Not too long ago, the phrase ‘end of an era’ was often used to denote the passing away of luminaries who had excelled in their chosen field of endeavour – be it art, culture, science or philosophy - and had contributed in great measure to the evolution of mankind. I myself had used it in an essay titled ‘A & B of Cinema’ few years ago to pay homage to the two stalwarts of world cinema, Antonioni and Bergman. Maybe because the tribe of such giants among men has dwindled over the years or more optimistically, such departures have become less frequent, this term is not seen as often in print these days. But to pay obeisance to the memory of Haskell Wexler and Vilmos Zsigmond who departed from the mortal world recently, ‘end of an era’ is the only expression that seems to be apt. With their exit, the era of cinematographers who had become role models to successive generations has come to an end. Their immense contribution to the art of cinema has enriched our lives in no small measure.
Along with Conrad Hall (1926-2003) and Gordon Willis (1931-2014), Haskell Wexler(1923-2015) and Vilmos Zsigmond (1930-2016) can be termed as the ‘enfant terribles’ of Hollywood. As practitioners of cinematography they were strikingly unorthodox, inventive and avant-garde in their approach to the art form. Each, in their own way, rebelled against the accepted norm, upped the benchmark and indulged in creative cinematography to invent a new visual vocabulary.
Conrad Hall, who worked on films such as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), American Beauty (1999), Road to Perdition (2002), is generally regarded as one of the ten most influential personalities in the history of the medium. He used to say , “Cinematography is infinite in its possibilities…much more so than music or language.” This conviction kept him in goodstead as he consistently tried to evoke emotions that were beyond the realm of the spoken word.
Then came the unparalleled character sketch of Don Corleone in the unforgettable movie, The Godfather . This sketch had earned for Gordon Willis, the title of ‘Prince of Darkness’ from Conrad Hall who was instrumental in orchestrating ‘The New Path’ in American cinematography. Willis, whose partial filmography comprises All the President’s Men (1976), Annie Hall (1977) and Manhattan (1979), chose to delineate the character visually rather than just put on display the well-lit dolls. It was said that the darkness that surrounded the characters in his films was a reflection of their inner turmoil. Such was the strength of his visual design.
Vilmos Zsigmond was no less articulate. He once said, “The job of cinematography is to create the mood and ambience. Cinematography is not about making visible what is obvious.” He was denied an opportunity to study cinematography as an academic discipline during his college days in Hungary because of his bourgeois background! Undaunted, he worked in a factory, put together a camera club for the workers and earned his entry into the film school at Budapest. In the aftermath of Russian aggression, he slipped out of Hungary in 1956. He arrived in America armed with some documentary footage of the Russian military action in Hungary that he had filmed. He lived on the edge till the time that he was discovered by Robert Altman, thanks to Zsigmond’s life-long buddy and yet another remarkable cinematographer, Laszlo Kovacs.
Having worked in films such as McCabe & Mrs, Miller (1971), Deliverance (1972), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Deer Hunter (1978), Heaven’s Gate (1980) and Black Dahlia (2006), Zsigmond was one of the pioneering cinematographers who ushered in the ‘Nouvelle Vague’ of Hollywood. He brought in a new aesthetic of de-saturated colours using a technique known as ‘pre-flashing’ in Altman’s McCabe & Mrs, Miller . He was equally comfortable transporting us back to our childhood as he created a world of fantasy like no one else did. He made our jaws drop in wonder when he put on display his visualization of ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind.’ It cannot be mere co-incidence that Vilmos followed Haskell Wexler in quick succession. When we recall that it was Wexler who had given Zsigmond the necessary moral support and helped him survive the initial tough days in Hollywood, we can easily locate the ethereal connection between the two legendary cinematographers.
With films such as Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966), The Thomas Crown Affair (1968), Medium Cool (1969), American Graffiti (1973), Bound for Glory (1976), Coming Home (1978) and Latino (1985) in his oeuvre, Haskell Wexler is credited as being one of the pioneers of the hand-held camera in feature films. He didn’t use it as an acrobatic feat or just to prove a point. Instead, he utilized it to bring to fore the power of the visual in narrating a story in the most effective manner. Incidentally, he was also the first to deploy the steadicam. The marvellous shot that he designed for Bound for Glory using the steadicam was one of the highlights in a film that won for him, the coveted Oscar. Medium Coo l was his first feature film as director. It was an outstanding experiment in the ‘Cinema Verite’ style. He was a man committed not only to his art but to his ideology in social life as well. He chose documentary as his tool and succeeded in creating several masterpieces. The fact that he did so soon after he had established his credentials, by photographing the glossy entertainer, The Thomas Crown Affai ’, speaks volumes of his courage and commitment. He was to assert later that the, “Documentary is closer to the skin.” His unequivocal condemnation of the authority when he felt that they were in the wrong had only encouraged FBI to list him as ‘potentially dangerous’!
Highlighting the role of documentaries, he was to say, “We have a responsibility to show the public the kind of truths that they don’t see on the TV news or in the Hollywood film.”
I remember that during my student days at FTII, we had chosen Hall, Wexler and Vilmos as our pet names! These phenomenal artists wielded such influence upon us by the sheer power of their ingenuity, audacity and the ability to evolve a new visual language.
Hence, it will also be hard to fill the void created by the exit of these masters. With the advent of digital cinematography, especially, excuses for our inability to deliver and impatience that prevents our latent skill from blooming are taking precedence. Terms such as ‘Minimalistic Cinematography’/ ‘Cinema of imperfection’/ ‘New Reality’/ ‘Candid Cinematography’/’New aesthetics of Digital Domain’ are gaining credence and this is what we have to guard against. Those of us who do not want to aim high as our predecessors – from James Wong Howe and Gregg Toland to Wexler and Willis; from Subroto Mitra and V.K .Murthy to K.K. Mahajan and Ashok Mehta did - are bound to take shelter under these pseudo-intellectual, opportunistic and convenient excuses.
