Hal Ashby in the 70's

Den of Cin

We're back in the Den of Cin to celebrate the fantastic streak of artistic triumphs of director Hal Ashby in the 1970s! A complicated man with a gentle soul, Hal Ashby has seemed to fall out of the conversation of being one of the most vital filmmakers of all time, based on this run of films alone. Not even most of the modern greats can stake claim to this kind of hot streak. While not always box office hits, every one of the films we discuss here has had an influence on everything that's come since. From his boldly artistic start with 1970's THE LANDLORD, through instant cult classics like HAROLD & MAUDE and THE LAST DETAIL, political statements such as SHAMPOO, BOUND FOR GLORY, and COMING HOME, and closing out this winning decade with 1979's mind-blowing BEING THERE, Hal Ashby proved that his themes of class struggle, racial relations, abuse by authority, haves and have nots, and good old fashioned anti-war sentiment shines through the very different styles and approaches he brings to each film. Any film is almost impossible to compare to the next, yet they all unmistakably carry the Ashby touch.