Director Spotlight: Sydney Pollack (Blu-ray)

Director Spotlight: Sydney Pollack – Castle Keep/Bobby Deerfield

Castle Keep (1969)

Director: Sydney Pollack

Starring: Burt Lancaster, Patrick O'Neal, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Bruce Dern, Peter Falk, Scott Wilson, Astrid Heeren

Near the end of World War II, American Major Falconer leads his weary eight-man squadron to a perfectly preserved medieval castle. CASTLE KEEP’s owner, the aging Count of Maldorais, shelters the servicemen in hopes they will defend his fortress and his priceless collection of art masterpieces from the advancing German troops but the servicemen have plans of their own. CASTLE KEEP features a top-notch cast hailed as “excellent” by Vincent Canby, The New York Times.

Bobby Deerfield (1977)

Director: Sydney Pollack

Starring: Al Pacino, Marthe Keller, Anny Duperey, Walter McGinn, Romolo Valli

Formula One auto racer Bobby Deerfield (Al Pacino) is a calculating, control-obsessed loner who has become used to winning the checkered - ag on the track. But when he witnesses a ­ fiery crash that kills a teammate and seriously wounds a competitor, he becomes unsettled by the specter of death. During a visit to the survivor, Deer­field’s world is further set askew when he meets Lillian Morelli (Marthe Keller), a quirky, impulsive woman racing against time.

• “A big, slick melodrama that knows exactly what it wants to accomplish and does so with great craft.” – Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

RUN TIME: 231 Minutes

Starring: Al Pacino, Burt Lancaster, Bruce Dern, Patrick O'Neal, Peter Falk

Rating: R