Pollock

Released 2000
Runtime 124
Category Drama
Language English
Director Ed Harris
Actors Ed Harris, Marcia Gay Harden, Amy Madigan, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Jeffrey Tambor, Bud Cort
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What it’s about

In this literate film about art, anger, and acceptance, Harris plays Jackson Pollock, the Abstract Expressionist artist whose drip paintings inspired both celebration and derision from critics. Things are just taking off for Pollock: his work is featured in Life Magazine, and he’s found love with fellow artist Lee Krasner (Harden). Despite his burgeoning success, Pollock self-destructs at every turn, keeping his demons and everyone else at bay with excessive drink. Will he somehow recover himself in time to enjoy the success he so richly deserves?

Why we love it

This searing biopic shines a light on one of this century’s most enigmatic artists. Harris earned his only Oscar nod to-date for Best Actor, channeling all the brilliance and wounded pride that churned within the tortured Pollock. Harden turns in a similarly brilliant effort as Krasner, collecting a Supporting Actress nod for her haunting representation of a woman who sticks by a ticking time bomb until the inevitable, bitter end. At times, Pollock is somber and difficult to watch, yet like the life of the man it portrays, it’s interspersed with moments of ecstatic creation and bliss.

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