Recent mentions of Clint Eastwood have not involved commentary on the film legend's career or his latest film TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE, but instead on his recent performance at the Republican National Convention. His communication with the "invisible" Barack Obama created quite a controversy, as some begin to question whether or not this presentation was affected by Eastwood's age.
Grandma and Grandpa sometimes seem not to hold back the way society may suggest people should, so was the invisible POTUS routine due to Eastwood's age? Given the country's reaction, maybe his acting and his movies like TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE, are a better outlet to understanding the way people change as they get older.
Aging is inevitable. Sometimes, you have to learn to change your role as the seasons of your life change. For Clint Eastwood, a man of many roles in Hollywood, aging played part in his decision to step aside and allow friend Robert Lorenz to direct TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE, a role that only Eastwood had played in his films for years.
"After Gran Torino, I just thought it was kinda stupid for me to do both jobs. I've only been doing it for 40-some years. "Am I aging?" Eastwood quipped. "You get to a certain age and you're just glad to be there. You have to be a realist."
Eastwood, referring to not only stepping aside as director, but knowing that as his career goes on, he must realize his changing roles as an older actor. "I can't say, 'Oh, I want to play a 35-year-old anymore," he said.
TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE in a nutshell: aging, relationships, baseball, and how to deal with it all. More complex than that however, are the story lines behind each of those circumstances. Age is a major factor that his character Gus is dealing with in the movie. With age comes losing his vision, a struggle not so easy for a professional baseball scout! Thanks to his daughter Mickey (Amy Adams) and former baseball player-turned-scout Johnny (Justin Timberlake), the grumpy old man accomplishes what he sets out to do.
Justin Timberlake accomplished much more than he ever imagined by not only working with Eastwood, but also personally engaging with him in their off-time.
"If you would've told me a year before that I was going to get to sit at a bar and drink scotch and trade lines with Mr. Eastwood, I would have laughed at you...and then I would've probably cried.
"There was such a constant good feeling anytime we were on set."
At the center of the story is Eastwood and Adams, a father and daughter, whose lives have taken them in opposite directions. Even when they're together, they are worlds apart. Throw a little baseball and comedy (mainly from Timberlake) in there, and you've got a really good story.
TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE comes out this week. If life interests you, so will this curveball.
