The late actor, whose long career stretched from M*A*S*H to The Hunger Games, died yesterday at the age of 88. Our resident film critic David Mouriquand remembers meeting him at the Venice Film Festival and how one interaction with his fans defined for him what a true celebrity could and should be. I had the pleasure of meeting Donald Sutherland at the Venice Film Festival in 2019.
He was attending the event for the closing film of the 76th edition, Giuseppe Capotondi’s underrated crime thriller . It was one of the last films to screen to the press that year, and the starry cast had made their way to the Lido for one of the final press conferences. Obviously, the focus of attention was Mick Jagger, who starred in the film and put on a bit of a show when he entered the press room.
He was followed by the director and co-stars Claes Bang, Elizabeth Debicki and the great Donald Sutherland. My first thought as he entered went to the absence of his glorious white beard, as this was a clean-shaven Donald. There was always something about that imperial facial hair, which had come to define his look in his later years after his formidable moustache had done some of the heavy lifting in the 70s, that did it for me.
It gave him an added air of distinguished gravitas that few could pull off quite as majestically. He answered the handful of questions directed at him, always with poise and a mischiefful twinkle in his eye. It was that trait and the way he smiled that made him such a joy .