Movies Books

I bought the first edition 2 years ago and then the second edition to keep up with new changes because this book is a very good and complete introductory course on making real world video (i.e. starting from choosing DV camcorders to final production and delivery to the world depending on your budget).

It starts from current DV technology (like CCD and DV formats) and then introduces various DV camcorder types depending whether you are normal consumer or pro-sumer or professional users. (It even shows you the approximate price range for various camcorder class.)

It then introduces how scripts planning should be like for making different scenes of video (newscast or documentary or movie). It teaches different techniques of shooting pictures/video by cameras/comcorders (angles, views, lighting and audio control). I likes the book giving you various examples of lighting equipments and audio equipments required for making good video.

For movie pre-production process, it tells what kind of production crews and things you will need and do for different stages (including cost ranges). For movie post-production process, it shows how to edit all movie and audio footages into final movies and how to fix video/audio problems. It also describes what types of movie editing systems (computers, hardware equipments and software video applications) available in the market depending on high-end, mid-range, or low-end production and budgets. It also describes how the final process of movie copies are generated and delivered to the world.

I like the book because it gives me pretty good ideas how DV movies are made with real equipments that are availalbe in the current market. This book is highly recommended especially for serious beginning DV/movie producers.

This book should be required reading for anyone making a digital movie with more ambition than experience. This book will be worth its cost in just the first project by eliminating many of the learning mistakes we all make. I wish someone would have sat down with me and given me this advice when I started and yet, even with many projects behind me, this book offers me new ideas. Reading the book and the watching the DVD are like having real work experience - both in production and post-production. In one memorable section of the DVD, Pete Shaner sits down with you and gives you lots of advice on how to shoot and things to consider in shooting and editing.

Highly recommended reading...for the home hobbyist...the USC film student...the software geek... or AV professional.

The authors approach the Digital Video Universe in a real world, common sense and entertaining prose...allowing the reader to apply their level of interest, budget, technical background, project objectives and pace to a surprisingly current and comprehensively deep offering of digital video material.

The supportive DVD is awesome!

This book took me into a whole new World. I sure could have used it before I bought my used BetaCam! Now I can work quicker, cleaner, look like a pro and save $$$. The furture of film making is here. Thanks guys!

As the prices of digital data capture and storage have dropped, new avenues of artistic creation have opened up. One of these areas is in the realm of digital video, where it is possible to make movies using simple and relatively inexpensive digital equipment. However, the fact that the equipment is now cheap does not make it any easier to make movies that people would want to watch. There is an enormous amount of subtle technique involved in making a movie, and until I read this book, I had absolutely no idea how complex a simple shot can be. This is a book that will show you how to make a digitally recorded movie, and should be the first thing you read if that is your aspiration.
It all starts with planning, from the initial idea, on to budgeting, clearing all legal hurdles, organizing and shooting the scenes, editing and cleaning the stored scenes, and ending with publicizing and distributing the finished product. All are so complex, that you do not make a movie, you survive its' creation. The fact that the movie can now be stored on digital devices only significantly affects one of these steps.
Written primarily for those who are interested in making DV projects for entertainment, this is one of the most interesting books I have ever read. The number of detail hurdles that need to be cleared to make a movie are astounding, and kudos to the authors for explaining all of those hurdles in great detail.

although under ground red dwarf groups put season 8 at the low end of the list the book is a hit since it is memorobila
some have come to like red dwarf because of season 8 others come to love season 8 because of this book
it is well worth the pounds or dollers you will pay

This gorgeous Red Dwarf companion may seem a bit pricey, but no smeghead should be without it. It contains LOTS of extra material from the smash hit series 8, and is full of beautiful cast and CGI pictures. Best of all, each script is introduced by the king of smeg himself- Doug Naylor! Some of the behind the scenes stories are utterly hilarious(anyone who's read 'Rubber Mask' will know what I'm talking about!). Mr Naylor also shares with us smeggies the troubles Red Dwarf went through in the three years between series 6 and 7. This man has my undying respect and gratitude- and Red Dwarf will never die!

This book is THE Red Dwarf to buy. You may have seen several novels, quizbooks and other largish coffee table-type books concerning Red Dwarf at your local bookshop, but there is no other one quite so good as this: particularly for a fan who doesn't want to get bogged down in endless books.

The content is first rate. Each script contains many sections which were (unfortunately) obliterated from the final shows and almost every scene is accompanied by a full colour photo - there are literally hundreds of them. The comments and anecdotes by Doug only serve to improve an already damn fine book, and allow it to be classed not only as a scriptbook, but also as a series companion and a 'behind the scenes' book, too.

Every fan should have a copy - get one now!

Excellent coffee table-style book with some great pictures from series VIII and interesting behind-the-scenes stories from Doug Naylor. A great gift for the Red Dwarf-deprived U.S. fan!

This is a large size hardcover book mostly consisting of the scripts to the 8 episodes in series 8. The scripts include original lines that were dropped from the show, many wonderful photos, and best of all, some introduction by Doug Naylor. If you are a fan of the show, this will probably make milk come out of your nose (if you happen to be drinking any.) If you are not a fan of the show and someone just reads a passage to you, you will probably still laugh out loud. Naylor explains why Red Dwarf 8 was almost never made, why Kochanski was introduced. (There WAS a reason! ) It is well worth the money, just for the beginning. A must own for fans, even if they aren't collectors, simply for the beginning.

Well-written and great fun. You can read it from start to finish, or jump around. I started by reading about movies I'd seen (to see if the author agreed with my opinion of them, and she did), then moved on to the ones I wanted to see.
You don't have to be "dating" to enjoy this book -- you can just like romantic movies. Definitely a "keeper." This also makes a great gift.

Reel Romance is a very helpful reference book that is also great fun to read. It provides reviews, behind-the-scenes information, and romantic suggestions from the movies to try at home. It gave me lots of new ideas for movies to buy or rent and watch with my wife in our home theater. It's wonderful for lovers of all ages!

Reel Romance is a fabulous book with lots of great information on new and old movies. I was thrilled to find many of my favorites, while discovering countless others that I haven't had the opportunity to see yet - and now want to. Thanks to Ms. Halpern's friendly and well-written guidance, I can make future selections based on special criteria for different occasions. This book really makes you think more about the movies you have already seen or plan to watch in the future by providing entertaining trivia and interesting summaries. So grab the book, pour yourself a glass of wine or cup of hot chocolate, and settle back for a "reel" enjoyable read.

Charlene Davis, co-author of "Make BIG Profits on eBay" and "How to Start a Senior Service Business" (both published by Entrepreneur Media, 2005). Also contributing author for "God Answers Moms Prayers" (Harvest House, 2005).

Leslie Halpern's Reel Romance is the most enjoyable "reference" book I've ever read. As a movie buff who loves romances, I was delighted to see some of my favorites listed here. In addition, I'm so pleased to finally have criteria on which to base movie rentals, since my husband and I often stand in the middle of the video store, each holding a different type of film. Now we can discuss the pros and cons based on the film's appeal to both women and men. Reel Romance is a "must have" reference book for all movie lovers.

Want some reel stimulation? Read this book!
Not only is there a thorough analysis and categorization of each Romantic movie, the movie star trivia and 'Do Try This at Home' leave the reader with some challenging mental exercises. This is not a boring reiteration of what you already know. After finishing each chapter, you'll find yourself looking at each movie in a different way.

Be sure to mark the movies you wish to see for future stimulation. Each rendition has a set of tools to help your decision. Whether your significant other needs a little prompting and encouragement or you just want to relax to a happy ending, the descriptions help pick the perfect movie. Use the 'Make-Out Meter' to pick a movie that gets your partner in the mood. Decide which movie might be better with the 'Just for Her' and 'Just for Him' blurbs. For him it's a car chase, fight scene or for her it's a sentimental kiss, steamy shower scene.

Even after finished reading through the book, I'm saving it as a reference for which movie to get from Blockbusters. As I watch each selection with my S.O. cuddled up on the couch, by the fire, drinking my favorite beverage, I look for moments of opportunity to steal a kiss or two. This is what makes it ALL WORTH WHILE! So sit back and enjoy the book and the movie!

What a great, great book! As soon as it arrived, I quickly glanced through it and knew I would want to savor it for later. It's really difficult to put down. It's *very* easy to use; extremely well organized. The movies are grouped into headings from "Angels (and Other Messengers) in Our Midst" to "Have Yourself a Supernatural Christmas." I especially liked reading the author's reviews of movies I'd seen such as Edward Scissorhands, Mulan, Powder and my favorite, Resurrection. This book takes the guesswork out of what movie to see tonight!

Reel Spirit recognizes spirituality and clarifies why so many movies appeal to so many of us the way they do. The insights are meaningful, and the writing is as engaging as an on-going dialog, conveying the delightful experience of going to the movies with a connoisseur who happens to be your best friend.

Have you ever read one of those parenting magazines that says you should watch movies with your kids and then talk about what you've seen? If you're like me, you may be perfectly willing to do this, but don't know what to say. Reel Spirit provides some great conversation starters so that you and your family or friends can make moviegoing a shared experience. And if all those titles at the video store overwhelm you, use the book to identify good movies ahead of time!

I so enjoy finding spiritual elements in films, and this book helps immensely in alerting one to points in many films that one might miss. I question the spiritual value in some of the films discussed, but that's all to the good. I use this guide weekly chaeck;ing out the movies on TV, as well as, like other reviewers, taking it with me to the video store or library where I often check out videos.

I believe that this book will do loads in enhancing your enjoyment of many films, and may change your mind about some which you consdidered valueless until spiritual elements are brought out.

Reel Spirit is a terrific guide to film! Buy it quickly and pop a copy into the car--you'll want to have with you every time you visit the video store! A must have for anyone who enjoys films that lift both heart and spirit.

THIS BOOK IS THE BEST EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I ORDERED IT.
WHAT I LIKE ABOUT IT IS I LIKE TO READ ABOUT ANAKIN SKYWALKER/DARTH VADER! I CAN NEVER STOP LOOKING AT IT! AUTHOR WINDHAM IS THE BEST BECAUSE THIS BOOK HE WROTE IS SO POPULAR!

They did it! Lucas actually allowed The Star Wars Holiday Special to be mentioned! That is the greatest variety show ever to be conceived!! And.. that's not saying much. But I love the holiday special, it rocks, and, oh, by the way, we here at x-play give it a five... out of five!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Greatings, to everyone!
What can i say! I am a big fun of STAR WARS and i was looking to buy anything that ivnoles IT.Luckily the book was very intresting about the world of star wars in everything.I learn about the characters,wipons,etc.That's why i bought another book:The movie storybook. So,that are you waiting for!BUY IT NOW!!!!!!

This brilliant glossy "Revenge of the Sith Scrapbook" is a fascinating sneak preview of the most anticipated movie of 2005. It's full of stunning teaser photos, colorful graphics and many titilating factoids & antidotes about Episode III, plus several Classic Trilogy insertions. This book was available at Toys 'R Us on April 1st 2005 and DOES CONTAIN SPOILERS - The planet section offers a brief, concise breakdown of Mustafar, Utapau and Kashyyyk (Chewbacca's homeworld), and there is also personal information about actors Ewan McGregor, Hayden Christensen, Christopher Lee, etc.

Instead of purchasing this book for $8, why don't you go to starwars.com, click on the link at the bottom of the page for the RotS souvenir guide and then...buy it?

It's a worthy cash exercise (the souvenir guide), if you're a fan of this movie. Granted that you do not know if you are already, but if no mental deficiencies, then you will be.

Anyways, (back to) the scrapbook is alright, but it's nothing the die-hard or even casual adult fan won't know; it is great for a child, especially if a parent wants to forego the more graphic side of the movie. In fact, if you have more than 15 posts on a SW board, then you may have been able to make this book yourself (minus the photos, which aren't all that unique).

Although the book gave me a similar feeling that the storybook did (another RotS product you could go without), it is not arranged chronologically: so if you want an outline of the movie, you should remember that this is a scrapbook.

Want the nice spice? Get the Visual dictionary.
Want more coverage and interviews? Get the souvenir guide.
Want to just get through the story quickly on paper format? Get the comic book.

Want a better way to spend $8? Get the Anakin on Mustafar action figure when it comes out. You'll be glad that you did.

I found this book very interesting. I watch the Tv series every day, it is my most fave show. The books are great because they are the same as the show and keep me reading. I recomend this book to everyone 10 and over. One thing to say BUY THIS BOOK!!!!!!!

As a loyal watcher of the show 7th Heaven and a dedicated Christian; I only wish their were more books like this out there for young readers. The show 7th Heaven has always been about a real family dealing with real issues in the real world; this book which is part of the 7th Heaven Series of books based on the popular WB show shows all of the values and expands on many of the same situations as the show does. In this particular book Mary and Lucy Camden show how being "Sibling Rivals" who are constantly bickering can have an affect on the entire family, and on themselves. Again I say if only there were more series like this one out there, our world would be a better place.

I would recomend this book to anybody it teaches you some great family morals and you learn alot from it. I would not recomend this for little kids because there is a lot a talk about sex so don't give it to any young kid. but it is a very awesome book.

I think that it talked a lot about family and love.It was the best book I read on the subject. It was a great book that I say everyone should read it.

Rivals is based on a great episode of 7th Heaven, but the book goes into more detail than the show. I also recommend Mary's Story and Matt's Story!

Thank you for republishing the book I remember from my childhood (back in the Jurassic)! I read it out loud to my sons (12 1/2 and 8 1/2) and they love it!

this book is a true life story of Robin Hood and his sweetheart Marian in England. the author had investigated a true life story and not a legend.and how Handsome robin hood met the charming fair maid marian met??? This biography in precise and accurate in every history happened in England for both of them. This book of Robin Hood and Maid Marian seems to be a heaven corresponded that these two birds shall meet when the ripe and right time comes.

Gramercy! This is one of the best books I have read in quite some time. From the first page, the slightly archaic English prose lends an air of authenticity to the book (or at least makes it feel a little more old-fashioned). Nathless, I never had any difficulty keeping up with Robin's many adventures--and there are many of them in this book! For the most part, each short chapter contains an isolated episode, making this a great book to read anytime, anywhere. Occasionally, a lenghty episode may be split among two or three chapters. The Robin Hood of this book is a wonderfully believable character--well skilled at archery, but less so at some other activities. In sooth, while he seems to have good intentions, he can come off a bit arrogant at times.

From Robin's bold meeting with Little John on a narrow foot bridge to his humorous first encounter with Friar Tuck from the opposite bank of a stream, we learn how many members of Robin's Merry Men came to join the band. We see how Robin's men fall in and out of favor with authority, and we watch his growing interest in the lovely Maid Marian. Packed full with knights, castles, bows and arrows, daring rescues, odds bodikins, and a host of unforgettable characters clad in Lincoln Green, this book provides a much needed escape from the hectic world of today to the English countryside of eight centuries ago. Highly recommended!

McSpadden stays true to the Robin Hood legend and in my opinion this is the best portrayel of Robin Hood I have read and I recently read five other book about Robin Hood and find this one the best. If you are looking to buy Robin Hood then get this one you wont regret it, trust me on this one. I like how Robin Hood is the best archer in Sherwood bet is not as good in other forms of combat so it makes him seem more human, but not ordinary like many other book about him.

This is a delightful version of the classic Robin Hood. I especially love the illustrations by Greg Hildebrandt, and the timelessness of this leather bound edition. We see Robin hood as handsome and brave. The romance between him and Maid Marian is bitter-sweet. The book is divided in chapters, yet can be enjoyed by children and adults alike without being boring. I personally keep it on my bookshelf, away from little hands.

Hi it's me again, the 46 year old Rocky and Bullwinkle fan.

I recently received this book, and quite honestly found it utterly a great fun book to read.

Its a quiet night in Frostbite Falls, everyone's at home watching their favourite shows on television. All of a sudden the screens go blank! What's happened? A strike at the local studio? A powercut? No such luck!!

It seems that your friendly neighbourhood bad guy, Boris, is at it again!! Acting under orders from Mr Big, his boss, he is making 6 foot high metal munching mice!! Mr Big is on the moon, and is making misery there. He has tricked the moon men, Cloyd and Gidney (yes its nice to see you back fellas) into bringing the mice to the USA.

Time to call (no, not Rentokil) but Rocky and Bullwinkle to foil their plans, with the help of Cloyd and Gidney.

Once again, great fun and a great read. Kids will really love this. Oh, if only they were back on British tv. Maybe they could give the job of Head of the BBC to Mr Big, he could set his mice on those annoying television licence detector vans.

Hi its me again, the 46 year old Rocky and Bullwinkle fan.

I've just recently received this book, and quite frankly it was enormous fun!!!

It's a quiet evening in Frostbite Falls, everyone is at home watching their favourite tv programmes when the screens go blank!!! What's happened? A power cut? A strike at the local television station? No!! It seems that there's an epidemic of aerials being chewed off by someone or something?

Your local neighbour from Hell, Mr Boris Badenov has been up to his tricks, and has made some giant mice that eat the aerials!!! Actually, he's under orders from his boss, Mr Big, who made a crash landing on the moon, (as if he was already off this planet) who wants to take over America.

Heavens to Betsy Ross, what do we do next? Call Rentokil? No, you enlist the help of your local heroes, Rocky and Bullwinkle, who with some extra terrestial help from their moon men friends, Cloyd and Gidney, set about foiling Boris' plan.

A great read and great fun.

Adios and keep a close eye on your televisions.

Hi yes its me, the 46 year old Rocky and Bullwinkle fan!!!

I have just received this book and once again it is really good fun.

It is a quiet evening in Frostbite Falls, everyone is home in front of their televisions when suddenly the screens go blank!!!

Why, what's happened? A strike at the local TV station? A powercut? No. An infestation of giant metal munching mice!!! Time to call in your very own resident "mousecatchers" no, not RENTOKIL, but Messrs Rocky and Bullwinkle. With a little extra terrestial help from Cloyd and Gidney, (yes its nice to see you back, fellas,) they set out to discover the mystery behind the mice.

You can guess who is behind it!! Yes, your neighbour from hell, Boris!!! Honestly, hasn't he heard of going to the pet shop to feed the mice? It seems that Mr Big, his boss, is out to take over the USA yet again.

So he tricks Cloyd and Gidney into bringing the metal monsters to our planet. Boris and Natasha swing into villainy and cause mayhem, but they reckon without the moose and squirrel who, with the help of Cloyd and Gidney and their SCROOCHING gun, they once again restore viewing to Frostbite Falls.

Come to think of it, maybe we should give the job of Head of BBC to Mr Big, he can then get rid of all those annoying Television Licence Detector Vans with them.

All in all, a good read and a good laugh for young and old alike.

Yep, rush to your local bookstore and buy this!!!

bye for now, and guard your TV sets!!!

Hi yes its me, the 46 year old Rocky and Bullwinkle fan!!!

I have just received this book and once again it is really good fun.

It is a quiet evening in Frostbite Falls, everyone is home in front of their televisions when suddenly the screens go blank!!!

Why, what's happened? A strike at the local TV station? A powercut? No. An infestation of giant metal munching mice!!! Time to call in your very own resident "mousecatchers" no, not RENTOKIL, but Messrs Rocky and Bullwinkle. With a little extra terrestial help from Cloyd and Gidney, (yes its nice to see you back, fellas,) they set out to discover the mystery behind the mice.

You can guess who is behind it!! Yes, your neighbour from hell, Boris!!! Honestly, hasn't he heard of going to the pet shop to feed the mice? It seems that Mr Big, his boss, is out to take over the USA yet again.

So he tricks Cloyd and Gidney into bringing the metal monsters to our planet. Boris and Natasha swing into villainy and cause mayhem, but they reckon without the moose and squirrel who, with the help of Cloyd and Gidney and their SCROOCHING gun, they once again restore viewing to Frostbite Falls.

Come to think of it, maybe we should give the job of Head of BBC to Mr Big, he can then get rid of all those annoying Television Licence Detector Vans with them.

All in all, a good read and a good laugh for young and old alike.

Yep, rush to your local bookstore and buy this!!!

bye for now, and guard your TV sets!!!

Hi its me again, the 46 year old Rocky and Bullwinkle fan.

I've just recently received this book, and quite frankly it was enormous fun!!!

It's a quiet evening in Frostbite Falls, everyone is at home watching their favourite tv programmes when the screens go blank!!! What's happened? A power cut? A strike at the local television station? No!! It seems that there's an epidemic of aerials being chewed off by someone or something?

Your local neighbour from Hell, Mr Boris Badenov has been up to his tricks, and has made some giant mice that eat the aerials!!! Actually, he's under orders from his boss, Mr Big, who made a crash landing on the moon, (as if he was already off this planet) who wants to take over America.

Heavens to Betsy Ross, what do we do next? Call Rentokil? No, you enlist the help of your local heroes, Rocky and Bullwinkle, who with some extra terrestial help from their moon men friends, Cloyd and Gidney, set about foiling Boris' plan.

A great read and great fun.

Adios and keep a close eye on your televisions.

SAKKARA is the very best novel that I have ever read.In fact I read it twice. SAKKARA has the entire spectrum, adventure interwoven with romance. This is the novel that I wish I'd written.

This is such an excellent book. I have read twice and will definitely read again. It was a very special book to me as I have a friend that's father grew up in Cairo and his family worked for the King. I left him a paperback copy and he could not put the book down. Since I had given him my copy I had ordered a replacement and was thrilled to receive in hardcover copy. I was unaware that I could order in Hardcover. The hardcover would make an excellent gift for my friend and his family. This book is full of emotion and suspense. It has such a touching love story that tugs at the heart. It's as if you are actually there with the characters experiencing events as they happen. Excellent Read!!

I think it's amazing that Noel Barber as a journalist and non-fiction writer can also write such beautiful and engaging fiction. Sakkara is full of romance, danger, political turmoil, emotional conflicts, and suspense.

British diplomat in Egypt Mark Holt and Egyptian Serena Sirry are secretly in love, yet circumstances constantly interfere in their forbidden relationship. Mark and Serena and their families struggle to survive Egypt's upheaval as it is torn apart by the poor leadership of the womanizing and gluttonous King Farouk, the invasion of Nazi troops, and the revolutionary havoc created by political dissidents.

This is an exciting and passionate 500-page historical fiction saga, and definitely worth snatching up if you can find it.

I agree with the previous review, except for 5 stars. This book is good enough to re-read every few years, in my opinion. It is a riveting story of love through difficult and facinating times. Well worth reading, not a "romance" novel.

Sakkara, now out of print, is an engaging story of a man and woman from two separate cultures growing up together as neighbors in a swiftly changing Egypt. The sweeping historical romance begins in Egypt in 1919 and spans through the independence of Egypt. If you can find it-read it!!!

That's the eye catching sub-head for Mr. Cohen's very candid essay on the making of the movie "Bounce." It is not even a movie I saw and yet, I couldn't get myself to put down the book (and get back to work) until I finished this painfully insightful memoir by writer/director Don Roos.

In fact, the entire book is a little tough to put down because each story gets your foot inside the door of what writers had to endure to get their stories on the big screen. In some cases, you get the impression that the stories glided between the cracks. But in most cases, you wonder how anyone could ever have the tenacity to see a script to the end. And in many cases they don't. A recurring theme in these pages is how often the script changes hands, as old writers are fired, new one's hired, and the first one re-hired. Ugh. Makes me glad that I'm a Graphic Designer...something I thought I'd never say.

Surprisingly, the best story is found right smack dab at the beginning from Mr. Cohen himself. I'm talking about the Introduction, which most people skip. Don't do that. Read the introduction. All of it. It's honest. It's brave. And it's even more tell-all than the stories that come after it. Oh, and it's so funny at times that I embarrassed myself when laughing at the bookstore. I wrote the author an email, giving him a little wink about his story. He wrote back. That was enough for me to buy the book.

One more great thing about this book. I've always felt that writers are the last vestige of the world's wisemen. They have an insight about people, places and situations that when I read books like these I begin to wonder if I'm really reading a psychological self-help book. I've underlined quite a few snippets, as so much of what is shared resonated with my own experiences as a creative person. It's very difficult to stand by and watch someone "bend" your idea until it breaks (that's me paraphrasing Mr. Cohen in his Introduction).

So the point is, Get this book. If misery indeed loves company, you'll have plenty of it.

Have you ever loved a book and then been disappointed by how it was butchered in the movie? Or, thought a book was nothing more than a movie script, and then be enchanted at how it came alive on screen?

This fbook traces the stories of how 25 movies made that transition, and I enjoyed every step of the way. Cohen interviews the "writer and explores the sometimes torturous path from idea to finished film from its very root the transformations.

Writers are sometimes blamed for the failures. But Cohen credits the complaint that changes in the scripts by directors, actors, and studio executives sometimes ruined the movie. On the other hand, Alan Ball believes changes to American Beauty he had strongly resisted significantly improved the film.

I found several of the interviews especially instructive: Charlie Kaufman (Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind), Sofia Coppola (Lost in Translation), and John Logan (The Aviator).

Cohen's quotes from his interview with Michael Cunningham, who wrote "The Hours" and has written for the screen, taught me something fundamental about movies (and novels and short stories for that matter):

"A novel can include a sort of panorama of characters, a little like the Breughel painting with Icarus going down in the lower right-hand corner of the canvas. That's one of the reasons there are novels. That's one of the reasons we need novels and we need movies. A novel can account for randomness and can include a wide range of people whose fates just barely impinge on one another. I can't think of a way to tell a story like that in a movie that I would want to see.

"I think movies are more closely related to short stories than to novels. A short story actually involves the compression you need for a movie, whereas a novel is another category of thing entirely. Was it Henry James who called a novel a big, baggy monster? That's what it is. That's why we love them. I think a short story, very much like a movie, has no room in it for extra baggage. It needs to move, it doesn't need to move directly, but it needs to move swiftly. It needs to be lithe and light and nimble, and though that forty-page digression to the Crimean War and how it resembles what's happening at the family dinner may be interesting, there's no room in a short story for it. Nor is there room in a screenplay for it."

I'm sure that aspiring screenwriters would learn a great deal by reading about the successes and failures described in this book. It will certainly inform and enrich my own movie viewing in the future.

Robert C. Ross, 2008

I've been a working writer for 30 years, so David Cohen's book is deliciously like listening in on the personal conversations of compatriots in the craft--but the more I read, the more relieved I was that I'd never been attracted to screenwriting. Cohen's fresh, entertaining and whip-smart insights help to lace these in-depth interviews with meaning and pathos, even when the writers themselves border on the vapid--and those with the most to say shine through, thanks to the author's careful balance between commentary and reportage. We may cringe when we read of a writer's summary dismissal from the movie script he's slaved over for years, but there are enough delightful stories in this book to make the chilling ones a bit more bearable. One way or another, we've all been there.

We get to know the inner Cohen as well, from his own foray into writing for Star Trek to his early naivete at the junket buffet table. Overall, this book is a great read.

Cohen's genius is giving us the real story of how things happen, by letting us drop in (sometimes mercifully briefly) on the minds and tormented, heartbroken lives of actual screenwriters and their actual screenplays. I work with book authors who often want to make the leap to screen, so I bought this to see what they might be up against. Normally I have to force myself to read writerly books like this (parceling out a chapter every few days, dutifully, 'cause it's so much a part of my day job), but I took this one to bed and read it like a novel. The stories are so wonderfully f$%!d up... you find yourself overwhelmed with pity, schadenfreude, horror, amusement you name it. It must have been hell to make some of these movies.

The most interesting surprises for me were the backstories on two directors whose films normally do little for me personally: Todd Solondz and John Waters. I've always considered them overrated in a hipster-annoying kind of way (ditto the Cohens and the Sedarises, zzzz), but both men came off as brilliant personally, and so much more in control of what happens with their films. They make you wonder why anyone would want to get involved with the studio system at all... both seem so sane by comparison to some of the studio writers in the other stories.

The best thing this book did for me is make screenwriting seem do-able, by actual humans, rather than something demigods accomplish for little reconition and erratic pay. It's a job, like plumbing, and people have this job and make it work for them. I'm going to buy several copies and give them out to would-be screenwriter clients. Great work: author, author!

David S. Cohen gives us the back story on 25 movies (from the sublime, like The Hours, to the incredibly bad, like Random Hearts): how they evolved from screenplay to screen.
Although it's not a how-to book, I suspect budding and aspiring screenwriters everywhere will receive Screen Plays like a man stranded in the desert welcomes water.

Following these films from the birth of the idea until the films came into the theaters and left as classics, embarrassing flops, or somewhere in between, Cohen is smart enough not to offer glib answers about why the result was what it was. Writing, for example, about the very talented people who were behind Random Hearts (which I suspect will always be in the list of worst movies I've seen in my life), he ends quoting Harrison Ford, who instead of trying to explain the process of making the film, simply said: "You sort of had to be there." Regular film lovers can't be there for the journey, but Cohen does a really good job showing you photos of the trip.