Robert Wise: 1914-2005 (1 Viewer)

Craig S · Sep 14, 2005

One of the greats has passed. Robert Wise, Oscar-winning director & producer, died Wednesday of heart failure. It was apparently a sudden illness; reports are that he was in good health when he celebrated his 91st birthday Saturday.

He was proficient in just about every genre. Among the classics he directed:

The Day The Earth Stood Still
I Want To Live!
The Haunting
West Side Story
The Sound Of Music
The Sand Pebbles
The Andromeda Strain

Of course, early in his career he was Orson Welles' editor, and received an Oscar nomination in that capacity for Welles' masterpiece Citizen Kane.

Rest in peace, Mr. Wise.

Kevin M · Sep 15, 2005

OMG, I was just watching his easter egg on the Citizen Kane DVD....damn.

RIP, there will be none like you again.

Joe Karlosi · Sep 15, 2005

Another very good film Robert Wise directed was THE BODY SNATCHER (1945) with Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi (coming soon on the Val Lewton Collection).

Tino · Sep 15, 2005

He also directed Star Trek: The Motion Picture, where he can be heard on the commentary track.

R.I.P

Steve Christou · Sep 15, 2005

[rant]Klaatu Barada Nikto![/rant]

Sad news indeed, definitely one of the greats, from editing Citizen Kane to directing two of the greatest musicals of all time, SF classics like Day The Earth Stood Still and The Andromeda Strain, horror classics like The Haunting and The Body Snatcher. Wise also directed the first Star Trek movie, certainly versatile.
91 years? We should be so lucky.

RIP

Oscar Winning Director Robert Wise Dies

ThomasC · Sep 15, 2005

When I was a kid, I watched The Sound of Music countless times, and I still watch it today. Rest in peace, Robert. Thank you for your wonderful work.

JohnMor · Sep 15, 2005

One of my favorites.. R.I.P., and thanks you for much celluloid bliss over the years, Mr. Wise!

Bill Huelbig · Sep 15, 2005

Robert Wise was without a doubt one of the greatest directors who ever lived. A few others may have worked in as many genres as he did, but his films were often among the very best ever made in each genre, if not THE best. Now that he has died, I'll have to come up with a new favorite living filmmaker. It won't be easy ...

Peter Apruzzese · Sep 15, 2005

Perfectly stated, Bill.

He was a genuine Hollywood craftsman - and still underrated - who managed to make his mark with a Top-5 contender in each genre he tackled:

Horror: The Haunting
War: The Sand Pebbles, Run Silent Run Deep
Science Fiction: The Day the Earth Stood Still, The Andromeda Strain
Musical: West Side Story, The Sound of Music
Drama: The Set-Up, I Want to Live
Fantasy: The Curse of the Cat People

His like will not be seen again, RIP Mr. Wise.

Chris S · Sep 15, 2005

One of my all time favorite movies is The Day The Earth Stood Still. Thanks so much for all the great films.

Chris S.

Robert Crawford · Sep 15, 2005

He was one of my favorites too, thankfully he was with us long enough to contribute his thoughts on many of his films for dvd release for future generations of film fans. May he R.I.P.

Crawdaddy

Eric Peterson · Sep 15, 2005

Another great director has left us.:frowning:

R.I.P.

Bill Williams · Sep 15, 2005

Wise was definitely one of those few directors who was very blessed to have a second opportunity to return to an earlier work, revisit it, and finish it the way he'd originally intended. It's great that he got the chance to sign off on the Director's Edition of Star Trek: TMP. When I move into the new house, I plan to put it and my copy of Citizen Kane in the player for a spin.

Rest in peace, Mr. Wise. :frowning:

Keith Paynter · Sep 15, 2005

The first RW film I ever saw was The Hindenberg, and although it has had a rough ride critically, it was a memorable film for a young moviegoer, and an introduction to a grander body of work.

God bless, Mr. Wise, and thank you.

MatthewA · Sep 15, 2005

I had the opportunity to meet Mr. Wise at a 2003 AMPAS screening of The Sound of Music. Very nice man; he will indeed be missed.

RobertR · Sep 15, 2005

RIP Mr. Wise. You contributed greatly to cinema.

Brendon · Sep 15, 2005

Andromeda Strain, Day the Earth Stood Still and ST:TMP: Mr. Wise made a huge contribution to intelligent science fiction cinema. With West Side Story et al as well...well!

He leaves behind a staggering contribution to good cinema.

RIP Mr. Wise, your films will not be forgotten.

Brendon

Armin Jager · Sep 15, 2005

In fact I never understood why Robert Wise isn't held in the highest esteem on the level of Hawks, Hitchcock or Lubitsch and I guess it's the old auteur bias. He had a long career which again and again produced memorable pictures and there's no one who used the wide screen in such a striking way. I'm just buying all his available films on DVD and am very sorry sorry to hear this news. I like especially THE SAND PEBBLES which is a very thoughtful and visually brillant film contrary to most epics which descend into silly melodramatics and cliches with onedimensional characters.

Kain_C · Sep 15, 2005

I haven't seen many of his films but alot of them were already on my Netflix queue. He certainly seemed to make a huge impact in his field and alot of his films are highly respected. His passing just emphasizes my need to be more acquainted with his work.

Jack Briggs · Sep 15, 2005

Rest in peace, you giant.

One of the criticisms hurled at Mr. Wise was that he did not seem to be much of a stylistic auteur. But what he was, in his own words, was a cinematic perfectionist, giving each of his films their proper look and voice.

And look at the results!

There is room in this world for all sorts of filmmakers, and Robert Wise's brilliant output is among our great treasures.

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