Kotcheff was probably known as more of a journeyman director as time went on, and pretty much landed back in TV after FOLKS! – which came up in the Tom Selleck thread – did no one any favours. After starting with a run of interesting U.S. and U.K. movies and TV throughout the 60’s, he really knocked it out of the park with the Australian film WAKE IN FRIGHT (1971) – for my money his best work – and then a mixed bag of big hits and fairly respectable MOR fare, including THE APPRENTICESHIP OF DUDDY KRAVITZ (remembering his Canadian roots!), FUN WITH DICK AND JANE, NORTH DALLAS FORTY, UNCOMMON VALOR, SWITCHING CHANNELS, WEEKEND AT BERNIES, and most notably, FIRST BLOOD.

I’m guessing he retired quite comfortably on the proceeds from producing nearly 300 episodes of LAW & ORDER: SVU.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainmen...dead-1.7508525

First Blood is a very impressive movie. Such an unpleasant and disturbing story against a beautiful landscape.

I remember best his two Mordechai Richler adaptations, The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz and Joshua Then and Now.

Legend imo... in terms of fun and very watchable films. Split Image is an underrated one.

Definitely getting the Umbrella Entertainment 4K disc chunky box set of Wake in Fright now.

He directed a few really good movies and some solid ones, but outside of First Blood, I wouldn't have known that any of those movies were directed by him.

Totally agree. I remember finally coming around to seeing certain films on DVD or Blu – often just filling in gaps in my experience with loaners from the library – that I’d recall from the video store shelves as a kid and realizing “interesting, I didn’t know he directed that.” As I noted, I think he was a solid journeyman director, one of countless guys (and gals) producers could rely on to get a decent movie made, probably on time and on budget, that might have a chance of making a good profit. If one or two of them turn out to smash hits or arthouse classics, it’s probably a combination of timing, cast, subject matter, novelty, or other factors more than people racing out to see the latest ‘Ted Kotcheff film’. A lot of directors like that eventually seem to find their films feeling outdated and/or underperforming (as with SWITCHING CHANNELS, WINTER PEOPLE, FOLKS) and end up moving to DTV and TV fare. Being onboard SVU from the first episode was probably one of his savvier moves.

FIRST BLOOD is obviously his Big One, and a great film regardless of one’s opinion of where the franchise went later on, but WAKE IN FRIGHT is the true stunner (its rescue and restoration is an interesting if somewhat controversial tale), especially if you seen a bunch of his decent but less remarkable films. You just wouldn’t expect the director of something like that to wind up making WEEKEND AT BERNIE’S (enjoyable though it was). The Umbrella box set that Why So Blu mentioned has tempted me for a while. I had the old Image/Drafthouse Blu-ray (which shared many of the supplements on the Umbrella disc), but ultimately sold it when it went OOP. The film wouldn’t be out of place in the Criterion Collection, although Umbrella’s deal with Vinegar Syndrome probably means it’ll be available in North America through them eventually. (it’s worth noting that if you do watch it, getting some context behind the kangaroo hunting scenes beforehand is probably wise [it’s all in the wiki, for starters]. They’re relevant to the plot and characterizations but probably could’ve been faked despite actually being a depiction of an actual and common event, and the depiction isn’t at all in league with what, say, the Italians did in some of their carnival/zombie horror movies. Thus my temptation by the Umbrella edition, albeit probably the standard set).

I saw this news yesterday, but I didn't think Kotcheff was a big enough name to bring out much engagement. I was aware he directed First Blood, but the name never really crossed my mind through the years as his work seemed mostly low key. And I wasn't really aware that he spent a good chunk of his later career as a producer and director on Law and Order: SVU.

Since Wake in Fright got mentioned so positive in this thread, I will check it. I've never even heard of it.

Its a great film, and an important Australian film (despite so many ‘outsiders’ in key roles, including Kotcheff), but it does come with a caveat that I noted in my previous post, which I was expanding a bit while you commented. There is researchable context to it that separates it from similar unpleasantness that other less-scrupulous filmmakers have indulged in (particularly certain Italians), but it helps to be aware of the filmmakers’ clear-headed motivations one way or the other.