The director Ben Stiller has always wanted to emulate: “He just gets better all the time”
Reinvention is at the heart of being an artist, something that can either enhance or hinder the careers of those who take risks and those who stay stuck in their old ways. For directors like Wes Anderson and Ridley Scott, reinvention has never been a key focus, with both filmmakers sticking to what they know and repeating old formulas for every single one of their recent projects. But for others, taking risks is the very definition of what it means to be an artist, whether it be Nicole Kidman, Franz Rogowski or Luca Guadagnino.
But perhaps the most fitting example of this right now is Ben Stiller, going from being a comedic actor in films like Zoolander and Meet the Parents to the work of a producer on films like Blades of Glory and Submarine to eventually directing himself. However, his creative voice as a director has vastly changed over the years, going from the existentialist dread of 20-something drifters in Reality Bites to the fabled collaboration with Jim Carrey on The Cable Guy and eventually, the record-breaking success of Severance, which is now one of the highest-rated shows on Apple TV.
His trajectory is really quite astonishing given his roots in the industry, with not many actors undergoing such a strong tonal shift in their work. While many make the switch to directing, their films usually tend to emulate the style of cinema they previously starred in, with Harris Dickinson’s directorial debut reflecting the very sensitive and thoughtful tone of his performances. But Stiller’s directorial work has spanned many different genres, describing the influence of another director with similar working habits.
Clint Eastwood is a true legend of the film industry, racking up hundreds of credits as both an actor and director. While he made his name through the Western genre and cult classics like the Dirty Harry series, he showed an equal knack for sitting behind the camera and bringing stories like Bridges of Madison County, Mystic River and Million Dollar Baby to the screen.
While he has certain trademarks that translate across each film, with a certain weight to each one as he explores stories of great heroes, tragic journeys and underdogs, his style cannot be contained to one box, given that he adapts to new territory with each one. It could be his recent courtroom drama, or the action-packed true story of Sully and his interpretation of the sports epic.
His versatility has ingrained him in Hollywood history, with not one story being too grand or outlandish for him to pursue, something that Stiller uses to inform his own choices, saying, “I look at a guy like Clint Eastwood, and he just gets better all the time. The acting’s the acting, but there are a million ways to direct. It’s something you can explore creatively forever.”
Eastwood seems to have an endless amount of energy to dedicate to his craft, with the years racking up but his passion continuing, with the kind of vivaciousness that you’d associate with a much younger man. Perhaps this is the secret to longevity, and that if you find yourself slowing down, you simply create a new challenge to speed you up again.
