Silly Streep

The Film Society of Lincoln Center presented a gala tribute to Meryl Streep on Monday, April 14, 2008. It was the 36th such ceremony, all directed and edited by Wendy Keys, with a writing contribution on this occasion by Joanna Ney. Meryl and I have had our publicly aired differences over the years, but in this instance I must say that she and the evening were total triumphs. This included the many eloquently heartfelt tributes from admirers like Robert Redford, Jonathan Demme, Uma Thurman, Robert De Niro, Amy Adams, Garrison Keillor and Mike Nichols, among others. But the evening’s standout was Meryl herself with her brilliantly concluding stand-up performance, funnier, more accomplished and more intuitively in harmony with her audience than any I have seen anywhere. To put it more simply, bravo, Meryl! You were magnifico!