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At the time the iconic western film was released, the billing featured Redford alongside Newman and Ross. Now, the lineup has changed—currently it reads Redford second only to Newman. The actor, as the legendary outlaw, stands as among the biggest rising stars after McQueen and Hoffman. Yet, though passably grateful, fame means little to him.

Rejecting the Studio System

“I am not,” he states firmly, “a Hollywood man. Think of that figure who appears William Saroyan’s The Time of Your Life, saying, ‘It’s all built on sand—through and through’? That’s, that’s how I see regarding the film industry. You can’t run a creative medium like manufacturing these days, yet they persist to do just that. To them, film resemble consumer products. I find it repulsive.”

Challenges Behind the Scenes

Naturally, many have said similar things from rising stars. However, Redford, who talks very quietly, seemingly puzzled at the interest in him, comes across as sincere. One of the main reasons from he devoted nearly two years into making the sports drama and found that taking on studios was an even harder job than making a difficult movie.

His project, still unreleased in the UK, despite test showings were being given last year, has been released in the US earning critiques that indicate that it is not just action on slopes. “Actually,” he explains, “the focus is athletics and athletes. And the reason I aimed to release it here in Britain since this is not a skiing country. There is more chance for it to succeed as an examination of human nature rather than sports footage.”

“They wanted to release it where skiing reigns, targeting enthusiasts. In truth… here is a movie which shows an American competitor winning an Olympic gold in downhill racing. Isn’t that thrill them? Oh, boy, if only I avoid attending. It would be brutal.”

Why This Sport?

“Why downhill racing? To me an ideal mix beauty and peril, the perfect vehicle to illustrate how athletics affects individuals. One must be a kind of kamikaze pilot to participate. After experiencing it, you’re transformed.”

“I’d like you to see former champions staying around watching newcomers. They are pathetic. They’re always moving. Nervous habits show continuously. Physically depleted. Sport can be very cruel, for pros and amateurs alike. Frequently it fits you for useless skills, or destroys you completely.”

A Competitive History

Redford should know, formerly a first-class American football and baseball player, potentially famous in tennis also. “Goodness, I despised losing,” he says, “finally I got so that I just couldn’t go on, win or lose. I’d often observe across the court and think—goodness, his left sock is coming down. His shoe is going to murder that bare ankle soon, yet he’s so focused on the match that he won’t even feel it. Then I’d notice an audience member, and think: ‘What is he pondering right now? Is my game just an extension of him?, competing for him? Then it was 0–40!!’”

The Forgotten Canvas

Another passion, maybe his true calling, was art. He traveled through European cities extensively in the late fifties, interacting with creative minds and thinkers, some authentic, some not. Funds dried up in that beautiful city, yet encountered a mentor organizing displaying his paintings funding his return trip. Upon returning, his dissatisfaction resurfaced. He turned to acting, initially on stage, then television, and finally in films.

Inside Daisy Clover, Barefoot In the Park, Willie Boy, Cassidy, the skiing movie came one after another. Up next was a motorcycle film, centered on bike racing alongside Pollard. After that, perhaps a film about modern rodeo. Athletics seems to following him for a while longer.

And what about painting? Redford looks a little uneasy. “So,” he responds, “I haven’t done it in years. That’s why I want to pause from acting return to it. Can one truly reboot? I doubt it. It’s not for fun, is it?. It’s got to be your entire focus. Mind you, my first visit to London has amazed me in this respect. I’m eager to pick up a brush.”

“Notice the illumination here in London. Incredibly beautiful. Every day since arriving I rise at dawn and explored amazed. I’ve never seen this quality. I must come back before long. Perhaps when the film premieres—assuming it does.”

Newman’s Savvy

“If only I were as clever as Paul Newman. He’d have seen to it that such a movie received proper treatment this way. Take Rachel, Rachel? “Indeed. Even he can’t always buck the establishment.”