The director Rob Reiner, who died on 14 December age 78 in deeply sad circumstances, didn’t just deliver one of the most impressive runs of movies of the 1980s and 90s. It was more than that: each of the films he directed in this period, from This Is Spinal Tap to Stand By Me, The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally... and Misery, became genre-defining benchmarks of quality and beloved cultural touchstones. Reiner’s endlessly quotable films are the reference points through which we navigate the cinema landscape.
This Is Spinal Tap, for example, might not have been the very first example of a mockumentary, but it is the first that comes to mind in any discussion of the genre. Like several of Reiner’s films – The Princess Bride among them – it wasn’t an immediate hit, but found an enthusiastic and dedicated audience over time. It took a while to build momentum, but the picture’s exquisite skewering of rock pomposity led it to be widely regarded as one of the most influential comedy films of all time.
Rob Reiner with his wife Michele Singer Reiner, also found dead at their LA home
Only last week I referenced his psychological thriller Misery in my review of Alex Russell’s examination of obsessive fandom Lurker. Stand By Me is deservedly a fixture at or near the top of any list of the greatest coming-of-age films in history. A Few Good Men, scripted by then-newcomer Aaron Sorkin, is a supremely taut courtroom drama of a kind that rarely gets made any more. And When Harry Met Sally... is an undisputed jewel in a golden age of Hollywood romantic comedies.
It was one of the most personal of Reiner’s pictures, not least because it was where the director met his second wife, Michele Singer Reiner, who was also found dead at the couple’s LA home. The film, made in close collaboration with screenwriter Nora Ephron, drew from both their experiences as divorcees navigating the dating pool. It also leaned heavily on the repartee between Reiner and his friend Billy Crystal, who stars as Harry. It works superbly well, largely because Reiner and Ephron counter the fluffier tendencies of the romcom with spikes of astringency and cynicism. And it perfectly showcases Reiner’s generous and collaborative way of working: the Katz’s Deli scene was originally scripted as just a conversation until Meg Ryan suggested introducing the now-legendary fake orgasm. It was Crystal who came up with that scene’s pitch-perfect kicker – “I’ll have what she’s having” – dryly delivered by Reiner’s mother Estelle.
Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal star in When Harry Met Sally’s now-legendary Katz’s Deli scene
Reiner made movies with mass appeal, but there was nothing disposable about his film-making. These are rich, lovingly crafted pictures that repay multiple viewings; they are the work of a master storyteller.
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Reiner’s cultural contributions were not limited to cinema. He was a committed supporter of progressive political causes. He was a co-founder of the American Foundation for Equal Rights, which successfully challenged Proposition 8, helping lift the amendment that outlawed same-sex marriage in the state of California. He also campaigned for a range of children’s issues, most notably early childhood education and development. Reiner was a force for good. He will be missed in the world of entertainment and beyond.
Photographs by Getty Images