James Foley, a best known for 鈥淕lengarry Glen Ross,鈥� has died. He was 71.
He died earlier this week after a yearlong battle with brain cancer, his representative, Taylor Lomax, said Friday.
In his long and varied career, Foley directed Madonna music videos, 12 episodes of 鈥淗ouse of Cards鈥� and the two , but it was his 1992 adaptation of foulmouthed Pulitzer Prize winning play that stood above the rest. Although it wasn鈥檛 a hit at the time, 鈥淕lengarry Glen Ross鈥� wormed its way into the culture and grew into an oft-quoted cult favorite, especially made-for-the-film 鈥渁lways be closing鈥� monologue.
Critic Tim Grierson wrote 20 years after its release that it remains 鈥渙ne of the quintessential modern movies about masculinity.鈥� He added, 鈥渨hile there are many fine Mamet movies, it鈥檚 interesting that the best of them was this one 鈥� the one he didn鈥檛 direct.鈥�
Born on Dec. 28, 1953, in Brooklyn, Foley studied film in graduate school at the University of Southern California. Legend has it that Hal Ashby once wandered into a film school party where his short happened to be playing at the time and he took a liking to him. Foley would later attribute his ability to make his first feature, 鈥淩eckless,鈥� a 1984 romantic drama about mismatched teenagers in love starring Daryl Hannah, Aidan Quinn and Adam Baldwin, to the Ashby stamp of approval. It was also the first screenplay credited to Chris Columbus, though there were reports of creative differences.
He followed it with the Sean Penn crime drama 鈥淎t Close Range,鈥� the Madonna and Griffin Dunne screwball comedy 鈥淲ho鈥檚 That Girl鈥� and the neo-noir thriller 鈥淎fter Dark, My Sweet," with Jason Patric. Critic Roger Ebert included 鈥淎fter Dark, My Sweet鈥� in his great movies list, calling it 鈥渙ne of the purest and most uncompromising of modern film noir鈥� despite having been 鈥渁lmost forgotten.鈥�
He also directed several music videos for Madonna including 鈥淧apa Don鈥檛 Preach,鈥� 鈥淟ive to Tell,鈥� and 鈥淲ho鈥檚 That Girl,鈥� and an episode of 鈥淭win Peaks.鈥�
Foley adapted John Grisham and worked with Gene Hackman on 鈥淭he Chamber鈥� and made the Reese Witherspoon and Mark Wahlberg teenage love-gone-scary thriller 鈥淔ear,鈥� as well as the largely derided Halle Berry and Bruce Willis psychological thriller 鈥淧erfect Stranger,鈥� which was released in 2007.
It would be a decade before his next film was released, when he was given the reigns to the 鈥淔ifty Shades of Grey鈥� sequels, 鈥淔ifty Shades Darker鈥� and 鈥淔ifty Shades Freed.鈥�
鈥淔or me, what鈥檚 most challenging is stuff that doesn鈥檛 involve the actors, oddly enough 鈥� in three, there鈥檚 a big car chase and there鈥檚 different stunts and stuff and that stuff really bores me,鈥� he told The Associated Press at the UK premiere of 鈥淔ifty Shades Darker.鈥� 鈥淪o when the actors aren鈥檛 around, that鈥檚 difficult because the actors give me so much energy and kind of engagement and a car driving by doesn鈥檛 do the same thing.鈥�
Foley was not an easily definable director, but that was by design. In 2017, he told The Hollywood Reporter that he had no interest in repeating himself.
鈥淚鈥檝e always just followed my nose, for better or for worse, sometimes for worse,鈥� Foley said. 鈥淲hat鈥檚 best and what鈥檚 worst (about the industry) are almost the same to me. What鈥檚 worst is you get pigeonholed and what鈥檚 best is I haven鈥檛 been. It means that I鈥檓 still making movies, despite hopping all over the place.鈥�
Foley is survived by his brother, Kevin Foley, and sisters Eileen and Jo Ann.
Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press
