Screenhead

Christmas Eve 2008 saw the death of the last great literary legend, playwright, Harold Pinter. Dead at the age of 78 from cancer, Pinter left behind a legacy stretching from plays to human rights, and of course cinema.

Commencing his career as an actor, Pinter began writing plays in the late 1950’s. His style can be likened to that of Samuel Beckett, pointed dialogue and plots that don’t quite make sense in the world of the here and now. Unlike Beckett, Pinter masked his settings in the everyday, but beneath lay a stage of the powerful unconscious. As Pinter continued writing (and increasing in popularity) his plays took on a political nature, criticising the state’s hold on individuality, as seen in plays like One for the Road.

Pinter even became known for a distinct style, so much so that the adjective Pinteresque became a valid word in the English dictionary. His style veered away from traditional stylised theatre in which characters spoke their mind and feelings, and instead used banal conversations to conceal their thoughts and struggle for power.

Pinter also wrote for cinema, penning several screenplays, including an Oscar-nominated for the script of The French Lieutenant’s Woman. He also continued to act, most notably creating a hugely powerful presence in a recent New York production of One for the Road, as well as perfectly portraying the dominant director in David Mamet’s version of Beckett’s Castrophe (which you can watch here). Pinter even popped up in the Pierce Brosnan flick The Tailor of Panama. But it was really Pinter’s style that influenced cinema, his punchy dialogue, loaded with menace and wit, which went on to inspire the likes of Mamet and Sam Shepard.

I once had the opportunity to briefly meet Pinter. After an evening in which Pinter read passages from his carer and reflected on his experiences, I noticed him besides me having a drink of wine. Mildly inebriated, I sat next to him and tried to concoct some question about modern writing lacking the enthusiasm and anger to aim for change, to which he raised his fist and nodded until I slinked away. I can now tell future generations that I was patronised by one of modern history’s greatest writers!

And for anyone unfamiliar with Pinter’s talent, below is a clip from one of his most famous plays, The Homecoming. This version features a young Ian Holm and Pinter’s wife in one of the aforementioned verbal power-struggles.

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