History Creator / SamuelFuller

The UsefulNotes/FallOfTheStudioSystem led to a period in wilderness for Fuller, where he worked in Television and as a screenwriter for hire with many projects stuck in DevelopmentHell. Paradoxically, Fuller became a LivingLegend, appearing in films by other directors and regarded as an OldMaster who young directors took pilgrimages to seek advice and inspiration from. He was the first choice for the role of Hyman Roth in Creator/FrancisFordCoppola's ''[[Film/TheGodfather The Godfather Part II]]'', and an audition with him and Creator/AlPacino exists (the role was passed over by Elia Kazan and was later played by acting teacher Lee Strasberg). Eventually, Fuller made his comeback with the film he waited all his life to make, ''Film/TheBigRedOne'' starring Creator/LeeMarvin and Creator/MarkHamill. ExecutiveMeddling prevented it from becoming a major hit (a ReCut after his death restores the full vision of Fuller's great film). It's the only major UsefulNotes/WorldWarII film shot by an actual veteran infantryman and survivor and is uncanny for its accuracy in portraying the psychology of warfare. His second film of the 80s was ''Film/WhiteDog'', about a dog trained to attack black people; it was shelved and {{Misblamed}} although it would be VindicatedByHistory. Fuller made TV films after that, and retired in France where he had a daughter in his later years and spent his final years working on his autobiography with the distinct title, ''A Third Face : My Tale of Writing, Fighting and Film-making'' which was published and edited by his wife Christa Fuller (herself an actress who appeared in Godard's ''Alphaville'').

* MyCountryTisOfTheeThatISting: Fuller was a veteran infantryman so he definitely loved America and was a true patriot but he was also quite critical of American society in films like ''Shock Corridor, The Naked Kiss'' and ''Film/WhiteDog'' as well as the empty patriotism that characterized the RedScare (Widmark in ''Pickup on South Street'' mocks the police officer for "waving the flag at me"). The scientist Boden (Played by Fuller regular Gene Evans) in ''Shock Corridor'' probably serves as an AuthorAvatar when he remarks:

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sam_fuller_5494.jpg]]

->''"It’s been said that if you don’t like Music/{{The Rolling Stones|Band}}, then you just don’t like {{rock and roll}}. By the same token, I think that if you don’t like the films of Sam Fuller, then you [[SeriousBusiness just don’t like cinema]]. Or at least you don’t understand it."''

There's RealityIsUnrealistic, and then there's screenwriter/director Samuel Michael Fuller (August 12, 1912 – October 30, 1997).

The list of people influenced by Fuller are legendary, including Creator/StevenSpielberg (who cast him in his ''Film/NineteenFortyOne'' in a brief cameo), Creator/MartinScorsese, Jonathan Demme, Creator/QuentinTarantino, and Creator/JimJarmusch in addition to his large following in Europe. There's a street named after him in UsefulNotes/{{Finland}}. Put it simply, they don't make 'em like Sammy Fuller anymore.

->''"It’s been said that if you don’t like Music/TheRollingStones, then you just don’t like {{rock and roll}}. By the same token, I think that if you don’t like the films of Sam Fuller, then you [[SeriousBusiness just don’t like cinema]]. Or at least you don’t understand it."''

The UsefulNotes/FallOfTheStudioSystem led to a period in wilderness for Fuller, where he worked in Television and as a screenwriter for hire with many projects stuck in DevelopmentHell. Paradoxically, Fuller became a LivingLegend, appearing in films by other directors and regarded as an OldMaster who young directors took pilgrimages to seek advice and inspiration from. He was the first choice for the role of Hyman Roth in Creator/FrancisFordCoppola's ''[[Film/TheGodfather The Godfather Part II]]'', and an audition with him and Creator/AlPacino exists(the role was passed over by Elia Kazan and was later played by acting teacher Lee Strasberg). Eventually, Fuller made his comeback with the film he waited all his life to make, ''Film/TheBigRedOne'' starring Creator/LeeMarvin and Creator/MarkHamill. ExecutiveMeddling prevented it from becoming a major hit (a ReCut after his death restores the full vision of Fuller's great film). It's the only major UsefulNotes/WorldWarII film shot by an actual veteran infantryman and survivor and is uncanny for its accuracy in portraying the psychology of warfare. His second film of the 80s was ''Film/WhiteDog'', about a dog trained to attack black people; it was shelved and {{Misblamed}} although it would be VindicatedByHistory. Fuller made TV films after that, and retired in France where he had a daughter in his later years and spent his final years working on his autobiography with the distinct title, ''A Third Face : My Tale of Writing, Fighting and Film-making'' which was published and edited by his wife Christa Fuller (herself an actress who appeared in Godard's ''Alphaville'').

There's TaughtByExperience and there's a life that allows you, in Fuller's words, "to cover [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor the biggest crime story of the century"]]. The very first film Fuller shot was footage of the liberation of [[UsefulNotes/TheHolocaust the concentration camp Falkenau]], an experience which needless to say left a mark on him. When Fuller made his films, he had little time for sentiment or phony gimmicks, possessing a journalist's instinct to get [[HatesSmallTalk to the heart of things]]. The result is some of the most visually exciting and unforgettable films of the 50s, in genres like TheWestern, FilmNoir and especially WarMovies. He also made some GenreBusting satirical films like ''Film/ShockCorridor'', ''The Naked Kiss'' and ''Film/WhiteDog'', which explored the underbelly of America. As a director, Fuller's personality was incredibly charismatic and large hearted and he was never without his impressive cigar, instead of calling action, he would fire a revolver on set. He wrote, produced and directed his best films and was prized in France for being an auteur, counting many a BigNameFan like Jean-Luc Godard, Creator/FrancoisTruffaut and others.

* ''Underworld U.S.A. (1961)''

The UsefulNotes/FallOfTheStudioSystem led to a period in wilderness for Fuller, where he worked in Television and as a screenwriter for hire with many projects stuck in DevelopmentHell. Paradoxically, Fuller became a LivingLegend, appearing in films by other directors and regarded as an OldMaster who young directors took pilgrimages to seek advice and inspiration from. He was the first choice for the role of Hyman Roth in Creator/FrancisFordCoppola's ''[[Film/TheGodfather The Godfather Part II]]'', and an audition with him and Creator/AlPacino exists(the role was passed over by Elia Kazan and was later played by acting teacher Lee Strasberg). Eventually, Fuller made his comeback with the film he waited all his life to make, ''Film/TheBigRedOne'' starring Creator/LeeMarvin and Creator/MarkHamill. ExecutiveMeddling prevented it from becoming a major hit (a ReCut after his death restores the full vision of Fuller's great film). It's the only major UsefulNotes/WorldWarII film shot by an actual veteran infantryman and survivor and is uncanny for its accuracy in portraying the psychology of warfare. His second film of the 80s was ''Film/WhiteDog'', about a dog trained to attack black people; it was shelved and {{Misblamed}} although it would be VindicatedByHistory. Fuller made TV films after that, and retired in France where he had a daughter in his later years and spent his final years working on his autobiography with the distinct title, ''A Third Face : My Tale of Writing, Fighting and Film-making'' which was published and edited by his wife Christa Fuller(herself an actress who appeared in Godard's ''Alphaville'').

There's RealityIsUnrealistic, and then there's Samuel Michael Fuller (August 12, 1912 – October 30, 1997).

There's TaughtByExperience and there's a life that allows you, in Fuller's words, "to cover [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor the biggest crime story of the century"]]. The very first film Fuller shot was footage of the liberation of [[UsefulNotes/TheHolocaust the concentration camp Falkenau]], an experience which needless to say left a mark on him. When Fuller made his films, he had little time for sentiment or phony gimmicks, possessing a journalist's instinct to get [[HatesSmallTalk to the heart of things]]. The result is some of the most visually exciting and unforgettable films of the 50s, in genres like TheWestern, FilmNoir and especially WarMovies. He also made some GenreBusting satirical films like ''Film/ShockCorridor'', ''The Naked Kiss'' and ''White Dog'', which explored the underbelly of America. As a director, Fuller's personality was incredibly charismatic and large hearted and he was never without his impressive cigar, instead of calling action, he would fire a revolver on set. He wrote, produced and directed his best films and was prized in France for being an auteur, counting many a BigNameFan like Jean-Luc Godard, Creator/FrancoisTruffaut and others.

The UsefulNotes/FallOfTheStudioSystem led to a period in wilderness for Fuller, where he worked in Television and as a screenwriter for hire with many projects stuck in DevelopmentHell. Paradoxically, Fuller became a LivingLegend, appearing in films by other directors and regarded as an OldMaster who young directors took pilgrimages to seek advice and inspiration from. He was the first choice for the role of Hyman Roth in Creator/FrancisFordCoppola's ''[[Film/TheGodfather The Godfather Part II]]'', and an audition with him and Creator/AlPacino exists(the role was passed over by Elia Kazan and was later played by acting teacher Lee Strasberg). Eventually, Fuller made his comeback with the film he waited all his life to make, ''Film/TheBigRedOne'' starring Creator/LeeMarvin and Creator/MarkHamill. ExecutiveMeddling prevented it from becoming a major hit (a ReCut after his death restores the full vision of Fuller's great film). It's the only major UsefulNotes/WorldWarII film shot by an actual veteran infantryman and survivor and is uncanny for its accuracy in portraying the psychology of warfare. His second film of the 80s was ''White Dog'', about a dog trained to attack black people; it was shelved and {{Misblamed}} although it would be VindicatedByHistory. Fuller made TV films after that, and retired in France where he had a daughter in his later years and spent his final years working on his autobiography with the distinct title, ''A Third Face : My Tale of Writing, Fighting and Film-making'' which was published and edited by his wife Christa Fuller(herself an actress who appeared in Godard's ''Alphaville'').

* ''White Dog (1982)''

* MyCountryTisOfTheeThatISting: Fuller was a veteran infantryman so he definitely loved America and was a true patriot but he was also quite critical of American society in films like ''Shock Corridor, The Naked Kiss'' and ''White Dog'' as well as the empty patriotism that characterized the RedScare (Widmark in ''Pickup on South Street'' mocks the police officer for "waving the flag at me"). The scientist Boden (Played by Fuller regular Gene Evans) in ''Shock Corridor'' probably serves as an AuthorAvatar when he remarks: