RIP Edward Woodward, 1930-2009

Why does Edward Woodward have so many "D"'s in his name? Because without them, his name would be "Ewar Woowar."

Known best to American audiences as the supercool ex-British intelligence officer turned vigilante Robert McCall in the TV series The Equalizer (1985-89), Woodward was a respected English actor of the screen, TV and stage. I have always enjoyed his work, expecially for the choices he made and the chances he took.

While the man had range and could play a variety of characters and circumstances, he was most effective playing the proper British (or Welsh or Australian) man with an outdated moral code thrown into extraordinary situations where that code is severely tested. This was present in The Equalizer (one of the 80's great forgotten shows), but even more prominent in his two most memorable film roles.

Woodward played the by the book devout Christian (and celibate) police investigator Neil Howie looking into a series of murders of young girls on the island of Summerisle in the British cult horror classic The Wicker Man (1973). Howie's inner and professional world are thrown into chaos as he realizes that he is dealing with the island's population who celebrate pagan Celtic rituals, including sexual rites and the worship of the sun. He matches wits with the island's religious and government leader, Lord Summerisle (a never creepier Christopher Lee). While Lee's role is the more flamboyant and memorable, it is Woodward, with his internal conflicts, who anchors the film and makes it more than merely a run-of-the-mill horror flick. It also features one of the most memorable final scenes in all of horror films.


ABOVE: Christoper Lee (left) and Edward Woodward (right) match wits in The Wicker Man. After Woodward objects to naked girls leaping over a fire hoping for supernatural impregnation, Lee calmly points out that "Jesus himself was the son of a virgin who was impregnated by a ghost, if I am not mistaken."

Woodward was even better in the title role of Breaker Morant (1980), a wonderful Australian film detailing the life and court martial of Australian folk hero Harry Morant. Not well known in America, Breaker Morant is one of the most highly acclaimed films in Australian cinema. Morant was a well educated military man, horse breaker and poet, who was put on trial for his alleged involvement in the execution of Boer prisoners of war and a German missionary during the Second Boer War. He is a highly controversial figure in Australian history, and Woodward is brilliant in capturing the complexities and contradictions of the man. A great film that is equal parts war film and gripping court room drama. (And also one of the films that just barely missed making Dez's Top 50 Films list).


ABOVE: One of my favorite scenes from Breaker Morant. The three Australian soldiers accused of war crimes discuss their case (that's a young Bryan Brown with the mustache). Woodward gives a great little speech on "a new kind of war," a speech that was as relevant for for Boer War at the turn of the 20th century as it was for Vietnam in the 1970's as it is for fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan today.

RIP Edward Woodward.