ROBERT FORSTER 

        Robert Forster, a consummate professional,  died recently at 78. He had over 200 appearances in movies and TV shows. He seemed to be working constantly.  At the time of his death two of his movies (El Camino and Phil) had just been released. One of his best known roles was as the sheriff in the quirky TV show Twin Peaks. Well, most of his movies weren’t very good, but Mr. Movie will try to pull the gold from the dross. 
Mr. Forster’s last appearance of note was in the excellent underrated What They Had (2018).It is a good, and timely,  portrayal of the family situation that many face. The family’s matriarch is fading into dementia. The kids want her to be in a care facility.  The father is dead set against it, insisting he can take care of her. Such stubborn insistence has been faced by many children. But she is the love of his life and he just can’t let go. Mr. Forster shines as the adamant father.  Blythe Danner, Hillary Swank and Michael Shannon complete a crackerjack cast. 
Robert Forster’s first appearance on the radar was as John Cassellis, a news photographer striving to keep his distance from the frenetic rioting at the 1968 Democrat convention. (Mr. Movie remembers these events because he was tuning them in. Many of you weren’t born then.) Anyway, Medium Cool is a sort of docudrama about this historic incident. And Mr. Forster is very good in it. 
Jackie Brown (1997) is Quentin Tarantino at the top of his game. Pam Grier has the title role as a mid-level bag woman. Robert Forster is Max Cherry, her willing helper. Jackie manages a complicated triple-cross that leave lots of bodies and missing money and she manages to leave the country with finances and body intact. Mr. Forster was nominated for an Oscar for his part, but lost to Robin Williams as the math teacher in Good Will Hunting. 
Robert Forster plays an aging but still agile diamond salesman in Diamond Men (2000). His employer wants him gone, desiring younger and hungrier salesmen. The boss decides Forster’s character is the perfect person to train his replacement, ably played by Donnie Wahlberg. Their road trip-buddy film-coming of age flick is well done and somewhat instructive about aging out of a job before your time. 
Mulholland Drive (2001) is just a very weird movie. That it was written and directed by David Lynch puts you quickly in the picture. And yet, is has been ranked as one of the greatest films of the century. I find the open-ended plot baffling, but Robert Forster, Naomi Watts and Laura Harring do their best with what they have. 
All of the films in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.