Offscreen Notes
Ted Kotcheff (1931-April 10, 2025)
Ted Kotcheff was a stalwart Canadian film director who excelled in action, drama, and comedy. First Blood (1987) set the template for many later post-war films that dealt with PTSD and holds up well forty odd years later. When watched today if feels more drama than action, unlike the later sequels. And with an obvious social message about the unpopularity of the Vietnam War and the scapegoating of soldiers who suffered at war and then again at home. His best film might be the Australian shot Wake in Fright (1971), a surreal descent into toxic masculinity and what happens to a group of men who can not contol their base desires when confronted by alcohol and an untamed nature. Kotcheff directed two of the best adaptations of Canadian literary icon Mordecai Richler, The Appreticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1974) and Joshua Then and Now (1985). His touch for humor evident in the two Richler stories fleshed itself out in broader comedies like Fun With Dick and Jane (1977) and Weekend at Bernie's (1989). Kotcheff was 94 when he died.
