Norman Jewison

                                                         Part 2

    After 1966, Norman Jewison started knocking out major movies with major themes. While audiences and critics loved them, Hollywood often didn’t. 

In The Heat Of The Night (1967) was a major gamble for everyone involved. Sidney Poitier plays Virgil Tibbs, a top Philadelphia homicide cop. He is visiting his mother in Mississippi when a prominent citizen is found murdered. Police Chief Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger) originally charges Tibbs with the murder. Later he realizes his mistake and releases him. Tibbs is definitely ready to leave for home, but Gillespie convinces him to stay and help with the murder investigation. He does. The film won Best Movie and Best Actor for Rod Steiger. Jewison was nominated for Best Director but lost to Mike Nichols for The Graduate.

The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) features heavy hitters Steve McQueen (as Crown) and Faye Dunnaway (as Vicki Anderson, crack insurance investigator). Crown organizes a multi-million dollar bank heist, scoops up the money from a drop and apparently gets clean away. Vicki is convinced he is the villain and relentlessly pursues him. Romantic sparks complicate her job and Crown adeptly leads her on. There’s a neat surprise ending you won’t find here. There is a 1999 remake with Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo which is slightly different and also quite good.

Fiddler on the Roof was a smash Broadway musical, still adored by audicences. Making it into a movie was a challenge. To start with, they used Topol instead of Zero Mostel as Tevye, the main character. And, the play is basically a one-set piece. In 1971 they got Norman Jewison to direct and he did a bang-up job, making the most of what he was dealt. He was nominated for the Oscar, but this time lost to William Friedkin for The French Connection. 

In 1973 Jewison undertook an even more challenging directorial job. Jesus Christ Superstar had also been a huge Broadway hit. It was not a huge success as a movie. The Tim Rice-Andrew Lloyd Weber score stands up well but it just doesn’t come across on the big screen. Most rock-operas don’t film well, and this is no exception. Also the cast is made up of completely unknown actors. 

And Justice For All (1979) is a star vehicle for Al Pacino as an out of control lawyer. The complicated plot involves a crooked judge, a crazy lawyer, and unlikely events. It really requires a suspension of belief, but if you can do that, it’s pretty good. 

All the movies in this article are for adults except Fiddler which is fine for mature children. All of them are probably available on some streaming service. And yes, there are still more Jewison movies to talk about.