When Donald Sutherland died on Thursday, tributes and remembrances began to pour in, including from President Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
The Canadian actor has worked on a large and varied body of films in many genres, including “The Dirty Dozen”, “MASH”, “Klute”, “Don’t Look Now”, “Animal House”, “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” ” and more recently the 2005 adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice” and the “Hunger Games” franchise.
Julie Christie appeared alongside Sutherland in Nicolas Roeg’s 1973 film “Don’t Look Now,” an emotionally devastating portrait of a couple struggling to overcome the death of their young daughter.
In an exclusive statement to The Times, Christie said: “Donald’s unique intelligence and mischievous humor are what elevated him and made him so fascinating as an actor. »
Arguably few performers are as closely linked to Sutherland as Elliott Gould, since both starred in Robert Altman’s 1970 anti-war comedy-drama, “MASH,” which propelled both actors to new heights. fame levels.
They next appeared together in the dark 1971 satire “Little Murders,” directed by Alan Arkin based on 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 spoke warmly of his work with Sutherland.
Elliott Gould and Donald Sutherland in a scene from the 1974 comedy “SPYS.”
(Stanley Bielecki Film Collection/Getty Images)
I am very honored to speak to you, but I so regret the circumstances in which we are speaking.
No, I see it differently. This moves me so much. I see that I can be sad for us, but as we celebrate the magnificence of this human being, Donald Sutherland, with whom I had the privilege of working closely, I think it is not a loss, it is a gain.
When you think of Donald, what comes to mind first?
The Dover pros. It was Donald. He made us the Dover Pros in “MASH.” Oh my God, I don’t know anyone like Donald. I had seen it in the cinema, but it was quite early. It was basically “The Dirty Dozen.” And when Bob Altman asked me to lunch. Once he cast me to play alongside Donald, he asked me to have lunch alone with Donald at the 20th Century Fox precinct. I went there and sat down with Donald, and my first feeling was, “Oh, I don’t think this guy likes me.” And, of course, we got to be so close and created incredible chemistry together as two completely opposite human beings. I’ve never worked with better. He is my brother.
Where do you think chemistry comes from? How would you describe it?
Our relationship was all about nature, human nature and being a human being. And we never intellectualized that. 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,” did that energy between the two of you come through right away? In your first scene in the film, you don’t say much and he can’t stop talking. It’s incredible.
And of course, never overlook Tom Skerritt or any other amazing elements in the photo. But the way we shot it, I remember the first time Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) played Wilt Chamberlain, where Altman was screening the picture for the entire cast at 20th Century Fox. And we may have seen it, because I think they may have had a glimpse in San Francisco, but I don’t like to speculate. And so I was showing Donald a game that I had learned on the streets of Brooklyn, New York, called “against the wall.” You played baseball against the wall. And it was just me and Donald. And we didn’t go in.
We also stayed really apart. Everyone was with Altman. We worked for Altman, there’s no doubt about that, but we were pretty separate offstage. And Ring Lardner, Jr. came out after the screening and came up to me, and I was like, “What are you coming at 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’s not a single line I wrote that’s on screen. And Ring Lardner won the Oscar for best screenplay that year. Of course, this was due to the genius and brilliance of Robert Altman. But Robert Altman brought us together and allowed us to create chemistry like I will never experience again.
“MASH” was really the first time audiences saw what became Altman’s signature style with the chaotic energy, overlapping dialogue and choppy camerawork. Was it difficult for you, Donald and the other actors to get in sync with this process?
Absolutely. And Donald and I complained once. I had never worked like that. I had already participated in three films, which I remember very well, but I had never improvised on film. And as far as the information or what the dialogue conveys, what purpose it serves, Donald and I complained about Robert Altman, which, of course, was horrible for Bob. Bob thought we wanted him fired, which is totally false. We just weren’t comfortable with this way of working. But then Bob picked up on 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” has made you and Donald much bigger stars right now. Was it good for you to have someone there doing the same journey at the same time? Did you feel like you were experiencing this moment together?
I don’t want to be sentimental, I don’t want to be pretentious. People may be able to intellectually justify anything, but Donald and I were together, and I believe even now that he is out of body and only here with those of us where his spirit lives. When we were going to do “SPYS,” which was another title, and it was designed for two other actors, the other actors being David Niven and Carroll O’Connor, two washed-up CIA agents. And they sent it to me, and I refused it.
And that would be the only time, or one of the very few times, that Donald called me. And he called me to say, I understand you turned down “Wet Stuff,” which became “SPYS.” I said, “Yes, I didn’t think the script lived up to the idea of the story.” And Donald then said to me, “Would you like to do this with me?” And I said, “You mean you’d do that with me?” And he said, “Yeah. » I said, “Well, that’s another story.” We do chemistry, our chemistry. I said, “Sure, I’ll do anything with you.” And then Irvin Kershner was the director, and I started to like Kershner, and then they found the right people to rewrite it. They never told me about the rewrite. And it’s not about me, but I have that instinct. And so they rewrote it.
And now we were in London, and it was the first day of filming “SPYS,” and it wasn’t even called “SPYS” yet, and Donald and I were being driven in a luxury car to the location where we were going to shoot the film. the first day of work. And Donald asked me what I thought about this scenario. And I said, “That’s a piece of shit.” I rolled down the window and threw the script out the window. I said the only way this can work 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 could do something. But the producers, who were extremely successful producers, Bob Chartoff and Irwin Winkler, wouldn’t hear of it. And that’s how we made the photo. But our history in cinema, I always wanted to make another film with Donald.
Tell me about his role in “Little Murders.” You also directed this picture and he comes and delivers this incredible monologue during a wedding scene. What made you want Donald for this role?
He was perfect. We were making the film, I directed it; I did 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, it was a different time and things were cheaper. But Donald was incredible. And I remember he had a cold – he came to work, he coughed. And I walked around the corner, because the church we filmed in is there in Manhattan. I brought him some freshly squeezed orange juice. And Donald played this character beyond belief. Donald Sutherland in “Little Murders”. Wow. It doesn’t get any better.
Do you have any favorite Donald performances outside of the work you’ve done together?
The final shot of his “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” is terrifying. Just his last silent dream is something. And “Pride and Prejudice”, because it touches me. Donald came really deep here. His performance in “Pride & Prejudice” is absolutely magnificent to me.
In recent years, he has found a whole new audience thanks to his appearance in the “Hunger Games” films. And it’s similar to what you experienced when you were on “Friends,” a whole new generation discovering you as a performer. IIt’s so awesome that you both had a similar explosion later in your 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 he had big hands. And of course he came from a different culture. We couldn’t have been more different, which was amazing for the chemistry we created. He was so generous, so sensitive, so kind and such an asset. He showed me “Don’t Look Now” in London and I showed him “The Long Goodbye” in London. We never hung out too much. I think Donald probably did more work than me, but I don’t know. We bonded deeply on “MASH” and, okay, he told me we were brothers.
I so love the idea of you sharing your films, especially these two, which are truly iconic works for each of you. There is something truly 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) really wanted me to do. And in the scene where Donald takes Jean Moreau on a horse and buggy ride to the music of “Jules and Jim,” I started to cry. Donald’s sensitivity. The gift of working closely with Donald Sutherland and getting to know each other, completely opposite and merged in the work in perfect alchemy.