Renowned for his versatile performances in films like M*A*S*H and The Hunger Games, Sutherland leaves a legacy of complex roles that captured the depth of human emotion across decades.
The Canadian actor, Donald Sutherland, passed away on June 20 at the age of 88. One of the latest in entertainment news, his death marks the loss of a Hollywood star with a versatile career spanning numerous films throughout his long career.
Memorable Performances Across Genres
Even in some of the best hour-and-a-half movies, his exceptional performances make it difficult to pinpoint a definitive Sutherland performance. He had the ability to switch from being a sinister Nazi spy to a vulnerable hero in a matter of minutes, with his pliable and agreeable facial features, charismatic eyebrows, and charming smile. His trustworthy face was what made him so impactful in Philip Kaufman’s 1978 science fiction thriller, Invasion of the Body Snatchers. When Sutherland’s character, the kind and intelligent Matthew Bennell, is taken over by alien beings, it feels like all hope is lost. His portrayal reflected the best and worst, or perhaps just the most flawed, aspects of ourselves. Few actors have been able to blend fearlessness with jovial humor and melancholic depth like he did, whether playing a boozy G.I. medic in M*A*S*H or an existentially lovesick detective in Klute.
Early Career Highlights
Early on in his career, he played two roles that showed men in crisis and fathers struggling with grief while also trying to help their wives heal. In Robert Redford’s Ordinary People (1980), Sutherland plays Calvin Jarrett, a patriarch mourning the loss of his son and trying to protect his fragile younger child from his emotionally distant wife, Beth (Mary Tyler Moore). Similarly, in Nicolas Roeg’s Don’t Look Now (1973), he plays John Baxter, a husband trying to reason with his wife, Laura (Julie Christie), who desperately wants to contact their deceased child. In both roles, he carries the weight of being reasonable while suppressing his emotions. These performances can be seen as a dual portrait of masculinity in the late 20th century, where even as young people were striving for freedom, the reality of adult suffering could not be escaped.
Defining Roles in the 1970s and 1980s
Sutherland portrayed this suffering in a way that made it impossible to ignore, showing that becoming an adult means facing difficult emotions and feeling them deeply. To numb oneself is to give up. To balance out this heaviness, Sutherland’s playful and mischievous side could be seen in movies like Robert Altman’s M*A*S*H (1970), where he played army surgeon Hawkeye Pierce with a carefree attitude. He even performed well in otherwise mediocre films, such as John Schlesinger’s The Day of the Locust (1975), where he played Homer Simpson, an innocent accountant who falls victim to Hollywood’s cruelty. Sutherland never allowed himself to become a symbol, he always played a person.
Collaborations with Acclaimed Directors
The list of films he appeared in and gave great performances in is too long to summarize, from forgotten movie gems to blockbuster IP-backed action franchises. He worked with various acclaimed directors, including Bernardo Bertolucci in 1900, Claude Chabrol, Federico Fellini in Casanova, Clint Eastwood, and James Gray. One of his finest performances was in Alan Pakula’s Klute, where he played a detective from Pennsylvania assigned to investigate a missing person’s case by shadowing a high-class call girl, Bree Daniel (Jane Fonda). He falls in love with her, but in typical Sutherland fashion, we can see it before he does. At one point, Bree tries to manipulate him by offering to sleep with him for free in a memorable Donald Sutherland sex scene. Sutherland’s character, Detective Klute, resists her advances and focuses on his duty to protect her when he senses someone on the roof above. But briefly, as Bree unzips her dress, he looks as though he might cry, showing his character’s tender and lost side even in his devotion to duty. This was the Sutherland touch. He was also disarmingly attractive, a matinee idol with a calm demeanor.
Later Career and Iconic Roles
While his most notable roles were in the 1970s and 1980s, he gave wonderful performances in his later years, avoiding the fate of many fading actors. Modern audiences may know him best as the charismatic evil ruler President Snow in the Hunger Games series, but he also gave an astonishing and delightful performance as Mr. Bennet, the benevolent English patriarch and father of Elizabeth (Keira Knightley), in Joe Wright’s 2005 adaptation of Pride & Prejudice. His love for his daughter and his protectiveness towards her shines like a quiet star, but he also knows that he won’t always be there to guarantee her happiness as he nears the end of his life. As always, Sutherland made complex human emotions feel ordinary, because they are.
Political Activism and Impact
Sutherland’s political activity was also notable. He narrated the antiwar docudrama F.T.A. and provided stark insight into the Vietnam War. He appeared in several Vietnam-era war flicks that offered a countercultural take, such as Kelly’s Heroes alongside famous Kellys like Clint Eastwood and Telly Savalas. His range extended from serious dramas to absurdist comedies like The Kentucky Fried Movie and National Lampoon’s Animal House.
Sutherland had a gravitas that elevated even small roles, like his cameo as the mysterious Mr. X in Oliver Stone’s J.F.K., meeting Kevin Costner’s Jim Garrison at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. He could play it straight in thrillers like The Eye of a Needle or go big with eyebrow-arching wickedness in the garish Fellini’s Casanova. His presence grounded the satire of The Dirty Dozen and the silliness of the nutty professor spoof The Castle of the Living Dead.
While Sutherland may not have the same name recognition today as peers like Sylvester Stallone, Dustin Hoffman, or Jason Statham, his impact was just as significant. He never chased blockbuster success or relied on CGI, instead focusing on interesting, complex roles across various genres. From the Baltic Storm to Little Murders, he left an indelible mark.
Legacy and Lasting Impact
With Sutherland’s passing, many are searching to find out who died today, looking for the actor died headline. For those who followed his work across decades, his death hits like the loss of an old friend. His talent was undeniable even for those who only know him from recent roles.
Donald Sutherland was a true Hollywood legend and an actor who deserved more recognition in his lifetime. His legacy will live on through the incredible body of work he leaves behind. From his early days taking bit parts to his status as an in-demand character actor, he remained devoted to his craft. He showed that subtlety, nuance, and the ability to convey authentic human emotion will always resonate more than flashy roles or action heroics. Sutherland was one-of-a-kind and will be deeply missed.
Source:
Stephanie Zacharek (June 20, 2024). Donald Sutherland Was an Actor of Everyday Profundity. Times. https://time.com/6990420/donald-sutherland-remembrance/. Accessed June 23, 2024
Header image:
Donald Sutherland at the 2013 Monte-Carlo Television Festival.
Photo credit: Frantogian, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
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