Wednesday, June 2, 2010

DEATH OF A REBEL


June 1


What to say about Dennis Hopper?

He revolutionized American independent film making. In 1969, he and cohort Peter Fonda decided to pair their respective talents and limited experience in exploitation movies ('The Trip', 'Wild Angels') and make a modern Western with motorcycles instead of horses. The result was 'Easy Rider.' Hopper directed, co-starred and co-wrote the screenplay.

'Easy Rider' is no masterpiece - Hopper never made a masterpiece - but it is a landmark movie which influenced indie film forever after. He was mercurial, tempestuous, undisciplined, impossible. Well, maybe not impossible - but highly unlikely.

As a young actor - and a very beautiful one, at that - he was very influenced by his friend James Dean, with whom he shared two movies. In the second, 'Giant', they shared no scenes together, but Dean's influence is so pronounced that he may as well have been directing. As Bic Benedict, Hopper's performance is full of nervous tics, and is awkward. You can tell the movie wants him to play the part like Ronald Reagan, but Hopper wants to play Monty Clift.

After Dean's death, Hopper played all sorts of 'bad boys', and developed a reputation in Hollywood as a difficult actor who was more trouble than he was worth. He ended up working for Roger Corman, where he hooked up with Peter Fonda and the two of them hatched 'Easy Rider'. Thank God they cast an unknown Jack Nicholson as George Hanson - he saved what would have been, without him, an insufferable stagnant movie.

With the huge success of 'Easy Rider', Hopper was given carte blanche for his next film which, characteristically, he fucked up. 'The Last Movie' very nearly was. Filmed on location in Peru, Hopper flew out an impressive cast (Peter Fonda, Sam Fuller, Michelle Phillips, Henry Fonda, etc.) and made them extras. He had a brilliant storyline by Stewart Stern, which he proceeded to ignore - improvising an impressively surreal but disconnected exercise in self-indulgence. The film effectively killed his career a second time.

He was, no doubt about it, an egomaniacal madman, ingesting massive amounts of drugs, booze and women. He was married for all of two days to Michelle Phillips, who asked him after the 2nd day, "Have you ever considered suicide?"

But the gods smiled on Hopper, granting him a late career playing psychos in such films as "Speed", "Waterworld", and, most memorably, as Frank Booth in "Blue Velvet".
He straightened out - going so far as too become a Republican - proving there is such a thing as 'too straightened out' - and became a memorable and nuanced character actor, unafraid to cash in on his reputation. My favorite performance of his is, strangely, as 'Shooter', the alcoholic in "Hoosiers". It is a heartbreaking turn.

He did get to direct again - "Colors" (with protege Sean Penn), "Backtrack" (keep an eye out for Bob Dylan) and a few others. He pitched a sequel to "Easy Rider" called "Biker Heaven", in which the characters - both killed in the original - returned to earth as avenging angels. But no one was buying, least of all Peter Fonda who, despite admiration for his ex-partner, was not about to work with him again. "Why try to re-make 'Citizen Kane'?" he asked me rhetorically.

Hopper often said he never had a great role. "Moments", he lamented. "Just moments." He was wrong. His performance as Dennis Hopper was magnificent.

Here's a real gem for you. Nobody ever gave a better reading to Kipling's "If" than Hopper. Go to YouTube and search for 'If Dennis Hopper' and enjoy. And remember.

Dennis Hopper lived "If."

5 comments:

Becky said...

I did enjoy "Colors," and thought that "Blue Velvet" was utterly spectacular. "Easy Rider," was only so-so, as far as I'm concerned, and I agree that its highpoint was Jack's performance.

Charlie Rose recently rebroadcast an interview with Hopper. Have you see it, Steve? He talked about REAL acting, and REAL roles, which he recognized that he never truly achieved. He was quite humble about that.

From this female's perspective, he was so much more appealing, once he straightened himself out. I regret that there will be no further work from him.

Becky said...

But, as far as your "Death of a Rebel" title goes, I'm glad that you said "A" rebel, because (in my opinion, of course) "THE" rebel was Hunter S. Thompson!

Becky said...

OK. So I went to YouTube. There are at least a half dozen Dennis Hopper recitations of "If." The one done way back in 1976, at the Warehouse in New Orleans, is quite good. My personal favorite was done in 2008, and has German subtitles (?). In it, he makes wonderful direct eye contact with the viewer.

Which is your favorite?

Steve said...

Thanks, Becky. My fave is also the 2008 version with German subtitles.
Did you ever see 'The Last Movie'? Very hard to find but frustrating/fascinating in equal measure. Also, I can recommend a movie he did about 20 years ago, I think, co-starring Amy Irving, about two middle-age people having a love affair. I can't recall title, but it was a REAL change-of-pace role for Hopper, playing a normal human being.

Becky said...

Ok, so I tried the easy sources (Netflix & Hulu, etc.) to find "The Last Movie," but without success. They had lots of "Lasts:"
...of the Mohicans
...Picture Show
...Man on Earth
...House on the Left
...Detail (wasn't that one fun!)
...Starfighter
You get the idea. I shall have to dig more deeply, if I'm ever to find "The Last Movie," and I'll let you know if I succeed.