Post by missjennifer on Sept 19, 2005 16:03:37 GMT -4
No one's started a thread on this movie yet, so...
I liked it from the first time I saw it in 1995 at my undergrad school. I'd seen Ralph Fiennes in Schindler's List, but didn't fall in love with him till Quiz Show. (Although that crush faded when I learned how abominominominably he treated Alex Kingston when he dumped her.)
I like the way they didn't go the easy route of portraying Charles Van Doren as venal or greed-driven. Sure, he was making money and enjoyed the trappings of fame, but the real heart of it was wanting to do something, anything, that would take him out of the shadow of the father he loved and resented. He convinced himself that it was all for the good, that he was calling attention to the cause of education. A flawed, fascinating character, and one who's very sympathetic in the end.
I've done some reading up on the real CVD. (Whenever a subject interests me, I like to learn a little more about it.) Depending on who you ask, he's either "lived the rest of his life in exile" or "made a good life and career for himself away from the spotlight." I tend to agree with the latter...his marriage appears to have been stable and long-lasting and he was vice-president at Encyclopedia Brittanica. And if it's away from the spotlight, maybe that's just as well. Apparently, all's forgiven at Columbia...he gave a graduation address a few years back.
And, about his marriage...one source I read said that he hired Geraldine Ann Bernstein to answer his fan mail in February, and married her in April. Either the info in that source was wrong or she really bowled him over! It wasn't the "obvious reason" since their kid didn't come along till more than a year later. And they're still together. If it's true the show indirectly brought them together, I like to think it's the one part of the whole mess he doesn't regret. Maybe it wouldn't have worked in the movie with its telescoped time frame, but still...I wish Redford and Attansio could have found a way to work it in.
I liked it from the first time I saw it in 1995 at my undergrad school. I'd seen Ralph Fiennes in Schindler's List, but didn't fall in love with him till Quiz Show. (Although that crush faded when I learned how abominominominably he treated Alex Kingston when he dumped her.)
I like the way they didn't go the easy route of portraying Charles Van Doren as venal or greed-driven. Sure, he was making money and enjoyed the trappings of fame, but the real heart of it was wanting to do something, anything, that would take him out of the shadow of the father he loved and resented. He convinced himself that it was all for the good, that he was calling attention to the cause of education. A flawed, fascinating character, and one who's very sympathetic in the end.
I've done some reading up on the real CVD. (Whenever a subject interests me, I like to learn a little more about it.) Depending on who you ask, he's either "lived the rest of his life in exile" or "made a good life and career for himself away from the spotlight." I tend to agree with the latter...his marriage appears to have been stable and long-lasting and he was vice-president at Encyclopedia Brittanica. And if it's away from the spotlight, maybe that's just as well. Apparently, all's forgiven at Columbia...he gave a graduation address a few years back.
And, about his marriage...one source I read said that he hired Geraldine Ann Bernstein to answer his fan mail in February, and married her in April. Either the info in that source was wrong or she really bowled him over! It wasn't the "obvious reason" since their kid didn't come along till more than a year later. And they're still together. If it's true the show indirectly brought them together, I like to think it's the one part of the whole mess he doesn't regret. Maybe it wouldn't have worked in the movie with its telescoped time frame, but still...I wish Redford and Attansio could have found a way to work it in.
