“If there’s still the sense that Ashby isn’t as sanctified as American New Wave stalwarts Coppola or Scorsese, Amy Scott’s breezy tribute of a documentary is out to correct that oversight.”
Hal Ashby is one of of our favourite directors. We've shown three of his classic 70s movies at film club, Harold and Maude, The Last Detail and most recently Being There (while Shampoo is on our 'also rans' list).
Despite this remarkable string of acclaimed, widely admired movies Ashby is often overlooked amid the crowd of luminaries from his generation. Amy Scott’s exuberant portrait explores that curious oversight, using rare archival materials, interviews, personal letters, and audio recordings to reveal a passionate, obsessive artist.
Hal Ashby was a Hollywood director who constantly clashed with Hollywood. His films were an elusive blend of honesty, irreverence, humour and humanity. But as contemporaries Coppola, Scorsese and Spielberg rose to blockbuster stardom in the 1980s, Ashby's uncompromising nature played out as a cautionary tale of art versus commerce.
