Samuel Fuller

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Samuel Fuller
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Samuel Fuller

Samuel Michael Fuller (August 12, 1912 – October 30, 1997) was an American film director.

Born in Worcester, Massachusetts, the son of Benjamin Rabinovitch (a Jewish immigrant from Russia) and Rebecca Baum (a Jewish immigrant from Poland). At the time of Samuel's birth, the family had already changed their surname to "Fuller". Fuller began, at the age of 12, in the field of journalism. His first newspaper job was as a copyboy. He became a crime reporter in New York City at age 17, working for the New York Evening Graphic. His biggest scoop came when he broke the story of the death of Jeanne Eagels. He wrote pulp novels and screenplays from the mid-30s onwards.

During World War Two, Fuller joined the army, was assigned to the 1st Infantry Division, and saw heavy fighting. He was involved in landings in Africa, Sicily, and Normandy. He also saw action in Belgium, Germany and Czechoslovakia. For his service, he was awarded the Bronze Star, the Silver Star, and the Purple Heart. His war-time experiences as a soldier were used as material in his films, especially in the 1980 film: The Big Red One (a nickname of the 1st Infantry Division).

He died of natural causes on October 30, 1997.

Contents

[edit] Films as writer and/or director

Hats Off (1936) marked Fuller's first credit as a screenwriter. Fuller wrote many screenplays throughout his career, but he is best remember as a director. He did not direct a film until I Shot Jesse James (1949), which he also wrote. His first five films were genre films. His first two films were westerns and they were followed by two war films in 1951 and then a period piece set in 1880s New York City. He followed these with Pickup on South Street (1953), which remains Fuller's most well-known and critically examined film. It was noted upon its release for an extraordinarily apolitical stance, although it depicts Communists as murderers compared to the well-intentioned FBI agents. This film was condemned by the FBI as Communist propaganda and condemned by the Communist party as anti-Communist propaganda. Other films that Fuller directed in the 1950s include: House of Bamboo, Forty Guns, China Gate, and Run of the Arrow.

Fuller's work throughout the 1950s and early 1960s followed a basic format: lower-budget genre movies, deeply informed by his personal experiences, that nonetheless tended to explore controversial topics. Shock Corridor (1963) is set in a psychiatric hospital and The Naked Kiss (1964) features a prostitute attempting to change her life by working in a children's pediatric ward. He is considered one of the better directors of film noir. His war movies are thought to realistically portray the battlefield, due to his own combat experience. These films are valued by film cultists for their extreme visual storytelling, highly unusual settings and characters, as well as for their relatively low budgets.

Between 1967 and 1980, Fuller directed only two films, the Mexican-produced Shark (1969) and Dead Pigeon on Beethoven Street (1972). Shark is not considered a good example of Fuller's work due to extensive recutting by the film producers and Fuller asked the Director's Guild to remove his name from the credits. Dead Pigeon on Beethoven Street featured his wife Christa Lang. Fuller returned in 1980 with The Big Red One, a well respected World War II movie that failed at the box office. This was followed by the controversial White Dog (1982), which the studio refused to release until 1991. In 1983 Fuller moved to France and would only have two more theatrical releases, Les Voleurs de la nuit (Thieves After Dark) (1984) and Street of No Return (1989), both were produced outside the United States. He continued to work in television, his last credit as director came in 1990 (Madonne et le dragon) and as writer in 1994 (Girls in Prison). His last work in film was as an actor. He appeared in The End of Violence (1997), a film directed by Wim Wenders.

[edit] Style and theme

Fuller's work is known for its simplicity and coarseness, also known as the "primitive" style. This was the result of his often lower budgets, but also reflected Fuller's pulp-inspired writing. The dialog in his films has been criticized by some as heavy-handed or over-the-top.

Fuller often featured marginalized characters in his films. The protagonist of Pickup on South Street is a pickpocket who keeps his beer in the East River because he cannot afford a refrigerator. Shock Corridor concerns the patients of a mental hospital. Underworld USA (1961) focuses on an orphaned victim of mobsters. These characters sometimes find retribution for the injustices against them. White Dog and The Crimson Kimono (1959) have definite anti-racist elements. However, Fuller is usually not considered liberal in his politics.

Film critic Andrew Sarris wrote an influential book called: The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929-1968. This book is an examination of American film directors of the sound era and Sarris puts Fuller in the category of The Far Side of Paradise. In his short essay on Sam Fuller, Sarris said: "Fuller is an authentic American primitive whose works have to be seen to be understood....Fuller's ideas are undoubtedly too broad and oversimplified for any serious analysis, but it is the artistic force with which his ideas are expressed that makes his career so facinating to critics who can rise above their political predudices....Fuller belongs to the cinema, and not to literature and sociology"

[edit] Legacy

Although Fuller's films were not considered great achievements at the time of their release, they began to gain more respect starting in the late 1960s. Fuller himself welcomed this new-found esteem, appearing in several films by other directors and associating himself with younger filmmakers.

The French New Wave claimed Fuller as a major influence. His visual style and rhythm were thought to be distinctly American, and appealing for their simplicity and energy. He makes a cameo in Jean-Luc Godard's Pierrot le fou (1965), where he famously intones, "Film is like a battleground... Love, hate, action, violence, death. In one word, emotion!" He also plays a film director in Dennis Hopper's ill-fated The Last Movie (1971). Martin Scorsese praised Fuller's ability to capture action through movement of the camera. More recently, Quentin Tarantino and Jim Jarmusch have expressed that Fuller has had an influence on their work.

Fuller was the first international director guest at the Finnish Midnight Sun Film Festival in the middle 80's. And, honoring his memory, the festival's hometown (Sodankylä) named a street "Samuel Fuller" (Samuel Fullerin katu, Samuel Fuller's street).

However, this professional respect did not transfer to the general public as easily. Fuller and his work remain fairly unknown. Many of his movies have not made it to DVD.

[edit] Filmography

[edit] Further reading

  • Amiel, Olivier. Samuel Fuller. Paris: Henri Veyrier, 1985.
    • A detailed biography of Fuller, less about the man (although Olivier dedicates a chapter to this subject) than his films- describes narration style, mise en scene, production, reception of films, and his ambitions in directing and screenwriting. Includes long investigations into the process of making individual films.
  • Fuller, Samuel with Christa Lang Fuller and Jerome Henry Rudes. A Third Face : My Tale of Writing, Fighting and Filmmaking. New York: A. Knopf, 2002
    • Sam Fuller's autobiography
  • Gifford, Barry. Out of the Past: Adventures in Film Noir. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2001.
    • This book discusses Fuller’s work (specifically Pickup on South Street) as a precipitator of the French New Wave. Gifford’s tone is personal and responds to Fuller’s work subjectively.
  • Hare, William. Early Film Noir: Greed, Lust and Murder, Hollywood Style. London: McFarland & Company, INC. 2003.
    • Responds to the fame of Fuller and Pickup on South Street.
  • Muller, Eddie. Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1998.
    • Discusses Fuller’s work in cinema, specifically film noir, in the context of the war drama.
  • Porfirio, Robert, et al. Film Noir: Reader 3. New York: Limelight Editions, 2002.
    • Provides, “Interviews with filmmakers of the Classic Noir Period”. Includes an extended interview with Fuller, in which he talks candidly about his work as a noir screenwriter and director, discusses his novels, and speaks about his thoughts on his place within the Noir genre.
  • Silver, Alain, et al. Film Noir. New York: The Overlook Press, 1979.
    • A reference guide to the American style; provides detailed information concerning many of Fuller’s more obscure titles, and discusses mise en scene, plot, structure, etc. An objective reference.

[edit] External links

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