George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey

Written, directed, and narrated by his son. Dad had worked with just all the HUGE big stars. One of the earliest full length films that George senior had directed was Alice Adams, starring Katherine Hepburn. They would make three films together. We watch a whole lot of a couple films by Stevens. Good to see comments from Frank Capra and various other producers and directors. Junior also says Dad was greatly influenced by Triumph of the Will, Hitler's propaganda film, for its style, sharpness, and uniformity. Stevens was also part of the group that recorded color film portions of WW II milestones. Including the D day landing, even at Dachau. Rare-stuff. Some of the scenes from his early films in the 1930s went on for quite a while. Longer than they probably needed to. It's quite interesting, over-all.

"George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey" is a loving tribute to the craft of Stevens by his son, George Stevens Jr.. But like1995's film about William Wellman by his son ("Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick"), the movie isn't really a biography but a filmography. So, you only learn a bit about the man's personal life...but only a bit and it's NOT the movie's intention of being a biography. Instead, it focuses almost exclusively on the various big films of Stevens (like most filmographies it only covers the major movies). As such, it's very well made, interesting and is able to explain his uniqueness as a director. Well worth watching, very well made and filled with nice interviews and film clips.

George Stevens Jr.'s warm and fond documentary that chronicles his father's work, "George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey," is not a critical assessment, but rather a loving tribute. Although George Stevens won two Academy Awards for best director, none of his movies won Best Picture, despite his having made some of the finest and most beloved films in Hollywood history. A roster of his best work recalls the humor in "The More the Merrier;" the romantic closeups of "A Place in the Sun," the elegant dancing in "Swingtime," the vast Texas landscapes of "Giant," and the plaintive cry of a young boy watching his hero ride away in "Shane." Just reading Stevens's list of directorial credits evokes countless memories of great stars, great lines, and great images.

Stevens Jr.'s documentary has its own share of great stars; as an historical document, the film incorporates priceless interviews with Katharine Hepburn, John Huston, Fred Zinneman, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Joel McCrea, Ginger Rogers, Fred Astaire, and Frank Capra, among other A-list directors and actors. As expected, all praise Stevens, enjoyed working with him, and comment on the quality and endurance of his work, both on screen and off. Mankiewicz is particularly interesting when he relates Stevens's resistance to Cecil B. DeMille, then president of the Screen Directors Guild, and DeMille's infamous campaign against foreign influence (read Communist) in Hollywood. Other highlights of the film-clip-rich documentary center on World War II, during which Stevens shot the only color footage and headed up a team that professionally filmed the D-Day landings; generous clips of his rarely seen war-related work are included.

Against a fine Carl Davis score, the film opens with a subjective camera that roves through a store room of Steven's memorabilia and pauses over Oscars, photographs, and film cans, while Stevens Jr. narrates. Understandably, Stevens's son focuses on his father's career peaks, which are many, but he does slight such lesser known early films as "Quality Street," "Vigil in the Night," and "A Damsel in Distress;" fails to discuss such modest successes as "The Talk of the Town" and "Penny Serenade;" and completely ignores his last film, "The Only Game in Town," a critical and box office disappointment that starred Warren Beatty and Elizabeth Taylor. The mixed reception for "The Greatest Story Ever Told," however, is covered, and, after an interview clip with Max Von Sydow, the film concludes shortly thereafter.

Despite a lack of objectivity, "George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey" is an outstanding documentary. The well chosen film clips run long enough to illustrate the director's style, and the interview comments offer insight and historical perspective. The nostalgia-imbued book-ended segments in the storage room and early photographs of Stevens with his parents emphasize the film's personal and heart-felt nature. Among the best documentaries on Hollywood, "George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey" is essential viewing for students of film and film history and for anyone who wants an introduction to a great American movie director's work.

Having watched this on Disc Two of Woman of the Year after many years of only knowing of it, I find George Stevens Jr.'s loving tribute to his father quite touching in the way he shows various clips of his dad's most classic movies, his interviews of many of those films' stars as well as many of his father's fellow directors, and of his dad's experiences in life especially what he went through during World War II when he went to Europe to film some military docs. In summary, George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey is a fine tribute.

This is an outstanding documentary on the life of George Stevens, 2 time Oscar winner for best director.

I never knew that he started out on comedies and that the advent of World War 11 had such a profound effect on him,that he never made another comedy after returning from the war.

The man was a genius at comedy. His slow-pace belief as depicted in 1942's "Woman of the Year" was terrific to watch. Remember the scene with Katharine Hepburn trying to make breakfast for Spencer Tracy?

Stevens was an American icon. His American Trilogy included "A Place in the Sun," as well as "Shane," and "Giant." His World War 11 classic, "The Diary of Anne Frank," shall live on in the hearts of all of us.

A fair-minded man, he went on the attack when Cecil B. DeMille demanded that everyone sign a loyalty oath in an attempt to drive out Joseph L. Mankiewicz from the film industry.

The following people received acting Oscars under the direction of Stevens: Charles Coburn, "The More, the Merrier, (1943) and Shelley Winters, "The Diary of Anne Frank" (1959).

The following people received Oscar nominations under the direction of Stevens but did not win: Katharine Hepburn- "Alice Adams," and "Woman of the Year." Brandon De Wilde and Jack Palance for "Shane," Montgomery Clift and Shelley Winters for "A Place in the Sun," as well as James Dean, Rock Hudson, and Mercedes McCambridge all for "Giant." Also: Ed Wynn for "The Diary of Anne Frank."

How ironic that 1962's "The Greatest Story Ever Told," was a colossal failure.