Michael Douglas: Acting on Instinct by Michael Douglas & John Parker

Author:Michael Douglas & John Parker [Douglas, Michael & Parker, John]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Biography & Autobiography, Non-Fiction
Publisher: Headline
Published: 2011-07-21T04:00:00+00:00

That Christmas of 1985, Douglas was appearing in movies running at 3000 cinemas across America. A Chorus Line opened around the same time as The Jewel of the Nile, to some lacklustre reviews. Attenborough had not achieved the mystical quality needed for the film to outperform the stage show; also, some script changes annoyed purist fans. It was a pallid outcome, though Douglas did not fare too badly. Over the years, as the memory of the stage show faded, the movie became more acceptable, particularly in its video form.

The reviews were also fairly harsh for The Jewel of the Nile, most repeating the view that the sequel was not as good as the original. Many rightly criticised its overbearing stunts and hardware. True enough, it was lightweight entertainment, but the critics ought not to have been surprised by that: such a setting, such a series of unlikely situations that these adventure-comedy-romance movies comprise can never really be taken seriously. The film exudes considerable energy and resourcefulness, and what comes over most is the partnership between Douglas and Turner. They clearly liked each other very much, and had a rapport and chemistry that carry very considerable appeal.

Above all, they seemed to be having fun – an achievement in itself, considering the circumstances of the shoot – and, with DeVito intervening in the often silly contrivances of the story, the trio could be compared to Hope, Crosby and Lamour in the Road movies.

So now Michael Douglas put on his promotional hat again and began his tour to sell his film to the public. First he travelled around America with Turner and DeVito, then he went abroad, to Europe and the Far East. He did not touch base again permanently until well into the New Year.

His effort was important. After the post-production costs, film print costs and promotion had been added in, Fox had invested almost $40 million. Douglas was rewarded by the audience response. The Jewel of the Nile took almost as much at the box office as its predecessor had.

He headed back to New York shattered, vowing never again to undertake an epic production in so short a time or in a country whose facilities and difficulties merely exacerbated problems. He was richer both financially and in experience, and he came back with the feeling, ‘Now I can do anything.’

His father had long ago predicted that, one day, Michael Douglas’s talent would explode on to the screen in a big way and that he would become a major star as an actor, not as a producer. He had not achieved it in the swashbuckling adventures of Romancing or Jewel. They were entertaining, were watched by millions and his face was known the world over, but the films were not classics by any means. Douglas knew that.

But something important had happened for Michael on the two films: he had at last found his own inner strength. It would need another producer and another director, over whom he had no control, to bring it out on screen; the time for the explosion that Kirk had forecast was drawing near.

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