DeNiro, despite the general crud he's been churning out for the past eight years or so, is definitely worthy of such an award. Streep too I think will, by the end of her career, have a body of work to stack up againt anybody, certainly of her generation. At only fifty-five you can argue Streep has a long way to go for "life acheivement", but then you see they gave it to Tom Hanks before her...and he was only forty-six at the time. So...yeah. At the rate he's going and the first crack at quality projects he still gets, you can logically assume that what he's done already plus the next twenty or thirty years makes him worthy. OK. I guess. I like Harrison Ford, I think as a thespian he is often underrated, and like DeNiro he has chosen a steady stream of real ***** for about a decade now....I think it'd be tough to include him on such a list. Not just measuring him against DeNiro, Hanks, and Hoffman, but when you start talking Cagney, Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart and Jack Lemmon, Harrison Ford just isn't that calibur of actor or movie star. Babs, like her or lump her, has hardly worked since the early '80s. Her early career is quite impressive, and while her strides at becoming a serious director are admirable if not always successful, again I find it difficult to add her to such company.
And now George Lucas. I think Lucas' first three films are an impressive grouping, and his impact on the industry, for good and for bad, is unmistakable. But unlike Spielberg who is a populist who at least tries for more serious and layered material (even though personally I think he's too often maudlin in his approach), Lucas has only directed six movies in his career, and three of them are the recent Star Wars prequels. As a producer and maybe most crucially for such distinction his vision and sense to create and foster ILM and all the technical side of the business, I can see putting him on the list. But only just, and hardly for his record as a director.
Which leads me to the question: in the next four or five years, who do you see as likely and more importantly worthy candidates?
The AFI Life Acheivement Award ceremony has always been televised, and frankly that is something to consider. That aspect of the honor has clearly kept Paul Newman from sitting at that dias and having his ass kissed for a few hours, and before their deaths was the reason Brando, Kate Hepburn, Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant and most definitely Stanley Kubrick declined the offer to be saluted in such a way. Al Pacino, Robert Redford, Jane Fonda and Warren Beatty surely must have been approached by now. They may not have even bother to waste the phonecall asking Woody. With all of these stars, their personalities kept them from taking that kind of public and self-congratulatory bow. In coming generations I expect Sean Penn, Jodie Foster and Johnny Depp will keep that tradition alive. On the director side of this equation, I don't know if Bob Altman has turned them down or he's not quite mainstream enough for them to honor?
I think clearly Paul Newman has to be top of their wishlist, but if he hasn't done it at this point I don't see much hope of him doing it in coming years. But taking Newman out of the equation, who would you like to see or do you think they'll choose (not necessarily the same list)?
Gene Hackman, Robert Duvall, Al Pacino and Warren Beatty seem like the next most likely to me, but also seem like four guys just as likely to turn them down year after year (which is why you see names like Harrison Ford and Tom Hanks on the list already). Shirley MacLaine I'd have taken over Streisand, that's for damn sure. Jane Fonda has probably turned them down, though I'd give her a nod despite her dormant career for the past dozen years. Richard Dreyfuss has a body of work that is worthy enough. If they want to bend the "American" requirement again, Michael Caine is definitely more than a possibilty.
I can't think of any other big actors from the past couple generations who really deserve it yet haven't yet been honored.
I think on the director side, after Altman if he's out for whatever reason that Sidney Lumet is the next most likely, even though he hasn't done much of late. Mike Nichols' recent career resurgence with Closer and TV projects "Wit" and "Angels in America", now he's probably right up near the top of the list again. Francis Ford Coppola simply hasn't done much lately, though like Lucas his other behind-the-scenes endeavors and dreams coupled with his amazing '70s resume make him always in the running. And there's zero chance Woody Allen would accept...he doesn't even show up at the Oscars. Other than that, I don't see any other helmers in the running (not counting double-duty folks like Beatty and Redford). Mel Brooks is probably an outside chance, if only because it would be good, funny television (and his early career is worthy of it). Sydney Pollack and Norman Jewison have slim chances, but I wouldn't put any money on 'em.
In the thrity-three awards so far they haven't honored anybody other than artists who were primarily actors or directors. Billy Wilder and John Huston's careers as screenwriters were highlighted in their ceremonies, but that's not the real reason they were given the awards. I don't see any veteran screenwriters likely to break into the AFI honor role. And since Connie Hall has passed, I don't think there's another cinematographer likely to get the honor. The only composer I could see making the cut is John Williams, but as he's so linked to Spielberg's work, I kinda don't think they'll give him the nod. Plus the cold reality is the blasted thing is a TV show, and I don't forsee them giving a couple hours of primetime airtime to a show devoted to a D.P. or composer. Just ain't gonna happen. It probably should, but it won't.
So my final guess, taking into account that the honoree has to agree to show up, is that in the next five years the AFI LIfe Acheivement Award will go to (not necessarily in this order)...
Gene Hackman
Mike Nichols
Warren Beatty
Robert Duvall
Michael Caine
Care to hazzard a guess or three?
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