Barry Levinson

October 28, 1996

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Born 1942 in Baltimore, Maryland, Levinson began work in entertainment as a comedy writer and occasional performer. He provided the scripts (with the help of Mel Brooks) for Brooks' Silent Movie and High Anxiety. He made his directorial debut with the nostalgic 1950's story, Diner (1982). The movie was a critical hit, and it earned Levinson a chance to direct two bigger (though less successful) features. The baseball epic The Natural (1984) and the fantasy Young Sherlock Holmes both received mixed reviews and lots of ennui from the paying public.

In 1987, Levinson's luck started to change for the better. He continued his popular "Baltimore Trilogy" with Tin Men (1987), and gained huge commercial success with the Robin Williams vehicle, Good Morning, Vietnam (1987). The next year, he received his first Academy award as a director for the fine drama, Rain Man (1988). He finished his trilogy with Avalon (1990), and gained another hit with the gangster saga, Bugsy (1991). He nearly hit rock bottom however with the dreadful "children's" film Toys (1992) and the disastrous comedy Jimmy Hollywood (1994). He picked up again with the adaptation of the Michael Crichton novel, Disclosure (1994), about sexual harassment and the business world. His most recent hit Sleepers, based on the controversial best seller by Lorenzo Carcaterra, shows Levinson's usual good eye for fine detail and ear for dialogue. His movies are always impressive when it comes to the screenplay and stories . That is why I believe Levinson is one of the finest modern-day storytellers, this side of Hollywood.

My rating on a scale of 1 to 10: 8

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