With the famous actor, director, producer, and politician celebrating his 90th birthday in 2020, it made perfect sense to watch a biopic documentary about the life and career of the great man, whom my Mum has a crush also (we call him "Clint Baby"). Clint Eastwood (or Clinton Eastwood Jr.) was born on 31st May 1930, at Saint Francis Memorial Hospital in San Francisco, California. Clint held several jobs, including lifeguard, paper carrier, grocery clerk, forest firefighter, and golf caddy, before finding an interest in acting. Before being successful, Eastwood struggled with finding work, only getting minor roles, including classic horror Revenge of the Creature (1955), the sequel to Creature from the Black Lagoon, and Tarantula (1955). Clint made a notable guest appearance on the TV series Maverick opposite James Garner. Eastwood's first major role came an ex-renegade of the Confederacy in western Ambush at Cimarron Pass (1958). Clint achieved success in the western TV series Rawhide, which ran for six years, before cancellation. In late 1963, after original choice James Coburn was too expensive to cast, Clint was cast as the lead for an Italian-made western called A Fistful of Dollars (1964), filmed in Spain, directed by the relatively unknown Sergio Leone. He rose to international fame with his role as the Man with No Name, and sequels For a Few Dollars More (1965), and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) continued the success. During the 1960s, his fame continued to grow and he was offered many more roles, making movies such as: action thriller Coogan's Bluff (1968), his first time working with director Don Siegel; western Hang 'Em High (1968); action war movie Where Eagles Dare (1968), starring with Richard Burton; and western musical Paint Your Wagon (1969), starring with Lee Marvin. During the 60s, with the help of his advisor Irving Leonard, Eastwood also established his own production company, Malpaso Productions, named after Malpaso Creek on Eastwood's property in Monterey County, California. In the 1970s, movies included: western Two Mules for Sister Sara (1970), starring with Shirley MacLaine; war movie Kelly's Heroes (1970), starring with Donald Sutherland and Telly Savalas; and western drama The Beguiled (1971). Eastwood's career reached a turning point in 1971; psychological thriller Play Misty for Me gave Eastwood the artistic control he desired, and his debut as a director. The same year, Clint played his next most iconic character, playing hard-edged San Francisco police inspector Harry Callahan in action thriller Dirty Harry, with the memorable quote, "'Do I feel lucky?' Well do you, punk!" Clint was offered the role of James Bond, after Sean Connery quit, but he turned it down believing the character should be played by an English actor. Further 1970s films included: western Joe Kidd (1972); western High Plains Drifter (1973), directed and starred; romantic drama Breezy (1973), which he directed but did not star (apart from a cameo); Harry Callahan action thriller sequel Magnum Force (1973); crime drama Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974), starring with Jeff Bridges; spy thriller The Eiger Sanction (1975), directed and starred; western The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), directed and starred, the first of many films with to-be partner Sondra Locke, featuring the quote "Are you gonna pull those pistols or whistle Dixie?"; third Harry Callahan action thriller movie The Enforcer (1976); action thriller The Gauntlet (1977), directed and starred, with Sondra Locke; action comedy Every Which Way but Loose (1978), with Clyde the orangutan; and biographical prison thriller Escape from Alcatraz (1979). By the 1980s, Clint was one of the highest-earning movie stars in the world and had a mixture of many successes and some financial failures. His 80s movies included: action comedy Bronco Billy (1980), directed and starred; action thriller Firefox (1982) , directed and starred; musical drama Honkytonk Man (1982), directed and starred; Harry Callahan action thriller sequel Sudden Impact (1983), directed and starred, featuring the catchphrase "Go ahead, make my day!"; crime thriller Tightrope (1984), directed and starred; crime thriller comedy City Heat (1984), starring with Burt Reynolds; western Pale Rider (1985), directed and starred; war drama Heartbreak Ridge (1986), directed and starred; biographical drama Bird (1988), starring Forest Whitaker, he directed but did not star; the final Harry Callahan sequel, action thriller The Dead Pool (1988); and action comedy Pink Cadillac (1989). The 1990s started for Clint with: adventure drama White Hunter, Black Heart (1990), directed and starred; and crime action The Rookie (1990), directed and starred, with Charlie Sheen. Eastwood had planned western Unforgiven (1992) for years, but waited until he had aged, he directed and starred, opposite Morgan Freeman, Gene Hackman, and Richard Harris. It became a major commercial and critical success, and earned several accolades, including nominations and wins at the Academy Awards. Clint earned the Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director, and Hackman won for Best Supporting Actor. Further 90s movies for Clint included: In the Line of Fire (1993), starring with John Malkovich and Rene Russo; crime drama A Perfect World (1993), directed and starred, with Kevin Costner; romantic drama The Bridges of Madison County (1995), directed and starred, with Meryl Streep; a cameo appearance in family film Casper (1995); political action thriller Absolute Power (1997), directed and starred, with Gene Hackman, Ed Harris and Laura Linney; and mystery drama True Crime (1999), directed and starred. This film finishes at the point of his latest film, in 2000, adventure drama Space Cowboys, which he directed and starred, with Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland and James Garner. Obviously, we know he has continued his successful career in the following years, with great films including: Mystic River, the Oscar winning Million Dollar Baby, Changeling, Gran Torino, American Sniper, The Mule, and Richard Jewell. Narrated by Morgan Freeman, with contributions from Clint Eastwood himself, James Garner, Gene Hackman, Curtis Hanson, Geoffrey Lewis, Bill McKinney, Martin Scorsese, Meryl Streep, Donald Sutherland, Rip Torn, Eli Wallach, Forest Whitaker, and Ruth Wood (Clint's mother). This is a most insightful and interesting film about one of the greats of cinema, perfect for any fan of Eastwood or films in general, a most worthwhile documentary. Very good!
