Movies Books

I have only read the first 3 or 4 chapters so far, but the editor has no linear stream of conciousness. He meanders along in his thought process with no logical structure in mind. Interesting take on the history of American movies.

Sklar's Movie Made America was assigned as my textbook for a film class I just finished here at UCLA. At first I thought it to be a bit boring, especially because I thought it was just repeating what the professor had discussed in class. However, when I truly began to appreciate this book and take the time to read every word, I realized that Sklar not only presents the facts, but synthesizes the history of American cinema in innovative and interesting contexts. He discusses the way that film, from its start, has changed America as a social body, as a political body, as an economic body, and as a body in of itself.

Certain chapters were intriguing because they took standpoints different than any other author. And while the words are a bit dated, last revised over 10 years ago, it still has a spooky sense of relevance.

Overall, a wonderful book. If you're interested in the history of American film, here you go. I'm not selling this one back to the bookstore during Buy-Back time. That's for sure.

The author shows how movies not only reflect our society but influence it as well.

Are you a film buff, a history buff, or both?

Then this book will fascinate you from start to finish.

This is a must read in the social and cultural history of American cinema.

This is a great book that was required reading for Steven Ross' "Film, Power, and American, History" course at USC. Not only was it very relevant and well organized, but genuinely interesting too!

That's right, I said it... or wrote it, rather. All it is, is a buncha pretentious & self-important actors, producers, and directors who take themselves too seriously givin' out awards to other pretentious & self-important actors, producers, and directors who take themselves too seriously. Then there's alla the hullabaloo over who's wearing what, and the puff-piece red-carpet interviews that I could give less than two doots about. The whole overdressed, softball-question-slinging, self-congratulatory affair can stick it where the sun don't shine! And why the #ell did Chris Rock agree to sign up as the emcee of this year's sad affair?! Thanks to the U.S. government's crackdown on their fuzzy definition of "indecent broadcasting", combined with most of the attending celebrities' general lack of a sense of humor `bout themselves (like Sean Penn's response to Rock's cracks about Jude Law, for example), it was a given that the SNL alum's little spiel was gonna be very watered down, inoffensive, and without any b@lls whatsoever... and who wants to see that! On the upside: considering the string of turkeys he's been in over the years, this event's probably the closest Chris Rock will ever get to holding one of those little naked statues...

But I digress. All I can say is, thank God there's an "awards" show that showcases the kinds of movies I like: monumentally bad ones that are oddly watchable in spite of their absolute hokiness! And the Razzies™, which celebrates 25 years of "The Best of Hollywood's Worst" this year, is the awards show that wallows in the same pool of cheesy goodness that I like to dive into from time to time. Nowadays, however, I don't usually take the plunge before I leaf through this "navigation guide"-- authored by Razzies creator John Wilson-- to find just the right bad movie to spend my evening with. Between the covers are synopses of the 100 most watchable cheeseball flix (according to the Raspberry Awards Academy chairs) ever made, along with a DVD chapter stop to each movie's best bad part (if the movie's available on DVD of course), as well as a bit o' "Dippy Dialogue" from each awful offering. Each of Mr. Wilson's synopses lets ya know what to expect (bad acting, plot holes, implausible moments, unintentionally humorous moments, etc.) in a somewhat acerbic yet oddly gentle manner, layin' out more'n a few witty put-downs and/or beautifully smart-@$$ remarks here `n' there that got me laughin' like a mental patient off his meds. One of his best shots he takes is at the "soft-lensing" techniques in "Xanadu" that "was so soft that many audience members may be concerned they've suddenly contracted glaucoma." Another is his recommended Chapter Stop for "Showgirls", where the flick's big star "reenacts a sex-ed film for dolphins"(and how!)...

Needless to say, this book is a quintessential read for the refined (?!) cheeseball cinema connoisseur. It's also a fairly compelling advertisement to check out a few hokey mo-pics I haven't yet gotten to... like "Battlefield Earth" (the 2000 Worst Picture winner; a Terl (John Travolta's character) action figure "accepted" the award), "Anaconda" (don't know why I haven't gotten to this one yet), "Xanadu" (that "soft-lensing" crack got me curious), "Barbarella" (er, for its artistic merits, `natch), and several other ill-fated titles. Oh, my aching Blockbuster Video rental card...

BTW: Also included is an appendix showcasing a year-by-year listing of all the Razzie winners & nominees (Including "Worst Movie", "Worst Actor", "Worst On-Screen Couple", etc.) from the ceremony's inception in 1981 all the way through to 2004. One of my fave "winners" is Pauly Shore, the 1992 "worst new star" for his performance of "Encino Man". Talk about a harbinger of Shore's scary-talented film career, hmm? Heh...

`Late

If you appreciate movies that "rank" as So-Bad-They're-Good, this book is a MUST. Razzie creator Wilson names his 100 favorite amusingly awful movies, listing cast and credits, original (often hilariously vicious) reviews for each, as well as a pithy essay on what makes each one such fun to watch. For once, someone has written a bad movie book that's about enjoying bad movies, as opposed to just trashing them. For titles available on DVD, Wilson even gives "Choice Chapter Stops," for those who can't wait to go straight to the crux of each clunker's most laughable low-lights. At the back of the book, there's a listing of where and how to buy, rent and/or catch on cable the 100 films listed -- As well as a complete history of The Razzies' first 24 years. Anyone who loves laughing at bad movies will love this book!

I have been a dedicated bad movie aficionado for a long time now, and always pride myself on finding obscure and utterly wretched movies to roll my eyes at. As such, I have seen many of the films in this book, and generally am in wholehearted concurrence with the author and his appraisals of these movies. My favorite bad movie book has always been "The Golden Turkey Awards" by Harry and Michael Medved, and it still is-but just barely. This book is certainly more up to date than The Turkeys, and is of the same general ilk and demeanor.

What I love about this book (and the Razzies in general) is the ability to skewer not only small, insignificant films like "The Creeping Terror" and "Devil Girl From Mars", but to take on hugely bloated yet unspeakably bad tripe like "Glitter", "Exorcist II: The Heretic", and "Spice World".

Truly, this is a treasure trove of bad cinema and has given me many good (bad) suggestions for future viewing, as well as helping me plan future gifts for fellow movie lovers.

If you have any interest in movies, especially if you love the bottom of the barrel so-bad-it's-good film, this book is a must.

If you have ever had a friend who tells you stories that should stand on their own, but instead must continually prop them up by reminding you how funny they are and how funny other people thought they were, then you have an idea of this book. You are told in each synopsis that each movie was so bad it was funny, but rarely does it come across as to why this is so. This may be more a fault of the format than the author, but as someone else stated- you're expecting something livlier from the creator of the Razzies. Still, I enjoyed it, and would give it a nod because of the sheer number of bad movies it lists, and the information it gives. However if you are looking for less of a reference book and more of a humor book, you'll probably want to keep looking.

My previous favorite trashy movie guide "Cult Flicks and Trash Pics" by the Videohound (see listing elsewhere) has just been superseded by Wilson's Razzie guide. Written in tongue-in-cheek fashion and filled with lots of juicy tidbits about each film it discusses, this is a great read. The originator of the Raspberry Awards IRazzies) given to the worst movies of the year, at around the same time as the Oscars, got his start in 1980. Although not all Razzie Award nominees are covered here, for that matter not even all the winners are represented, Wilson does a great job with the ones he does cover.

He even goes back into Razzie pre-history, digging up such wonderful gems as 1977's mondo horror joke "The Car", and several exploitation films from the drive-in scene of the 1950's, "Glen or Glenda?", High School Confidential", etc. And Ed Wood, that maven of bad movies is represented here on more than one occasion (although "Plan 9 From Outer Space" is missing...too easy a target?)

There are even a couple of Oscar winners that get the Razzie treatment. Ubiquitous Easter movie, "The Ten Commandments" is torched, and deservedly so. Not because of it's message, its just that some of the character actors and actresses in that movie are just plain ridiculous. (Why does Edward G. robinson play every character the same way in every movie?)

To my shame, I saw some of these movies when they first came out, originally thinking they were great movies, but to my credit I was young and naive. I have seen "Xanadu" and "The Jazz Singer" in recent years and wondered "What the heck was I thinking?" I intend to see more than a few of the movies in this book now just for the laughs.


All-in-all a very good read. Besides any book that manages to mention the greatest drive-in movie critic of all time, Joe Bob Briggs, deserves a look. Anybody with that kind of taste gets my vote.

Despite the title, there is not much info on Wicca and the only moment when all things Wiccan were mentioned, is also when Piper not-so-subtly ridiculed and mocked the somewhat odd things practicing Wiccans believe. If Wicca is what you're looking for, this is not for you.

However, this book is average, nothing special or different, but at least they focused the attention on innocents as fellow Wiccans. The plot is intriguing and edgy enough to make you want to turn the page to find out whats next. Also, there are plenty of twists and turns that is certainly unexpected, as one thing leads to the other NOT. But what I find a great disappointment was after all that they went through, the "bad guys" were vanquished by Piper's molecular combustion power??? Thats it?!?!?!?!?! On the other hand, the evil enitity may not be as powerful as it seems, but its just not satisfying. Other than the ending, this book is worth a good read to whet your Charmed appetite. Enjoy.

this book is okay it's title mimics that of the very first pilot episode. other than that there are no major flaws in it otherthan the more recent books seem to be more frequently set out of san fransico, which is okay but makes the books less connected to the tv series. the story itself is good with some excellent twists.

How gratifying to find an author who is obviously quite familiar with the world of "Charmed"; the powers & personalities of the Halliwells (& their friends & lovers) are depicted perfectly. While this should be mandatory for any author entrusted with a "Charmed" novel, it is, sadly (& infuriatingly), the exception in recent novels (the worst example being "Shadow of the Sphinx"; see my review of that book). "Something Wiccan..." has two main failings: one (I'll get to the other later) is that there is a paucity of humor--either situationally or in the witty dialogue that makes the TV episodes sparkle. However, the plot is complex and multi-layered, and filled with surprises; the ending features not just one, but two, surprise twists, neither of which I saw coming.
The biggest disappointment of the book (and what I consider the 2nd major failing), is the lack of insight into Wicca as a religion, and the differences between Witchcraft and Wicca (no, they are not synonomous terms or practices). The plot centers around a Wiccan retreat, which Paige is eager to attend in order to learn more about Wicca, while Piper & Phoebe reluctantly accompany her in the hope of catching whoever is kidnapping members of covens. While the book presents a reasonably good picture of a typical Gathering, and the diverse types of people who practice Wicca, it fails to give any real information as to just what Wiccans actually believe, their religious beliefs, holidays, rituals, etc. This plot presented a golden opportunity to enlighten readers who are understandably confused about Wiccans vs Witches, and a skilled writer (which I think this author is) could have slipped at least some basic info in among the action without sounding preachy.
A more general complaint (not aimed at this book exclusively) is that ever since Paige became a Charmed One, every subsequent novel has focused on her as the main character, with the main plot centering around her & told primarily from her viewpoint. In the earliest novels, the sisters seemed to take turns at center stage (e.g., Phoebe gets sent to the past, to old Salem; Prue's photo assignments have unexpected--and magical--ramifications; Piper volunteers her time with troubled, homeless teens, little knowing that the shelter is run by a warlock who brainwashes the teens to do his bidding) but they still functioned as a team, each of equal importance (i.e., The Power of Three, not Paige and her back-up group the Charmettes). Another stereotype the writers seem to be clinging to is Grouchy Piper and her Reluctance to Accept Paige as either a sister or a responsible adult (despite the fact that Paige, at approximately the age Phoebe was when they became the Charmed Ones, is obviously more responsible & goal-oriented than Phoebe was at that age). Granted, Piper is perhaps too anxious and even obsessed in her new role as the eldest sister, but since Piper & Paige now seem to be close on the TV series, showing mutual affection and respect, it's time that the books also reflected their current relationship. But ever since Paige's arrival, the writers seem mostly interested in her, content to sketch the other sisters as shadowy two-dimensional background figures. Phoebe has been the one most relegated to the background (though to be fair, this DOES reflect the trend on the TV show); it's natural that her divorce & new job have made her more serious, but the books haven't yet caught up with the tragedies in her life (e.g., in this book, she's still happily with Cole). Yet it's as if her role as the carefree, optimistic, effervescent free spirit has been arbitrarily re-assigned to Paige, while Phoebe has become a workaholic in her newspaper job.
But despite these flaws, the book does do a good job of portraying the Charmed Ones' powers and methods, without any embarrassing errors (at least, none that I caught). The dialogue rings true. And the plot is sophisticated and absorbing, a magical who-dunit, and I defy you to not to be surprised at the surprise double twist ending. (On thinking it over, I think that the ending was actually a little improbable--and more than a little confusing--but when I first read it, it had the wonderful quality of being both a total surprise and yet seeming perfectly logical in retrospect. Maybe any confusion I feel in looking back over it will be cleared up on a more careful second reading--which I definitely look forward to.

This is one of my favourite Charmed book. The dialogue is funny and the story is interesting. If you're a Charmed fans, this book is a must.

Anything about charmed is a must!! Charmed is the best series in the whole world! noone can beat it not smallville, not the ex-vampire slyer,buffy! No one!!! Charmed is the best!! this book is a must for all charmed lovers and also for magic lovers......
This is such a great book!! Its funny and cute and....exciting!

CHARMED CHARMED CHARMED CHARMED CHARMED CHARMED CHARMED CHARMED
THE B.....E.....S.....T SHOW ON EARTH!!!

Staci Layne Wilson's love of animals is apparent in this book, for she took the time to compile a guide to movies featuring animals, she donates a portion of her earnings from the sales of this book to charities focusing on animals in need of help, and she even bothered to find out the real names of many of the animals featured in the films. Yet, she doesn't let her obvious love of animals get in the way of reviewing even movies where the animals don't fare well. Furthermore, the behind the scenes exclusive interviews with many of the human actors on these films are fascinating in their own right, animals aside:)

I hope there will indeed be a Volume 2 of the "feathered, finned and forked-tongued critters" that Ms. Wilson hinted at in "A Note From The Author."

^V^
G.L. Giles, Author of V3: The Vampire Vignettes ReVamped (Top 5 Royalty Earner)

This book is a very comprehensive guide to all of your favorite animal movies. Every wonder about those cute ferrets in The Beast Master? There is a great discussion with Don Corsaceli about working with the little guys - also the horrific story of how one of the tigers used in the film was accidentally killed! Sad, poignant, funny, and entertaining, The Animal Movies Guide has interviews with directors, casts and crews from a diverse selection of movies. Recommended!

I grew up on Lassie, Rin Tin Tin, Toto, Flipper...well, you get the idea. And so does Wilson. Guaranteed to bring back rosy memories.

this is a book that any animal and movie lover should own. it makes a great gift, too.

full of informative, intelligent and ah so witty info.
love, love, loved it...

A great reference for animal movies that are available.... well written and well set out.
I have been a fan of Ms Wilsons writing for some years now and this one certainly hasnt dissapointed me! Well done!!

This book starts out newcomers to the field with a thorough foundation for selecting proper equipment for filmmaking. It also encourages beginning filmmakers to utilize objects or people on hand. A basic computer system is necessary. The great thing about this book is that new artists often need encouragement as well as inspiration. This book provides both!

My after school students really enjoy this book. It has been check out many times and my students use it often as a reference.

This book is worth every penny! Also the DVD it comes with is very helpful! It shows you how to do Hollywood-style tricks on a budget! I would highly recommend this book!

I found the information in this book useful to me as an amateur filmmaker, but I believe that it would be just as useful to a starter. It's has both basic information as well as detailed explanations for the (amateur) teen filmmaker.

This book was useful to me, as a teen filmmaker. I marked many pages with information that I could use, ranging from proper script format, to very useful advice on how to keep your project low budget, which is always a challenge. Unfortunately, having already read books and articles on the subject of filmmaking, as well as having made a few of my own short films, I felt that this book was slightly more geared at the amateur with little to no experience, rather than someone who is more familiar with the art of filmmaking. If however, you have found yourself with an excellent idea for a short film, and have no idea how to realize it, then this book is a highly useful resource that can help anyone deliver a low-budget, high-quality masterpiece.

I was assigned this book as the text for an intro to digital video grad class. The book was okay, but not especially impressive. It was redundant in some places and some of the information seemed dated. It's a very general book, so it's appropriate for a class where the instructor doesn't know what kinds of cameras or editing programs students will use.

However, if you're looking for a book to help you with the program and camera you have, you can probably find something more specific to your situation.

The title is a bit of a misnomer as well. There are no step-by-step guides or lessons in the book.

It's not a bad book, but it's not great either.

I liked the presentation, organization and the the printing of the book wich I consider is of the highest quality, It also has good color ilustrations and photos, I didn't find errors of any kind. But even when I'm a beginner videographer, I consider the information contained in the book is very general and the book is oriented to explain that "there are easy ways of making things..., that you can use several good applications available in the market for you..." But I would have liked the book explained: "ways of making... and the steps for finishing your projects.." I mean the book lacks of "How to...or the step by step for beginners". But in general is a good book. Please be aware of that...So you won't be disapointed.

I'm a semi-pro photographer of stills, based in film, now dSLR's and so I understand fairly well photographic considerations in acquiring good images! This book will easily help beginners and existing still photographers bridge the gap into Digital Video capture. Going beyond just understanding the latest advances in digital camcorders, the book guides you through actual processes of capturing good story-telling footage, things that we see in broadcast everyday, but probably don't give much of a thought as to how video was captures, sequenced and edited. I was really looking for such a guide as a starting place as i just purchased a Sony HDR-HC7 mini-DV camcorder ... and needed to know basic camera operation, as well as shooting techniques and video editing techniques. The book is VERY well laid out, simple to read and find headings and TIPS as needed - I think I'll pull from this volume a great deal of useful information and wish to thank the author!

After an extensive research I tried my luck and bought this book (as I could not preview the content), and I am really impressed with it. This is the perfect book for someone who really wants to learn video photography, as opposed to just learning to buy the greatest gadget and press the right buttons, thereby capturing worthless video.

I am an advanced amateur photographer for the last 15 years, and I know that taking good photo is 90% work of the mind - finding out the perfect frame and the perfect moment to shoot a great photograph, and 10% work of the hand to use the camera. Most of the other Digital Video books focus mostly on the later 10% aspect. Not this book - It teaches you extensively what to look for in a good video and how to get them.

The book is divided into 5 sections:-
- What you need to know about your camcorder
- Step-by-step shooting techniques
- How to shoot great home movies
- Step-by-step digital video-editing techniques
- Showing and sharing your movies

The sections about "shooting techniques" and "great home movies" are the largest in this book, and that's what I liked. The author is a professional in this field (former television producer, editor and cameraman), unlike authors of other books who are either wannabe movie producers or small movie makers. The other books instruct you to write down a storyboard on paper which is not feasible in a vacation movie or capturing unpredictable activities of your newborn. Here you will learn how to think so that you can create a great story on the fly.

This book is filled with lots of tips used by professionals, one good example is: not to use the zoom during shooting. Most professional productions do not contain zooming sequence. They take a wide angle shot to show the background, then next shot they show a close up of the subject, the zooming being done off-camera. Lots of zooming sequence is the typical sign of a poor home video.

On the whole, this is a perfect book to study before diving into the world of serious video photography.

I would recommend this book as a start here before anything else. Even though you'de have had a camera for months and years but just shoot movies where the ones you share it with are happy to get away from it. Buy it, it teaches you in very in an easy non jargon way how to do things looking good and impress the audence. It is good when people ask for a copy after they've seen the movie. And you hear they wantch it over and over. I love this book it is brilliant.

This is another interesting, two-fold storyline book in the CSI series.

While Brass, Grissom, Nick, and Sara deal with the body of a murdered woman found in a coffin (which wouldn't be so bad, except that it's not the body that was SUPPOSED to be in there!), Catherine and Warrick are working to uncover whether a death at a nursing home is natural, or had a little help.

This is another quick read, and pretty interesting. The character development was good, and it had a believable and decent mystery.

I bought this novel for my daugher who loves CSI:Las Vegas.
She read the book in one night and continues to read it. She says it's even better than the TV episodes.

The mystery is very engaging, and the clues ar worth it. As a CSI fan, I really enjoyed this book, but...

The author's prose is far to heavy at times, particualrly in his descriptive mode. I felt that his "purple prose" interfered in me geting an idea about what he was describing. The plot is very good, but plowing through the excess descriptives made it hard for me.

It's August in Las Vegas and the temperature is sizzling. The murder rate in town has increased along with the temperatures, putting a strain on the CSI team. A body is exhumed to determine cause of death, but it's the wrong body in the right casket. In another case, there has been a rash of deaths in a local nursing home and Catherine and Warrick set out to investigate. As in previous outings, Collins does a wonderful job in his characterizations. He adds depth to the characters we are familiar with from the TV series. The plots in this one keep the reader guessing and the pace never lets up. Another great CSI read.

Grave Matters is a great mystery novel, and ties in well with the TV series. As usual, there are two cases. One is when a medical examiners calls the CSIs in because deaths are happening a little too frequently in an assisted care facility. The other is when a court order forces the rest of the team to investige the death of a political big-wig's murder - by the daughter, who names her step-father.

The care facility death shows death by injection of air - murder, which is investigated. But that doesn't compare to what the other CSI team finds in the casket of the deceased woman - somebody else entirely, which means somebody else is a killer who picked the perfect hiding spot for a body...

This is one book I would have liked to go on. The nostalgic touch was excellent. What a wonderful imagination Mr Mariotte has. One of the best in the series so far. All fans of the show will enjoy this novel. I highly recommend.

I loved this book. But I have to say it wasnt my favorite out of the serious I have to say it was city of and close to the ground. But I love Angel the show. So I'll keep reading and watching.

This is an unusual entry in the Angel series. Although set in the first half of the first season it has all the feel of the Hollywood in 1961. The reader can imagine that they are watching an episode of Mannix or 77 Sunset Strip. Angel's new client is buried in a local cemetery. A long dead PI is hot on the heels of his killer. Kate is looking for a cop killer and Angel lands in jail. It is a well written detective story heavy with atmosphere. The only objection I have with this novel is that I would have liked to have more Angel. He often takes a back seat to the dead PI. Fans of hard boiled detective stories will enjoy this book as much as Buffy fans.

This book brought old school detective movies into the City of Angels. As a building is being demolished, the crew finds a dead body that has been there for over 30 years. As the body is found the detective Mike Slade come back to life. He is trying to solve the murder that he was killed for so many years ago. Also at the same time Doyle has a vision having to do with the same case. This book is very good. It will have you at the edge of your seat.

This Angel book was one of a different kind. It all started at a construction site of an old building where a dead body has been found dating back to around 1961. Then Doyle has a vision about [...] and when Angel goes to investigate, he finds that [...]. Meanwhile, a new PI back in town and he acts like he came from the 1960s: dressed in a baggy suit and a fedora and talks like a member of the Rat Pack. This is a great detective book and I definitely recommend this to anyone who loves a good Angel book.

I've been doing some research into film making and I picked this book up from the bookstore because it looked okay. At first I was a bit let down, but after getting into it I found it truly great! The author gives an amazing amount of examples, and even though they're a little outdated, he gives them in such ways that you don't have to have seen the movies to learn from his examples.

If you are looking for theory or for technical analysis of film, this is not the place. If your interest, instead, is insight into the thinking that goes into making (mostly mainstream) films this is an excellent starting point. Boorstin doesn't write like a movie critic or a professor of film; he writes like a very knowledgable and reflective craftsman who has insider experience on filmmaking and has been able to capture that experience into a series of analytic perspectives on the nature of "movies that work."

He breaks his analysis of the "working of movies" down into three perspectives that amount to the various levels at which the film needs to operate on or captivate its audience. A movie that "works" has to work on all three levels, though it may emphasize one over the others. First, it should appeal to the "voyeur" in the audience. We watch movies because we want to see, and a movie works at a voyeuristic level when it shows us something that we can both believe and be interested in. That sounds straightforward enough, but the voyeuristic perspective allows him to go into the "why" behind a wide range of cinematic techniques, and to introduce quite a bit of the vocabulary you'd find in another introduction to film but might not see why it was so important. Secondly, the film has to work at a "vicarious" level: we have to care about the characters in the film, and what they do has to be emotionally true. Under this heading Boorstin is able to discuss a range of topics, from Kuleshov's psychology experiments with film montage to what makes a film soundtrack work. The third level is the "visceral": films can work, not only because they are intriguing or make us feel something for the characters, but also because they make us feel something period. The rise of horror cinema is directly connected to this longing for a visceral experience: we don't just want to care about someone who is potentially being harmed but we want to feel their fear along with them. The book goes on to discuss combinations between these, the differences between narratives and films of other forms, and the difference between mainstream Hollywood cinema and avant garde or foreign cinema.

My only quibble with the book is that he doesn't address a fourth level at which films work -- maybe because it's hard to come up with a "V" word for what might be called the "reflective dimension" of film, and I believe that a discussion of this dimension would complement his other discussions and allow him to introduce in an unpretentious and insider fashion themes that are the subject of what film theorists call "ideology." Every film, at some level, has a theme -- has to have something it is "about" and this is a level that is not only of interest to film theorists but also to filmmakers. Sidney Lumet's wonderful "Making Movies" discusses this at length. For a film to work it has to have a theme and it has to somehow make sense of that theme. In some films, and not only foreign or avant-garde films, this "thematic" or "reflective" dimension is the dominant one. Take the success of the "Matrix" for example -- what makes it stunning is not only its superb visuals (voyeuristic level) or its strong narrative (such that we vicariously connect with Neo) or its tense mood (such that we have a visceral experience), but also that it forces us to think, raising interesting questions and posing tentative answers to those questions.

In the end, though, this is merely a quibble with what is still a very worthwhile book that I am glad I encountered. While the style is personal and the ideas are to some degree idiosyncratic to the author, it is a rare book that offers so much information and insight and is such an enjoyable read. (I would compare this book to other remarkable and insightful works by working filmmakers such as Lumet's Making Movies and Walter Murch's In the Blink of the Eye -- and if I had to choose which one to recommend of these three I would say that Boorstin's book is more comprehensive and can likely teach more about the nature of film and filmmaking than the others.)

For those people that just stumbled on this book and are not aspiring film makers, the insight and even the abundance of photographs from major scenes are worth the purchase price.

For the rest of us, everyone knows what makes a professional in any field is that little extra effort to be one step ahead of the next person. This book may be that next step.

A paragraph from the introduction says it all:

"How does a surgeon attack a tumor, a lawyer a murder case, or an architect a concert hall? When you learn a craft, or a profession, or an art (and film is all of these), you have to master a way of thinking as well as a set of skills. A way of approaching the problem that make techniques your tool."

"Making Movies Work" discusses films from three types of effects the shots have on the audience. Boorstein calls the "Voyeurs Eye" the eye we have for detail, consistency and the logic of a scene, where we gather information. "Vicarious Eye" concerns the techniques filmmakers use to relate feeling and the emotions of a scene. "Visceral Eye" appeals to the part of the brain that bypasses thinking, the 'gut' reaction. This book does not go into detail on setting up shots, but rather gives the reader a useful context in which to think about shot choice. It's purpose is to help identify the purpose of a shot or scene and why a shot gives the audience the feel that it does. I thought the book was fascinating, and it puts to direct application much of film theory.

The only reason I did not give this book 5 stars is, because it is not a smashing, shocking masterpiece. But it is still a VERY GOOD book. It gives one a great first taste on filmmaking, touching on almost every topic and field in the production process. It is also very well organized into a system of own logic, and contains quite a few funny and interesting anecdotes, which make it more like a personal friend instead of just "a book". The language is clear and "user-friendly" (which was quite important for me, English being only my second lang.), and Mr. Boorstin is like a smiling tour-guide that takes one around the various aspects of the craft. It is an excellent introduction to all people interested in film, and to all those who just want to have a good read about 'the film job' in general. Read it and You will like it, if it does not make You want to fall in love with film right away. If You already are: You will learn not just about the craft, but about creative processes and "Hollywood vs. World"-philosophy too, while You get to understand what actually makes a filmmaker. A definite 4 and 1/2.....

I have to be the dissenting opinion based on the other posted reviews. Frankly I felt this book was well written and fairly insightful but in many respects the author was reaching too hard for profundity and some of the connections and reference points he used seemed rather arbitrary to me. In addition there are many films that were overlooked that could have added to the analysis and made the book more meaningful to a wider readership.

Gob's pic on the book-jacket is the grimmest cautionary tale since Truman Capote shook his booty at Studio 54. Let this be a warning to you all. This is what happens when you spend half your life gawking at Barbara Steele & Silvana Mangano: you turn bald and myopic and you have no-one to blame but yourself. My favorite line: "What did they need a script for if they had enough bad mood to poison the atmosphere for a whole planet?"

Every sentence in this book is a masterpiece. Although there's no need to worry about any Serioso High-Art Heavyosity. Gob eschewed any in-depth discussion of Godard & Bergman & Welles & Antonioni in favor of delineating the Cinecitta aesthetic: "As the sword-and-sandal cycle ran its course they grabbed whatever raw material came to hand, Tacitus and Captain Marvel, Sophocles and the Bible and Mandrake the Magician, Tiresias and the Sibyl, vampires and virgins and an endless horde of raucous men-at-arms. The contents of an old cupboard full of irreplaceable artifacts were being briefly held up to the light--for the delectation of uncomprehending inheritors momentarily amused by gold leaf or a bit of fine carving--before being discarded. All periods of history collapsed into one, enabling Hercules and Ulysses to wash up on the Gaza coast and encounter Samson. It was the final garage sale of Thrace and Carthage and Byzantium."

I read a recent profile of Godard. His unfilmed latter-day scripts are (yes, you guessed it) scripts about film directors. Movies about movies. Gob covers that too: "The ultimate film festival would then have to consist of ghost movies: the low-budget risorgimento period piece that Edward G. Robinson almost finished shooting in TWO WEEKS IN ANOTHER TOWN, Fritz Lang's ODYSSEY, the Crucifixion movie that Orson Welles was directing in Pasolini's LA RICOTTA, and the movie that (in Fellini's TOBY DAMMIT) the alcoholic actor played by Terence Stamp had flown to Cinecitta to star in: the first Catholic western, 'something between Dreyer and Pasolini with a touch of John Ford, of course'."

Gob even risks the charge of psychological projection when he waxes metaphysical: "A profound underlying boredom was the emotional basis of westerns. They were basically about killing time. They were what there was to do in town, in America, year after year."

My only hope is that Pauline Kael is savoring this book in Schlock Heaven.

This book is the most chillingly relevant commentary on our modern society of the spectacle that I have ever read. Although at times slightly alarmist in its portrayal of the totalitarian tendencies of contemporary cinema in forging the substance of our thoughts, these claims can not be taken lightly. O'Brien is convincing by virtue of the fact that he writes mostly in the second person. "You believed....You were shocked....You this...You that"...making the reader truly believe the shocking reality before him: That the overmind of the cinema is becoming the only reality in the 20th century. His memories are its memories and everyone else's too. O'Brien does a great service to point this out even if its too late to change it.

Don't be alarmed, just go to the movies. O'Brien, in this unforgettable, beautifully written book, has come up with an idea and a work so original and startling that it is difficult to describe. Essentially, he sees how movies [and he's seen hundreds of all kinds] have helped create the pyschology of the century. In one chapter, for example, he uses the melodramatic chestnut "The Four Feathers" to show how the movies displayed the customs and manners of a class and society different than ourselves, and thus taught us how to live in certain ways. And that's just scratching the surface of a book that seems to have a new and astonishing idea on every page. Neal Gabler published on this topic recently, but to a much inferior extent. Skip that and buy this. You will never, ever go to the movies the same way again.

As a movie lover, I was intrigued with the theme of this book -- how movies have shaped our culture, our thinking -- and was prepared for a heavy, textbook-like reading. As I read, though, I was overwhelmed with O'Briens style, his sterling craftsmanship in describing the feelings and emotions of the movies. I would literally stop after every few lines and shake my head in amazement. As a writer, I am jealous of his skill. As a reader, I am eager to read it again.

Steve Martin said (in L.A. STORY) that "a kiss may not be the truth, but it's what we wish was the truth." I do not know if O'Brien's book is THE truth about movies in the modern mind but, oh, how I hope that it is.