Mr. Dick’s Affliction
I recently saw an interview with the late film director Sidney Lumet, in which he made the following statement—”All good work is self-revelation.” He was speaking in the context of discussing how he grew from being an actor himself to a notable director of such films as Dog Day Afternoon, Network, and 12 Angry Men. For my part, I see his point in the number of films he made that almost use his beloved New York City as a character itself, but I am less sure about the connection he was apparently trying to make between his having been a stage actor and his reputation for bringing the best performances out of the actors in his films, mainly because I know so very little about the art of acting itself. As usual, however, I am more interested in what the quoted thought means to me in terms of my experience than in winkling out what Mr. Lumet may or may not have meant. After all, as my friend Rob Haskins recently pointed out, all work is self-revelation.
