Such a great filmmaker, such a great teacher. So much class. So devoid of nonsense. Everyone should read Making Movies. At least three of his movies are required watching for any filmmaker or film lover (12 Angry Men, Network, and Dog Day Afternoon at a bare minimum). He made a very good movie in his 80s. Sad to lose him, but what an incredible legacy.

Xan Brooks from Guardian:

His career spanned six decades and more than 50 films. "All I want is to get better and quantity can help me solve my problems," he once admitted. "I'm thrilled by the idea that I'm not even sure how many films I've done. If I don't have a script I adore, I do the one I like. If I don't have one I like, I do one that has an actor I like or that presents some technical challenge." Along the way, he worked with the likes of Marlon Brando, Katharine Hepburn, Paul Newman, Sean Connery, Albert Finney, Ingrid Bergman and Al Pacino.

Lumet took a memorable final bow with Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, an acclaimed crime saga that proved its creator was still a force to be reckoned with. "The veteran director Sidney Lumet may be 84 years old," wrote Guardian film critic Peter Bradshaw in January 2008. "But in this superb heist thriller, he breaks out the shocks – and the twists – with the ferocity of a hungry youngster."

Recommended Viewing. In honor of Sydney Lumet:

A conversation with filmmaker Sidney Lumet (42 min).

http://bit.ly/fbU9Sl

An interview with Sidney Lumet (60 min). Director Sidney Lumet talks about his decades in the movie business, the commerce of Hollywood, and his memoir "Making Movies".

http://bit.ly/ifFa3X

Nev Pierce: 'Sidney Lumet's 'Making Movies' is one of the best books on filmmaking. Practical, honest, advice from a master. Essential reading.'

I couldn't agree more.

12 Angry men...fantabulous movie! Never tire of it. Often think of my Detroit Lions when I see this line delivered.

Juror #7: You a Yankee fan?
Juror #5: No, Baltimore.
Juror #7: Baltimore? That's like being hit in the head with a crow bar once a day.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/09/sidney-lumet-dead_n_847014.html?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl2%7Csec1_lnk1%7C55173

@BMF: Thanks for those Charlie Rose links. I've updated the OP to include them with a HT to you.

Thank you, Scott.

BTW, "It is I, Leclerc!" (@LaFamiliaFilm).

More Recommended Viewing ('Is Rome worth one good man's life? We believed it once. Make us believe it again. He was a soldier of Rome. Honor him... Who will help me carry him?').

The Illuminating Lumets: Sidney and Jenny

At last night’s Summer Scoops Live event at Lincoln Center, Jenny Lumet, who wrote the screenplay for “Rachel Getting Married,” told how the competitive dishwashing scene with the fathers of the bride and bridegroom in the movie was inspired by a dishwasher-loading contest she witnessed as a child between her dad , legendary director Sidney Lumet, and film director/choreographer Bob Fosse (“Cabaret,” “All That Jazz”).

http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2009/07/22/evening-with-the-lumets/

Sidney Lumet in Conversation with Neal Gabler

http://www.thirteen.org/forum/topics/art-architecture/sidney-lumet-in-conversation-with-neal-gabler/148/

Consider to buy it: 'Directors: Sidney Lumet' [DVD]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Directors-Sidney-Lumet-Region-NTSC/dp/B000069507

You know what was so great about this man? He directed "invisibly." No two of his films look alike. Certainly they share some traits (the moral ambiguities of our legal system, generous use of New York City) but they are stark and distinct in that the situations and characters are what sticks.

As writers that's certainly a lesson we can take with us. The best scripts are usually the ones where you don't "notice" the writer.

Regarding his "Making Movies" book. I had always meant to get to it but since I was more interested in the script side of things, I put it off indefinitely. In 45 days I'll be directing my first short film since my film school days. When I heard of Lumet's passing, I decided it was as good a time as any to read it. Glad I did. I guarantee the two day shoot will go 100 percent smoother for having absorbed advice from this master craftsman. Definitely make it a point to read this book if you haven't yet, filmmaker and writer alike. It will certainly give you a new appreciation for the process - - and make you realize that our petty little story problems don't really amount to a hill of beans in the grand scheme of things when it comes to MAKING MOVIES.