John Guillermin
| John Guillermin | |
|---|---|
John Guillermin in 1970
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| Born |
11 November 1925 London, England, U.K. |
| Died | 27 September 2015 (aged 89) Topanga, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Heart attack |
| Occupation | Film director |
| Years active | 1947–1988 |
| Spouse(s) |
Maureen Connell (m. 1956) Mary Guillermin (m. 1999–2015) |
| Children | Two |
John Guillermin (11 November 1925 – 27 September 2015) was a British film director, writer and producer who was most active in big budget, action adventure films throughout his lengthy career.
His more well-known films include I Was Monty's Double (1958), Tarzan's Greatest Adventure (1959), Never Let Go (1960), Tarzan Goes to India (1962), Waltz of the Toreadors (1962), The Blue Max (1966), The Bridge at Remagen (1969), The Towering Inferno (1974), King Kong (1976), Death on the Nile (1978), Sheena (1984) and King Kong Lives (1986). From the 1980s he worked on much less prestigious projects, and his final films consisted of lower budgeted theatrical releases and made-for-TV films.
According to one obituary, "Regardless of whether he was directing a light comedy, war epic or crime drama, Mr. Guillermin had a reputation as an intense, temperamental perfectionist, notorious for screaming at cast and crew alike. His domineering manner often alienated producers and actors... But Mr. Guillermin’s impeccable eye and ability to capture both intimate moments and large-scale action scenes usually overcame that reputation."
Guillermin was born Yvon Jean Guillermin in London on 11 November 1925. His parents were French expatriates, Joseph and Genevieve Guillermin; his father worked in the perfume industry. Guillermin grew up in England and attended the City of London School and the University of Cambridge. He joined the Royal Air Force at age 19.
After mustering out of the Royal Air Force at the age of 22, Guillermin's directorial career began in France with documentary filmmaking. According to a critical review of Guillermin's work, "One of his stylistic constants, an expert use of handheld camera to add grit and muscle to key scenes, may be rooted in those early efforts, and they function as counterweights to Guillermin's penchant for forceful lines, a very plastic sense of interior spaces, and use of overhead shots... Guillermin's interest in conveying how people and spaces relate to one another and how decisions are reached and carried out suggests a spark to his filmmaking that one might call Griersonianeven if the grandfather of British documentary focused on social development and progress as opposed to collapse."
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