Taglines: A True Portrait of Life and Art.
At the end of the 1940’s, abstract expressionist Jackson Pollock (1912-1956) is featured in Life magazine. Flashback to 1941, he’s living with his brother in a tiny apartment in New York City, drinking too much, and exhibiting an occasional painting in group shows.
That’s when he meets artist Lee Krasner, who puts her career on hold to be his companion, lover, champion, wife, and, in essence, caretaker. To get him away from booze, insecurity, and the stress of city life, they move to the Hamptons where nature and sobriety help Pollock achieve a breakthrough in style: a critic praises, then Life magazine calls. But so do old demons: the end is nasty, brutish, and short.
Pollock is a 2000 biographical film which tells the life story of American painter Jackson Pollock. It stars Ed Harris, Marcia Gay Harden, Jennifer Connelly, Robert Knott, Bud Cort, Molly Regan and Sada Thompson, and was directed by Harris.
Marcia Gay Harden won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for portraying Lee Krasner, Pollock’s wife. Ed Harris received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his portrayal of Pollock. The film was a long-term personal project for Harris based on his previous reading of Pollock’s biography.
About the Story
The film begins showing the abstract expressionist Jackson Pollock (1912–1956) autographing illustrations in a copy of Life magazine for a woman at an art exhibit in 1950 — the exhibit which made him famous. It flashes back to nine years earlier (1941). At this time Jackson is usually drunk and makes a living by exhibiting a painting in occasional group art shows. He is living with his brother Sande and sister-in-law Arloie in a tiny New York apartment. Arloie tells him that they are having a baby, hinting to Jackson that he should move out.
Soon afterward, Jackson meets artist Lee Krasner, who takes an interest in him. Later, at dinner, he learns that his brother is moving to Connecticut to take a job building army gliders to avoid a rumored draft of married men not involved in war production. (Arloie refers to Jackson’s 4F Selective Service status, which exempts Jackson from the draft.) Unable to handle conflicting feelings, Jackson goes on a drinking binge and Lee and Sande find him in a disheveled state. Lee learns from Sande that Jackson is diagnosed as “clinically neurotic” (he was actually bipolar); still, Lee takes him home and decides to be his manager.
One day, his old friend Reuben comes along with Howard Putzel, who works for wealthy art collector Peggy Guggenheim. Jackson seems more interested to meet Reuben than Howard. Peggy Guggenheim comes to see his art. She is initially very frustrated for having to wait, but gives him a contract to sell $2400 of paintings plus a commission to paint a mural of 8 ft by 20 ft on the entrance hall of her town house in New York City.
His first exhibit fails to attract any buyers. After a New Year’s Eve party (where he urinates in the fireplace), he almost gets in bed with Peggy but is too drunk to properly perform. Jackson returns to Lee in the morning. He is upset again when he learns of the death of Howard, waking up in the street after a drunken stupor and again returning to Lee. Lee, as always, takes him back. Lee then asks Jackson to make a decision: whether to marry her and continue painting art or “split up”.
Jackson surprisingly insists on a church wedding and Lee says she wants no guests. They decide to move to a country house by the ocean in Springs, NY, on Long Island. Jackson and Lee adopt an abandoned dog whom they name Gyp. Jackson is disheartened when Lee makes clear that she does not want to have a baby, partly because she is happy to just live as two painters, partly because of his neurosis, and partly because of the tight financial situation and Jackson’s many needs. At a get-together at Peggy Guggenheim’s, despite art critic Clement Greenberg’s comments, he shows that it’s hard for him to change his finished painting to others’ liking. Jackson’s pictures still aren’t selling.
At a poker party, while they talk about the situation, Clement mentions that things will change after Life Magazine’s coverage and subsequent art exhibit. Lee gets jealous when Jackson hugs another woman. Meanwhile, Jackson tries doing other business for a living but his drinking gets in the way. He lies to Sande and family about the financial status and waits to see what will happen after Life Magazine’s coverage.
Pollock (2000)
Directed by: Ed Harris
Starring: Ed Harris, Marcia Gay Harden, Robert Knott, Molly Regan, Sada Thompson, Amy Madigan, Annabelle Gurwitch, Matthew Sussman, John Rothman, John Heard
Screenplay by: Barbara Turner, Susan Emshwiller
Production Design by: Mark Friedberg
Cinematography by: Lisa Rinzler
Film Editing by: Kathryn Himoff
Costume Design by: David C. Robinson
Set Decoration by: Carolyn Cartwright
Art Direction by: Teresa Mastropierro, Peter Rogness
Music by: Jeff Beal
MPAA Rating: R for language and brief sexuality.
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Classics
Release Date: September 6, 2000
Visits: 88
