Hollywood is no country for Clint Eastwood

At 94, Clint Eastwood has released what could be his final film as a director, Juror No. 2, a work that delves into a central theme of his career: individual responsibility as a final act of resistance, in this case, to safeguard justice. It is a low-budget film outshines most Hollywood releases this year by presenting complex ethical and moral dilemmas with a simplicity and clarity few can match.

It is striking how poorly the film has been treated by the studios that, in recent decades, have profited from the success of a director regarded as one of the last true auteurs. Warner Bros., the multinational behind much of his career as a director, barely advertised Juror No. 2, which was quietly released in theaters after its premiere at the American Film Institute Festival in late October. Eastwood did not attend the gala, but his two lead actors, Toni Collette and Nicholas Hoult, did — reuniting years after playing mother and son in the 2002 hit comedy About a Boy.

Juror No. 2 was only in theaters for a week, and some American film historians and critics have pointed out the lack of respect shown to one of the country’s great directors. Warner’s explanation was that the film was always intended for streaming, and its brief theatrical release was merely out of deference to Eastwood. This excuse has been swiftly debunked by the media.

Clearly, Juror No. 2 does not align with the priorities of today’s Hollywood executives, who are unwilling to invest in promoting a film with uncertain audience appeal. One of my friends sums it up succinctly: “Since Eastwood is a Republican, Democrats won’t watch his films. Since he’s old, young people won’t either.” Blaming “woke” Hollywood seems unreasonable, although actors like James Woods (a Trump supporter) have spoken out about the challenges of working in an industry due to their support for the president-elect. Eastwood’s situation is different, though. Regardless of who he supports (it appears he withdrew his support for Trump in 2020), his films are anything but dogmatic and transcend ideological labels.

In Europe, however, Juror No. 2 has fared better. It has spent weeks in the top 10 at the box office in both France and Spain, where Warner opted for a broader release. This suggests that the film had potential, even though it was virtually buried in its home country.

We already know that Hollywood is no country for old men. Even John Ford faced scorn for his later works, and Billy Wilder was forced into an early retirement after Buddy Buddy in 1981, when he was 75. Wilder lived until 2002, away from what he did best. In Sunset Boulevard, one of his finest works, he portrayed the decline of a former star forgotten by a cruel, amnesiac industry.

Clint Eastwood is no Norma Desmond, but the actress’s memorable line — ”I am big, it’s the pictures that got small” — could well serve to define the sad, dazzling decline of a remarkable filmmaker.

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