At the age of seventy-four, the outstanding American film director Sydney Pollack, the creator of films that would represent (and, in fact, already represent) Hollywood cinema of the 70s and early 80s, died of cancer. “Three Days of the Condor” (1975), “The Electric Rider” (1979), “Tootsie” (1982), “Out of Africa” (1985)... However, his first real success came in the landmark year 1969, when The subsequently famous film about the dance marathon “They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?” with Jane Fonda based on the novel by Horace McCoy. Pollack's cinematography was of the kind that was more or less familiar to our viewers: most of his films were released into Soviet distribution at that time due to their social significance and a very critical attitude towards the capitalist existence of that time. But at the same time, it was these films that introduced our viewer to the standards (and the highest) of Hollywood filmmaking. Pollack’s skill could not help but be recognized by professionals: his track record includes Oscars for the best film of the year and directing the film “Out of Africa” (by the way, far from the best in his filmography) and a huge number of other prizes and nominations. Pollack's cinema - social, touching on the pressing problems of modern society, exciting minds and invariably highly professional - became a kind of calling card of that separate Hollywood that existed on the other side of the barricades of planetary blockbusters (although it brought good money to the creators) and completely independent cinema. Pollack also proved himself as an actor - if it was necessary to use on the screen the head of a corporation, a ruthless boss who put his life on the altar of success and profit, or someone else in that spirit, a better candidate could not be found. Sydney Pollack - director, producer, screenwriter, actor - is the personification of that “dream factory” that quite recently existed “in front of the amazed public.” Now another one - one of its last symbols - has gone “from here to eternity.”
