Barry Levinson: director, producer, screenwriter

Barry Levinson, an outstanding American director, screenwriter and producer, saw the world in 1942. Violet and Irwin Levinson, who became his parents, were Jewish emigrants from Russia. They came to Baltimore (Maryland) and traded in furniture. Barry studied at the American University in Washington, and then settled in Los Angeles.

The first steps in the cinema

At the beginning of his career, Barry Levinson was engaged in variety shows, or rather, wrote scripts for them. His services were enjoyed by Tim Conway, Marty Feldman and others. However, Barry's cherished dream always remained directing.

The first full-length comedy films, shot according to Levinson's scripts, were "Fear of Heights" and "Silent Cinema". By the way, in the first of them Barry made his debut as an actor. He was entrusted with the role of the courier.

1982 was marked by a great event for Barry: the release of "Snack", his first film. Director's work was appreciated, and for the script written by him, Barry Levinson was nominated for the prestigious Oscar. Film community recognized the film as worthy, noting the warm nostalgic intonation and the excellent work of the main actors.

The film, whose genre can be defined as a tragicomedy, was the first of several paintings illustrating some biographical moments from the director's youth. In the same list, the dramatic "Aluminum Man", in the center of the story is the life story of the manufacturers of finishing materials. The main role was brilliantly performed by Denny DeVito.

The series was continued with the film narration "Avalon". This family film became a description of the life of Jewish immigrants. By the way, the cast also includes a young Elijah Wood. In this context, it is also worth mentioning "The height of freedom," which contains autobiographical events.

An extraordinary film about the war

Such seemingly impossible task: the creation of a comedy about the course of the Vietnam War, was successfully implemented by Barry Levinson in the film "Good Morning, Vietnam!". One of the factors that brought the film popularity became participation in the main role of Robin Williams. Then he was known as a telecomic and was able to brilliantly embody the character of the DJ Adrian Kronauer. Such a person really existed, in fact, went on air and broadcast to American soldiers in Saigon. The film in bright colors showed how important the role of laughter, capable of becoming a kind of shield, and obscure from the insanity of war.

Fateful "The Man of the Rain"

The next film of the director for a long time developed the best specialists of those times, including Spielberg, but the final implementation of the project involved Barry Levinson. Filmography of the director was replenished with one more picture, and the audience received a completely unique product. Nobody is surprised by financially successful films, as well as many times awarded with awards and awards, but the picture combining all these qualities deserves attention.

A noteworthy reward

The story of two brothers, one of whom is a genius autist, and the second - an egocentric scoundrel, is capable of affecting almost everyone. Excellent game actor's duet, on which the film is built, convincingly and systematically shows the transformation of the character Tom Cruise. The painting won four gold figurines, including the award of director Barry Levinson. "Oscar" was and Dustin Hoffman.

In addition, the film was awarded at the Berlin Film Festival.

Unrecognized genius

Further activities Barry continues as a screenwriter and director of various genre-directed films and animations: dramas, melodramas, comedies, sports dramas, horror, thrillers, criminal and military comedies.

Barry Levinson could not always boast of the crazy success of his creations, some of the pictures were frankly flawed by him. Other public and critics perceived rather calmly. Among the undeservedly criticized films is the criminal comedy "Bandits". Her plot is far from unoriginal and even a bit naive: the elusive "nighting gangsters" (played by Bruce Willis and Billy Bob Thornton) plunder the bank for a bank across the country. Over time, they are joined by a "desperate housewife" (Cate Blanchett) and captivates the hearts of both of them. Directed by Barry Levinson was able to bring to life a spirit of adventure, adventure and a very lively romantic experience.

The picture can not be called very dynamic, but the tension of the plot is played masterfully. The main advantages of the film, which bring it to the level of really high-quality cinema, is a unique selection of soundtracks, subtle charm and humor. These qualities are to some extent inherent in many of the paintings that Barry Levinson shoots. The photo below was made on the set of the film "Bandits" in 2001.

Producer activity

Barry Levinson and producer Mark Johnson for a long time linked the partnership. They organized a film company and produced many films. Cooperation ended in 1994, but Barry continued to produce the paintings. His abilities were manifested when working on "Obsession", "Perfect Storm" and others.

To date, Barry is busy producing the "Slaughter Department", "Prisons OZ" and other serials.

The literary work written by the director and including some autobiographical events is called "Sixty-six", it was published in 2003.