Curtis Hanson
Encyclopedia
Curtis Lee Hanson is an American film director, film producer and screenwriter. His directing work includes The Hand That Rocks the Cradle
The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (film)
The Hand That Rocks the Cradle is a 1992 American thriller about a vengeful nanny out to destroy a naïve woman and steal her family. The film was directed by Curtis Hanson, starring Annabella Sciorra, Rebecca De Mornay, and Matt McCoy...

(1992), L.A. Confidential
L.A. Confidential (film)
L.A. Confidential is a 1997 American film based on James Ellroy's 1990 novel of the same title, the third book in his L.A. Quartet. Both the book and the film tell the story of a group of LAPD officers in the 1950s, and the intersection of police corruption and Hollywood celebrity...

(1997), Wonder Boys
Wonder Boys (film)
Wonder Boys is a dark comedy film based on the 1995 novel of the same title by Michael Chabon. Directed by Curtis Hanson, it stars Michael Douglas as professor Grady Tripp, a novelist who teaches creative writing at an unnamed Pittsburgh university...

(2000), 8 Mile
8 Mile (film)
8 Mile is a 2002 American hip-hop drama film written by Scott Silver, directed by Curtis Hanson, and starring Eminem, Mekhi Phifer, Brittany Murphy, and Kim Basinger....

(2002), and In Her Shoes (2005).

Early life

Hanson was born in Reno, Nevada
Reno, Nevada
Reno is the county seat of Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The city has a population of about 220,500 and is the most populous Nevada city outside of the Las Vegas metropolitan area...

 and grew up in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

, the son of Beverly June, a real estate agent, and Wilbur Hale "Bill" Hanson, a teacher. Hanson dropped out of high school, finding work as a freelance photographer and editor for Cinema magazine.

Film career

In 1970, Hanson co-wrote The Dunwich Horror
The Dunwich Horror (film)
The Dunwich Horror is a 1970 B-movie from American International Pictures directed by Daniel Haller and produced by Roger Corman. The film was based on the short story of the same name by H.P. Lovecraft with a script co-written by future Academy Award winning director Curtis Hanson. This was the...

, an adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's short story
The Dunwich Horror
"The Dunwich Horror" is a short story by H. P. Lovecraft. Written in 1928, it was first published in the April 1929 issue of Weird Tales . It takes place in Dunwich, a fictional town in Massachusetts...

. Hanson wrote and directed his next feature Sweet Kill
Sweet Kill
Sweet Kill is a 1973 B-movie written and directed by future Academy Award winner Curtis Hanson. The film was Hanson's directorial debut and was produced by Roger Corman...

in 1973, then in 1978 wrote and produced The Silent Partner, starring Elliot Gould and Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...

. As the 1980s and 1990s began, he directed a string of comedies and dramas. He did thrillers, too: many of them would deal with people who would lose a sense of control or security when facing danger and the threat of death. Some, like the attorney in Bad Influence
Bad Influence (film)
Bad Influence is a 1990 American film starring Rob Lowe and James Spader. In this noirish film, Spader plays a yuppie who meets a mysterious stranger who encourages him to explore his darker side. Bad Influence was the first original screenplay for which David Koepp received a sole screenplay credit...

and the police officers in L.A. Confidential
L.A. Confidential
L.A. Confidential is a 1997 American film based on James Ellroy's 1990 novel of the same title, the third book in his L.A. Quartet. Both the book and the film tell the story of a group of LAPD officers in the 1950s, and the intersection of police corruption and Hollywood celebrity...

unexpectedly walk into violence and disaster.

In the 1990s Hanson found box-office success with The Hand That Rocks the Cradle
The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (film)
The Hand That Rocks the Cradle is a 1992 American thriller about a vengeful nanny out to destroy a naïve woman and steal her family. The film was directed by Curtis Hanson, starring Annabella Sciorra, Rebecca De Mornay, and Matt McCoy...

and The River Wild
The River Wild
The River Wild is a 1994 thriller film directed by Curtis Hanson and starring Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon, David Strathairn, John C. Reilly, and Joseph Mazzello...

, and significant critical acclaim with L.A. Confidential
L.A. Confidential (film)
L.A. Confidential is a 1997 American film based on James Ellroy's 1990 novel of the same title, the third book in his L.A. Quartet. Both the book and the film tell the story of a group of LAPD officers in the 1950s, and the intersection of police corruption and Hollywood celebrity...

, an adaptation of the James Ellroy novel
L.A. Confidential
L.A. Confidential is a 1997 American film based on James Ellroy's 1990 novel of the same title, the third book in his L.A. Quartet. Both the book and the film tell the story of a group of LAPD officers in the 1950s, and the intersection of police corruption and Hollywood celebrity...

. The film was nominated for 9 Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...

 including Best Picture and Best Director, and won 2, for Best Adapted Screenplay, a credit Hanson shared with Brian Helgeland
Brian Helgeland
Brian Thomas Helgeland is an American screenwriter, film producer and director. He is most known for writing the screenplays for L.A...

, and Best Supporting Actress (Kim Basinger
Kim Basinger
Kimila Ann "Kim" Basinger is an American actress and former fashion model.She is known for her portrayals of Domino Petachi, the Bond girl in Never Say Never Again , and Vicki Vale, the female lead in Batman . Basinger received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture...

). Hanson's later works include In Her Shoes, Wonder Boys
Wonder Boys
Wonder Boys is a 1995 novel by the American writer Michael Chabon. It was adapted into a film in 2000.-Plot summary:Pittsburgh professor and author Grady Tripp is working on an unwieldy 2,611 page manuscript that is meant to be the follow-up to his successful, award-winning novel The Land...

, 8 Mile
8 Mile (film)
8 Mile is a 2002 American hip-hop drama film written by Scott Silver, directed by Curtis Hanson, and starring Eminem, Mekhi Phifer, Brittany Murphy, and Kim Basinger....

, and Lucky You
Lucky You (film)
Lucky You is a 2007 drama directed by Curtis Hanson and starring Eric Bana, Drew Barrymore, and Robert Duvall. The film was shot on location in Las Vegas...

.

Hanson claims to be heavily influenced by Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...

 and Nicholas Ray
Nicholas Ray
Nicholas Ray was an American film director best known for the movie Rebel Without a Cause....

. He previously stated that Ray's film In a Lonely Place
In a Lonely Place
In a Lonely Place is a film noir directed by Nicholas Ray, and starring Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Grahame, produced for Bogart's Santana Productions. The script was adapted by Edmund North from the 1947 novel In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B. Hughes.Bogart stars in the film as Dixon Steele, a...

was among many that he watched in preparation for the filming of L.A. Confidential. In 8 Mile
8 Mile (film)
8 Mile is a 2002 American hip-hop drama film written by Scott Silver, directed by Curtis Hanson, and starring Eminem, Mekhi Phifer, Brittany Murphy, and Kim Basinger....

, Kim Basinger
Kim Basinger
Kimila Ann "Kim" Basinger is an American actress and former fashion model.She is known for her portrayals of Domino Petachi, the Bond girl in Never Say Never Again , and Vicki Vale, the female lead in Batman . Basinger received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture...

's character is watching Elia Kazan
Elia Kazan
Elia Kazan was an American director and actor, described by the New York Times as "one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood history". Born in Istanbul, the capital of the Ottoman Empire, to Greek parents originally from Kayseri in Anatolia, the family emigrated...

's Pinky on television, a film about a mixed race girl passing as white - an homage to the themes of racial mixing and boundary crossing that are features of most of Hanson's work.

Hanson's 2011 film was Too Big to Fail, based on the 2009 Andrew Ross Sorkin
Andrew Ross Sorkin
Andrew Ross Sorkin is a Gerald Loeb Award-winning American journalist, author and television personality. He is a financial columnist for The New York Times and a co-anchor of CNBC's Squawk Box. He is also the founder and editor of DealBook, a financial news service published by The New York Times...

 book of the same name about the early rounds of the financial crisis of 2007–2010. The HBO film featured an all-star cast, including William Hurt
William Hurt
William McGill Hurt is an American stage and film actor. He received his acting training at the Juilliard School, and began acting on stage in the 1970s. Hurt made his film debut as a troubled scientist in the science-fiction feature Altered States , for which he received a Golden Globe nomination...

 as Treasury Secretary and former Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...

 CEO Henry Paulson
Henry Paulson
Henry Merritt "Hank" Paulson, Jr. is an American banker who served as the 74th United States Secretary of the Treasury. He previously served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Goldman Sachs.-Early life and family:...

 and Cynthia Nixon
Cynthia Nixon
Cynthia Ellen Nixon is an American actress, known for her portrayal of Miranda Hobbes in the HBO series Sex and the City . She has received two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and a Grammy Award....

 as his liaison to the press; James Woods
James Woods
James Howard Woods is an American film, stage and television actor. Woods is known for starring in critically acclaimed films such as Once Upon a Time in America, Salvador, Nixon, Ghosts of Mississippi, Casino, and in the television legal drama Shark. He has won three Emmy Awards, and has gained...

 as Richard Fuld of Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. was a global financial services firm. Before declaring bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth largest investment bank in the USA , doing business in investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales and trading Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (former NYSE ticker...

; and Paul Giamatti
Paul Giamatti
Paul Edward Valentine Giamatti is an American actor. Giamatti began his career as a supporting actor in several films produced during the 1990s including Private Parts, The Truman Show, Saving Private Ryan, The Negotiator, and Man on the Moon, before earning lead roles in several projects in the...

 as Ben Bernanke
Ben Bernanke
Ben Shalom Bernanke is an American economist, and the current Chairman of the Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States. During his tenure as Chairman, Bernanke has overseen the response of the Federal Reserve to late-2000s financial crisis....

.

Hanson resides in Southern California.

Filmography

  • Sweet Kill
    Sweet Kill
    Sweet Kill is a 1973 B-movie written and directed by future Academy Award winner Curtis Hanson. The film was Hanson's directorial debut and was produced by Roger Corman...

    (1973)
  • The Silent Partner
    The Silent Partner
    The Silent Partner is a 1978 Canadian crime film directed by Daryl Duke. It stars Elliott Gould, Christopher Plummer and Susannah York....

    (1978) (Writer and Producer Only)
  • The Little Dragons
    The Little Dragons
    The Little Dragons is a 1980 American film about two young brothers who use their karate skills to rescue a friend after she is held captive for ransom. Produced and directed by Curtis Hanson...

    (1980)
  • Losin' It
    Losin' It
    Losin' It is a 1983 comedy film starring Tom Cruise, Shelley Long, Jackie Earle Haley, and John Stockwell. The film is directed by Curtis Hanson. It was filmed largely in Calexico, California.-Plot summary:...

    (1983)
  • The Children Of Times Square (1986) (TV)
  • The Bedroom Window (1987)
  • Bad Influence
    Bad Influence (film)
    Bad Influence is a 1990 American film starring Rob Lowe and James Spader. In this noirish film, Spader plays a yuppie who meets a mysterious stranger who encourages him to explore his darker side. Bad Influence was the first original screenplay for which David Koepp received a sole screenplay credit...

    (1990)
  • The Hand that Rocks the Cradle
    The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (film)
    The Hand That Rocks the Cradle is a 1992 American thriller about a vengeful nanny out to destroy a naïve woman and steal her family. The film was directed by Curtis Hanson, starring Annabella Sciorra, Rebecca De Mornay, and Matt McCoy...

    (1992)
  • The River Wild
    The River Wild
    The River Wild is a 1994 thriller film directed by Curtis Hanson and starring Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon, David Strathairn, John C. Reilly, and Joseph Mazzello...

    (1994)
  • L.A. Confidential
    L.A. Confidential (film)
    L.A. Confidential is a 1997 American film based on James Ellroy's 1990 novel of the same title, the third book in his L.A. Quartet. Both the book and the film tell the story of a group of LAPD officers in the 1950s, and the intersection of police corruption and Hollywood celebrity...

    (1997)
  • Wonder Boys
    Wonder Boys (film)
    Wonder Boys is a dark comedy film based on the 1995 novel of the same title by Michael Chabon. Directed by Curtis Hanson, it stars Michael Douglas as professor Grady Tripp, a novelist who teaches creative writing at an unnamed Pittsburgh university...

    (2000)
  • 8 Mile
    8 Mile (film)
    8 Mile is a 2002 American hip-hop drama film written by Scott Silver, directed by Curtis Hanson, and starring Eminem, Mekhi Phifer, Brittany Murphy, and Kim Basinger....

    (2002)
  • In Her Shoes (2005)
  • Lucky You
    Lucky You (film)
    Lucky You is a 2007 drama directed by Curtis Hanson and starring Eric Bana, Drew Barrymore, and Robert Duvall. The film was shot on location in Las Vegas...

    (2007)
  • Too Big to Fail (2011)

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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