by Nathaniel R
We've been wanting to do this for years and the perfect occasion finally presents itself. Team Experience will be celebrating the late great Montgomery Clift every evening in the first half of October for what would have been his 100th birthday on October 17th, 2020...
Prologue: Clift was born into a wealthy family in Nebraska and though his early years were spent in luxury, the Depression ruined the Clifts financially when he was just 10.
His mother prized education but young Monty resisted and jumped into the professional actor's life at just 15 when he made his Broadway debut. He tread the boards until his mid twenties, bringing him early minor fame and major acclaim. The combination of buzzy talent and head-turning beauty were of obvious interest to Hollywood and he made the jump to Instant Movie Star in 1948 with his first two films, both leading roles, one an Oscar favourite and the other a blockbuster success.
A promotional still from his sixth Broadway play (he was just 19 years old)
For our series we're going to watch every movie he made before his tragic death at just 45 years of age. To make it doable and still keep up with current movie season and such on the blog, we've divvied up the movies amongst several members of our team. The pictures that Oscar voters noticed are in red for you completists, the bold titles were nominated for Best Picture.
ACT ONE
- Episode 1 The Search (1948) Best Actor nod
- Episode 2 Red River (1948) first huge hit - FREE ON PRIME
- Episode 3 The Heiress (1949) FREE ON CRITERION CHANNEL
- Episode 4 The Big Lift (1950) FREE ON PRIME
- Episode 5 A Place in the Sun (1951) Best Actor nod FREE ON PRIME
- Episode 6 I Confess (1953) his only Hitchcock
- Episode 7 Indiscretion of an American Wife (1953) FREE ON PRIME
- Episode 8 From Here to Eternity (1953) Best Actor nod
ACT TWO
- Episode 9 Raintree County (1957)
- Episode 10 The Young Lions (1958) Only film with Brando
- Episode 11 Lonelyhearts (1958)
- Episode 12 Suddenly, Last Summer (1959) third and final film with Liz
- Episode 13 Wild River (1960)
- Episode 14 The Misfits (1961) FREE ON ROKU with ads
- Episode 15 Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) final Oscar nod
- Episode 16 Freud (1962)
POSTHUMOUS
- Episode 17 The Defector (1966) released posthumously
- Epilogue Making Montgomery Clift (2018) the documentary
We hope you'll join the festivities by watching at least a few of the pictures you've missed up until now and celebrating in the comments.