s made-for-TV film, PRONTO (starring Peter Falk), and Paul Schrader’s little-known TOUCH, Anthology’s series includes a wide array of gems that will keep you thoroughly entertained.
Special thanks to Jim McBride, Chris Chouinard (Park Circus), Paul Ginsburg (Universal), Michael Horne & Christopher Lane (Sony), Joe Reid & Caitlin Robertson (20th Century Fox), and Tracey Wolfson (Showtime).
