Pollock

Ed Harris' directorial debut is also one of the best acting performances of his career, as he portrays the late Jackson Pollock, a drunk, manic-depressive and one of the finest artists of his time. \nThe film is arranged in much the same way that Pollock painted: beautifully and franticly. Pollock believed art did not have to have meaning but should be appreciated for what it is. \nThe movie feels like one of his famous "drip" paintings, as one scene is packed onto another, leaving the viewer with a full scope of Pollock's mood swings, home life and art but wondering what exactly to make of it. And that is the point. Harris' film and his performance bring Pollock to life, and each scene sheds new light onto this intriguing man.\nThe film opens with Pollock signing an issue of Life magazine for a fan in 1949 and then goes back to 1941, when his brother helps the drunk and enraged artist upstairs to his apartment. His brother and sister-in-law essentially baby-sit the grown man.\nThis is how many of Pollock's close relationships play out, including one with his lover-turned-wife and fellow artist Lee Krasner. Marcia Gay Harden received an Academy Award for the role of his loving wife who realized his gift more than anyone else. Harris' real-life wife, Amy Madigan, is good as the eccentric artist Peggy Guggenheim, who gives Pollock's career much needed exposure.\nAt the heart of the film is Harris' incredible performance as he brings Pollock to life both as a man and an artist. While Pollock did have many emotional problems, his biggest problem was when people criticized his work because it lacked meaning in their eyes. \nAs his fame grew, he was interviewed on a radio show, made the subject of a film and covered in Life. All three instances found him at odds with the reporter or filmmaker. When asked how he knows he is done with a painting, he responds, "How do you know when you're done making love?" Like many great artists, many of Pollock's contemporaries did not understand his talent and work. \nThis film is, if nothing else, a vehicle that society can use to better understand him. Like his art, "Pollock" is a simple film about a complicated man. It lets viewers judge for themselves.