The late Bob Rafelson‘s finest directing achievement will always be Five Easy Pieces (’70). He will also be remembered for seven other films he helped to produce as a partner in BBS Productions (an acronym standing for himself, Bert Schneider and Steve Blauner) — Easy Rider, The Last Picture Show, The King of Marvin Gardens, Head, A Safe Place and Drive, He Said.
Rafelson’s second best work as a director is Stay Hungry (’76), a rural, rompy, free-spirited film about bodybuilding, self-discovery and fiddle-playing. Two or three times I’ve called it one of the best family movies ever — one of the gentlest, warmest and funniest.
Hungry was honestly the last Rafelson-helmed film that I really liked. Eight films followed (The Postman Always Rings Twice, Modesty, Black Widow, Mountains of the Moon, Man Trouble, Blood and Wine, a TV film called Poodle Springs, and finally No Good Deed). But you can’t take those early glory years away from Rafelson, and who would want to?
Rafelson died on 7.23.22, at age 89.
