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| Pollock | 
 enlarge | Actors: Tom Bower, Jennifer Connelly, Bud Cort, Annabelle Gurwitch, Eulala Grace Harden
Studio: Sony Pictures
Category: DVD
List Price: $14.94
Buy New: $1.61
You Save: $13.33 (89%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (106 reviews)
Sales Rank: 9682
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dvd-video, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), French (Subtitled)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: DVD
Running Time: 122 minutes
Number Of Items: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: COLD06454D
ISBN: 0767867068
UPC: 043396064546
EAN: 9780767867061
ASIN: B00005KHJJ
Release Date: July 24, 2001
Theatrical Release Date: 2000
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
The Art Of Faithful---If Of Necessity Fictionalized---Biography January 3, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
It wouldn't be fair to let the fact I don't care a lot for this artist detract from the merits of this movie, so I won't go there. I'll just say that Pollack, the film, has quality and intelligence and was obviously a labor of love for the volatile Ed Harris, who shares, I think, some of the inner characteristics of the man he portrays here. As for the story it tells, admirers of this mid-last-century painter will find it sticks relatively faithfully to the grim biographies of the real life figures at its heart, primarily Jackson Pollack and his longsuffering wife Lee Krasner, but with a fluffy Peggy Guggenheim given her due as well. It can also be conceded that the motion picture, Pollack, pulls few punches in its honest depiction of the deterioration of its tormented title figure. Among its cast Jennifer Connelly, as Pollack's mistress Ruth Kligman, convincingly plays a character younger than her real life years, and Marcia Gay Harden's thankless task of bringing onto the screen Lee Krasner's many sacrifices shouldn't be overlooked amid Harris' tactile turn as the self-destructive Pollack. The scene of Harris and the bird in Pollack's garden, while perhaps meant to be symbolic, was actually even at surface level a lovely shot that came off like a delicate haiku in the midst of this otherwise often loud and confrontational motion picture. I didn't find Pollack a great film but I do respect that it stuck to what there was to say about the life and times of Jackson Pollack and Lee Krasner.
 Phenomenal (in spite of stupid ending) December 26, 2007
"Pollock" is a masterpiece that explores the interplay between mental imbalance, the artistic impulse in a post-war context as embodied in the person of Jackson Pollock. Ed Harris is phenomenal as Pollock. He looks like him, and paints like him, with masterful brushwork that communicates Pollock's visionary talent, his eccentric style and his inner longing for recognition. The film is often hard to watch. Pollock was a hard drinker and not completely stable mentally. His brother and mother are supportive, but it is really fellow artist Lee Krasner (Marcia Gay Harden) who helps Pollock to focus, and keeps him away from those who would unbalance him. Harris and Harden are phenomenal leads, and make the story completely believable.
This film depicts a fairly broad slice of Pollock's life, from about 1942, when he was painting wild, impressionistic canvases, through to his breakthrough in the early 1950s with the splatter technique, to his death in 1956. Anyone who has seen any of Pollock's paintings knows that they are much more than a childish mess. Each painting has a symmetry, mood and pulsing energy that is exciting to witness. The movie gives us a sense of how Pollock painted, and the passion that went in to each.
The film could have ended at the peak of Pollock's career, and it seemed that it almost did. A "four years later" episode, in which a 30-pounds-heavier Ed Harris plays Pollock in his pitiful final days, seems tacked on and unnecessary. I saw no point in depicting the car crash that ended his life. While I am kvetching, the DVD extras weren't anything special. Charlie Rose interviews a surprisingly hostile or inarticulate Ed Harris, and adds nothing to the film.
But "Pollock" is an incredible film, with a vibrant soundtrack, exceptional acting, terrific period decor and believable characters. It serves as an apt paean to the genius of a great, if troubled, American artist.
 Rorschach Test December 12, 2007
I'm glad that Pollock gave the world his art. I'm glad that the world has the wonderful Ed Harris to tell us stories in film. But, without any real insight into what made Pollock's artistic soul tick, what we are left with in this film is mostly a bleak, depressing and somewhat disjointed portrait of an abusive alcholic who doesn't fit in socially with the self-appointed arbiters of "what is art" -- or anyone else, for that matter. In spite of this, he achieves success - solely due to the efforts and belief of his wife. The inevitable trajectory of self destruction continues when suddenly, out of nowhere, the gorgeous Jennifer Connelly pops in and is madly in love with him! This final insult sends wife packing. Jennifer spends the rest of the film looking ravashing and cheerfully accomodating Pollock's boorish behavior as he descends into total degeneracy and ultimate destruction. Huh???
Pollock is Pollock October 8, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is a profound look into this artist's life. Jackson Pollock is played brilliantly by Ed Harris in a very difficult but defining role. This film contrasts Pollock's brilliance with the flaws that would ultimately end his life. If this film could have been made better, I couldn't tell you how.
One of the Best of 2000! August 16, 2007
"Pollock" was one of the best movies of 2000. It is the directorial debut of Ed Harris (nominated for the Oscar for "Apollo 13" and "The Truman Show") and he put his heart and soul into this work. According to an interview, Harris spent about 10 years working on the idea for creating a film biopic of the famous Amercian painter, Jackson Pollock. The movie is full of art and it is told with a lot of heart. The cinematography is excellent; the story begins from Pollock's meeting with Lee Krasner, played by Marcia Gay Harden, and follows him through his successful and revolutionary career as a modern/abstract artist. I believe Ed Harris as a director beautifully captures Pollock's personal life, with small scenes of his short temper, his hunger for attention and respect, his support from his friends and his family and his possible mental disorder. The movie itself is like a piece of modern art- it strikes you immediately and keeps you watching. The recreation of Pollock's actual paintings is an absolute miracle, and it works magnificently for the film. As an actor, Harris gives probably the performance of his career, and he received a well-deserved Oscar nomination for Best Actor. There are moments when Harris literally paints on canvas and you could swear that he is painting exactly the way Pollock did. Marcia Gay Harden gives an equally wonderful performance as his wife, whose deep love for the talented but unstable Pollock caused her to sacrifice much, including the prospect of a child and Pollock's respect when he began an affair with a mistress at the end of his life. Harden won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.
What started as a low-budget independent film has now become one of the best biopics of an artist. Jackson Pollock himself did not live very long- died when he was 44. But this film effectively captures the finest (and worst) moments of his short life and I believe everyone can appreciate this film. As a painter myself, I found those scenes in which Pollock is painting on canvas the most engaging. I see similarities in his style and my own sometimes. Truly, on the the best films of 200.
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