Film / News
Tributes paid to the Bristolian director of Flash Gordon and Get Carter
Best known for directing the cult Flash Gordon (“Gordon’s alive!”) and gritty 1971 gangster flick Get Carter, starring Michael Caine, Bristol-born Mike Hodges has died at the age of 90.
The outdoor screening of Flash Gordon next to M Shed in 2018 – photo: Jack Offord
Although his career took him to Hollywood, where his credits also included the under-appreciated Pulp (1972), also starring Michael Caine, The Terminal Man (1974), Black Rainbow (1989) and Croupier (1998), Hodges retained close links with the city of his birth.
Back in 2005, he was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters by UWE Bristol for his “outstanding and nationally significant contributions to cultural progress and understanding, particularly through his film and television work”.
Hodges was also a keen supporter of Cinema Rediscovered, Bristol’s annual celebration of classic cinema.
“We are sad to hear the passing of our dear friend Mike Hodges who joined us at Cinema Rediscovered in 2018 and 2019,” said curator James Harrison on behalf of the Cinema Rediscovered team.
“One of the major highlights of the festival will always be our outside screening of Flash Gordon on Bristol’s Harbourside, with Mike introducing the film. But we were also thrilled to have Mike join us for a number of other screenings of his films including Get Carter, Pulp, Croupier, The Terminal Man and Black Rainbow.
“Mike always brought a fantastic atmosphere with him whenever he ever joined us and we will miss his wonderful stories and his great sense of humour. British cinema and Bristol has lost one of its greatest heroes.”
Writing on Twitter, Samira Ahmed, who joined Hodges in introducing Flash Gordon in Bristol, added: “He was always the life and soul at the @CinemaRedis festival… holding us rapt with his stories of filmmaking. His incredible Renaissance Man mind teeming with ideas.”
Main photo: Jack Offord
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