When Donald Sutherland died on Thursday, tributes and remembrances began pouring in, including from President Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
The Canadian actor worked in a wide and varied series of films across many genres, including “The Dirty Dozen,” “MASH,” “Klute,” “Don't Look Now,” “Animal House,” “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” ”. ” and most recently the 2005 adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice” and the “Hunger Games” franchise.
Julie Christie appeared opposite Sutherland in Nicolas Roeg's 1973 film “Don't Look Now,” an emotionally devastating portrait of a couple struggling to come to terms with the death of their young daughter.
In an exclusive statement to The Times, Christie said: “Donald's unique intelligence and mischievous humor is what elevated him and made him so fascinating as an actor.”
Arguably few artists are as closely aligned with Sutherland as Elliott Gould, as the two co-stars in Robert Altman's 1970 anti-war comedy-drama “MASH,” which launched both actors to new levels of fame.
They later appeared together in the 1971 dark satire “Little Murders,” directed by Alan Arkin from the play by Jules Feiffer and produced by Gould, as well as the 1974 spy comedy “SPYS,” directed by Irvin Kershner.
Reached by phone Friday, Gould reflected warmly on his work with Sutherland.
Elliott Gould and Donald Sutherland in a scene from the 1974 comedy “SPYS.”
(Stanley Bielecki Film Collection/Getty Images)
It is a great honor for me to speak with you, but I am very sorry for the circumstances under which we spoke.
No, I see it differently. It moves me a lot. I see that I may be sad for us, but that we are celebrating the magnificence of this human being, Donald Sutherland, who I had the privilege of working closely with, I feel like it's not a loss, it's a gain.
When you think of Donald, what's the first thing that comes to mind?
The Dover Professionals. That was Donald. He made us the Dover pros at “MASH.” Oh my gosh, I don't know anyone like Donald. He had seen it in the movies, but that was pretty early. It was basically “The Dirty Dozen.” And when Bob Altman invited me to lunch. Once he cast me opposite Donald, he asked me to have lunch alone with Donald in the 20th Century Fox cafeteria. I went there and sat with Donald and my first feeling was, “Oh, I don't think this guy likes me.” guy”. And of course, we became very close and had amazing chemistry together as two completely opposite human beings. I have never worked with better. He's my brother.
Where do you think that chemistry came from? How would you describe it?
Our relationship revolved around nature, human nature and the human being. And we never intellectualize about it. We couldn't have been more diverse. As far as I'm concerned, as long as I live, Donald will always be with me.
When you started working together on “MASH,” was that energy between the two of you immediately evident? In your first scene of the movie, you don't say much and he can't stop talking. Is incredible.
And of course, never neglect Tom Skerritt or any other striking elements in the image. But the way we shot it, I remember the first time Lew Alcindor [Kareem Abdul-Jabbar] played against Wilt Chamberlain, that Altman was screening the film for the entire cast at 20th Century Fox. And we may have seen it, because I think they may have had a preview in San Francisco, but I don't like to speculate. And then I was showing Donald a game I learned on the streets of Brooklyn, New York, called “against the wall.” You played baseball against the wall. And it was just Donald and me. And we didn't go in.
We also stayed very far apart. Everyone was with Altman. We worked for Altman, there's no doubt about it, but we were pretty segregated except in scenes. And Ring Lardner, Jr. came out after the screening and walked up to me and I thought, “What are you walking towards me? “I’m just acting here.” And Donald, of course, was with me because we were always together. And Ring Lardner, Jr. said, “How could you do this to me? There is not a single line I wrote that is on screen.” And Ring Lardner won the Academy Award that year for best screenplay. Of course, that was due to the brilliance and genius of Robert Altman. But Robert Altman brought us together and allowed us to create chemistry like I will never see again.
“MASH” was really the first time audiences saw what became Altman's signature style of chaotic energy, overlapping dialogue, and restless camerawork. Was it difficult for you, Donald and the other actors to get in sync with that process?
Absolutely. And Donald and I complained once. He had never worked like this. I had previously participated in three films, which I remember perfectly, but I had never improvised in the cinema. And as far as information or what the dialogue carries, what's the point, Donald and I complained about Robert Altman, which, of course, was horrible for Bob. Bob thought we wanted him fired, which is completely false. We were just uncomfortable with that way of working. But then Bob came back to film something, which showed me that he was willing to work with us and allow us to be the actors that we were. And the rest is history.
Elliott Gould, from left, Tom Skerritt and Donald Sutherland in “MASH.”
(20th Century Fox)
The success of “MASH” made you and Donald much bigger stars at this point. Was it good for you to have someone there who was doing the same trip at the same time? Did you feel like you two were going through that moment together?
I don't want to be sentimental, I don't want to be pretentious. People may make intellectual justifications for anything, but Donald and I were together, and I even believe now that he is out of body and is no longer here except with those of us where his spirit lives. When we were going to do “SPYS,” which was another title and had been conceived for two other actors, the other actors were David Niven and Carroll O'Connor, two failed CIA agents. And they sent it to me and I rejected it.
And this would be the only time, or one of the few times, that Donald called me. And he called me to say: I understand you turned down “Wet Stuff,” which became “SPYS.” I said, “Yeah, I didn't think the script lived up to the story idea.” And Donald then said to me, “Would you do it with me?” And I said, “You mean you would do this with me?” And he said, “Yes.” I said, “Well, that's a different story.” We make chemistry, our chemistry. I said, “Of course, I'll do anything with you.” And then Irvin Kershner was the director, and I grew to love Kershner, and then they got the right people to rewrite it. They never spoke to me regarding the rewrite. And it's not about me, but I have this instinct. And then they rewrote it.
And now we were in London, and this was the first day of shooting “SPYS,” and it wasn't even called “SPYS” yet, and Donald and I were driving in a fancy car to the location where we were going to shoot the movie. first day's work. And Donald asked me what I think of this script. And I said, “It's a piece of s–.” I rolled down the window and threw the script out the window. I said the only way it works is if you play the role they think I'm going to play, and I play the role they think you're going to play. Maybe we can do something. But the producers, who were very successful producers, Bob Chartoff and Irwin Winkler, couldn't hear of it. And that's how we took the photo. But in our film history, I always wanted to make another film with Donald.
Tell me about your role in “Little Murders.” You also produced that photo and he comes in to deliver this incredible monologue during a wedding scene. What made you want Donald for that role?
He was perfect. We were making the movie, I produced it; He had done the first version on stage and Jules Feiffer is a friend of mine. And we asked Donald to do it, and he did it. I think we paid him $5,000 to do it. Of course, that was a different time and things were cheaper. But Donald was amazing at it. And I remember he had a cold: he came to work and had a cough. And I walked around the corner, because the church we filmed in is there in Manhattan. I bought him some freshly squeezed orange juice. And Donald played that character beyond belief. Donald Sutherland in “Little Murders.” Wow. Does not get better.
Do you have any favorite Donald performances besides the work you did together?
The last shot of his “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” is terrifying. That last silent dream of yours is something extraordinary. And “Pride and Prejudice,” because he moves me. Donald went very deep here. His performance in “Pride and Prejudice” for me is absolutely magnificent.
In recent years, he found a whole new audience with his appearance in the “Hunger Games” films. And it's similar to what you experienced when you were on “Friends,” a whole new generation discovered you as a performer. YoIt's great that they both had a similar kind of explosion later in their careers.
Or part of an explosion. I played a little basketball with Donald and he didn't play basketball, but he was a giant and had big hands. And, of course, he came from a different culture. We couldn't have been more different, which was surprising because of the chemistry we had. He was so generous, so sensitive, so kind and so valuable. He showed me “Do n't Look Now” in London and I showed him “The Long Goodbye” in London. We never went out much. I think Donald possibly, probably worked harder than me, but I don't know. We bonded deeply, deeply in “MASH” and, when he agreed, he told me we were brothers.
I really like the idea of you sharing your films with each other, especially those two, which are truly iconic works for each of you. There's something really wonderful about that.
Well, Donald Sutherland was wonderful. And as far as I'm concerned, we were wonderful together. I remember when Donald did “Alex in Wonderland,” which [Paul Mazursky] I really wanted it to do. And in the scene where Donald takes Jean Moreau on a horse and buggy to the music of “Jules and Jim,” I started to cry. Donald's sensitivity. The gift of working so closely with Donald Sutherland and getting to know each other, total opposites who merged into the work in perfect chemistry.
