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Video Books sorted by Average customer review: high to low .

Video
Catch Me If You Can: The Film and the Filmmakers (Newmarket Pictorial Movebooks)
Published in Paperback by Newmarket Press (2002-12)
Author:
List price: $22.95
New price: $3.99
Used price: $2.59
Collectible price: $22.99

Average review score:

Highly entertaining
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2006-01-20
This book is an example of truth giving fiction a run for its money. I'm sure that the stories were polished just a bit for publication, but the fact that they are true makes the book all the more interesting. I would list this book as one of the ten best that I have read in the past year. The story contains humor, suspense, and a web of intrigue that will tempt any law abiding citizen. I'll never look at a pilot the same way again.

Makayla's review
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2006-01-07

I choose this book because I had seen the movie and every one said the movie is different from the book. The movie is different from the move in many ways.
It left out when he becomes a professer, when he moves to Paris, and when he is put in solitaire confinement.
I liked this book because it shows just how easy it was to rip off a bank in the 60's.I think it is funny how much training the tellers had at finding a bad check. Back then the tellers only asked for ID on large amounts, now we have technology so we can search out phonies.
This book is about Frank W Abagnale and how he conned every bank in New York City and several other major cities in all different countries. His schemes involved an airline pilot, an attorney, a physician, professor and a detective. He goes from state to state and from country to country and scams any one he can for what ever he needs.
The type of person that would like this book

a lot would be girls because he also tricks girls into helping him in his scams. I think that we all could learn a thing or two from this book. That is why I liked the book.

Catch Me If You Can
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2005-11-29
Catch Me If You Can is a great book. It is about an 18 year old con-man named Frank Abnagle. He was an airline pilot, a lawyer and a doctor before he turned age 21. He also stole over 2 million dollars through counterfeit checks. This is a great book and also a great movie.

A Must Read
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2005-04-18
You can't put this book down. A very good book if you are into true crime. What a story.

A keepsake for avid fans
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2003-03-04
Words and photos to the Catch Me If You Can screenplay document the action which takes place behind camera and script for this re-creation of a con artist's life. This official pictorial moviebook includes over a hundred color production photos along with archival photos from Abagnale's personal collection, making for a keepsake for avid fans.

Video
Character Development and Storytelling for Games (Game Development Series)
Published in Paperback by Course Technology PTR (2004-06-15)
Author: Lee Sheldon
List price: $39.99
New price: $24.31
Used price: $20.54

Average review score:

Outstanding, but not what I expected
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-04-17
Cons: The book seemed slightly long for what it was, kept reusing the same semi-obscure examples from the writer's experience, and didn't always go in the directions I wanted it to go (for example more detail on world building, settings, or individual story scenes would have been appreciated).

Pros: It didn't matter that it didn't go where I wanted it because it was still very entertaining and unexpectedly beneficial to follow the writer on his path. The book is solid from start to finish and doesn't have a false air of superiority about it; everything is very practical and friendly. Definitely a good read that rewards the effort.

An excellent book for all writers
Helpful Votes: 17 out of 19 total.
Review Date: 2004-12-14
I've known Lee Sheldon for several years. He is one of the most pleasant and knowledgeable people I've met in the game industry, so I was very much looking forward to this book. Suffice it to say that I wasn't disappointed.

Writing for games has a lot in common with writing for other media (e.g., character and theme) and a lot that is unique to itself. Lee does an excellent job of covering both aspects - so much so that I would recommend this book to writers with absolutely no interest in interactive media. (I've read my share of writing books over the years, and this one stands at the top of the heap.)

Of particular interest to me were chapters 3-6 on character and chapter 14 on modular storytelling, the most elegant way I've seen of organizing a linear experience into a non-linear structure. The book also does an excellent job of discussing storytelling in massively multiplayer games and provides extensive background material, much of which is intended to set up and justify Lee's modular storytelling model - rather more background than necessary, actually, since you should be sold on the need for something like modular storytelling long before he gets around to explaining it.

The book's does have a few faults. For example, a couple of the later chapters feel out of place, and the text is dusted with a handful of puzzling and sometimes repeated typos (Eowen? Kalishnakov?) But these are of little consequence and should not detract from your enjoyment.

Highly recommended.

Excellent
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-07
This book is excellent. Sheldon is witty and insightful and his book is a joy to read. I can't really think of anything negative to say, although I should perhaps mention that this book is pretty focused on RPGs and adventure games, since these are the genres which have traditionally relied most on story. Anyone interested in developing their understanding of storytelling in games should definitely pick this book up.

Breaking through barriers
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2007-07-05
I am working on forming a game development studio, and our team is in the middle of producing our flagship title, an RPG entitled "Revolution's Dawn." I am the main writer of the script, and I just recently finished reading this book. Where I thought my duties as a writer were finished, I now see new openings to provide dialogue and sidequests to fill in the backstory, plot gaps, and other means of enrichment that I didn't see before. Because of having read this book, my team and I can now take this game and bring it into the realm of what we intended it to be-a vehicle for telling a story.

While the title of the book is "Character Development and Storytelling for Games," the book really focuses more heavily on the latter. I was expecting the former, but by no means am I complaining! I have been able to break through blocks in my own role as a writer for this project.

If you are looking for the "right" way to write your story, you won't find it here. What this book does instead is to open doors, and then let you decide whether to walk through them or not. And even then, you still have to choose for yourself what to do once you've walked through them. If you are looking for new openings in crafting your game _and_ writing your story(and synthesizing them both together), this is the book for you.

Very interesting, but could have been shorter
Helpful Votes: 8 out of 9 total.
Review Date: 2006-06-25
I really enjoyed this book, and I think it's definitely worth considering if you're interested in how stories can be told in video games. I've bought plenty of books about video game design and storytelling. (I'm a programmer who's been making video games professionally for about 10 years -- I wish more people would include their personalbackground in their book reviews...) Some books on game design are written by people who obviously have more "static media" backgrounds like books or movies, and don't understand the fundamental problem of making a story in a situation where the audience has freedom to do what they want. Another problem that a lot of people don't understand is that people playing a video game don't necessarily WANT a story, in the sense that they are playing a video game because of the interactivity, and not to watch a 10 minute cutscene to learn some back story. If they wanted to watch a movie they'd pop in a DVD.

I think the author really understands these difficulties. You want to make an emmersive worl, but you need to do it very quickly. So he talks about dialog, and how to convey as much information as possible in as few words as possible. He talks about how to get the player to sympathize with a chaacter, from the situation that characetr is in, to the design of the character art, to the words that the character says. All of the information is very practical, not like some books that leave you with a bunch of high-level nonsense that doesn't work in a real game. I really appreciated that he wasn't one of these "video games are mindless because they don't tell a story" type of guys. Or acting as if video games need to learn how to tell a story in order to "grow up" like movies or TV have. In a straight up action game or fighter, you don't need as much of a story as you do in a more adventure game. Playing a video game is a just a different experience, and the story has a different role, it's NOT the holy grail like some people think. Rather than trying to tell you how to convert video games into novels, he describe ways that you can inject story without taking away from the inetraction. I think he makes a good case that in almost any game, you can introduce just a bit of characetr depth and relationships, without stopping for a ten minute cutscene, and it adds value to the game.

This author's background was originally in TV, but he also has considerable experience in video games. I felt like he has a good background to be writing the book, and was speaking from experience.

The only negative comment about the book is that I found several of the chapters to be very similar. Like you'd be reading a chapter, and you'd think, "Hey, didn't I just read this exact same thing a few chapters ago?" Actually, you didn't, this chapter is covering a very slightly different topic. In other words, I think he could have consolidated a few chapters, which would have saved me some time. I suppose this makes it easier to jump around, since you don't rely on information from previous chapters. But I found it a little repetitive.

All in all, a really good book for anybody interested in video game design or storytelling in general.

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Charlie's Family: An Illustrated Screenplay to the Film by Jim VanBebber (Creation Cinema Collection)
Published in Paperback by Creation Books (1998-10)
Author: Jim van Bebber
List price: $19.95
New price: $22.95
Used price: $4.58

Average review score:

A composition of words to images.....
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2003-04-08
I haven't read the screenplay, yet. In fact, I'm debating on buying it or not after watching the movie, itself. As far as I know, a friend of a friend got the movie off from an editing reel...my friends remaining undisclosed at this time. I was never into the whole Charles Manson scene...in fact, this is the first piece of info. about Charles Manson that I've seen/read. The only thing I could base my thoughts about it is from what other have said about it. Then one day, me and quite a large group of my buddies were getting hammered, and my friend asked if we wanted to watch something. The way he described it was 3 hours of the sickest things you've ever seen, progressively getting worse, having graphic scenes of the twin towers blowing up, with porn scenes and football mixed together, followed by that midget "beetlejuice" doing obscene acts of...well...you don't want to know. But after watching this, I saw a side of the Manson murders that I never even fathomed of wanting to see. So, in conclusion....i would say that this is excellent reading material for the daily american psychopath, but you better make sure you have a lead stomach, cause' you're in for a bumpy ride. Email me if you want to add something.

~Jeff

absolute!
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2002-01-30
Great book, the pictures were clear and crisp. I can't wait for this to come out on DVD!

A Must-read Book for True-Crime Enthusiasts & Cinema Lovers
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 1999-03-26
This is something of a first, a published edition of the Screenplay of one of the best Underground films never to have been distributed. Up until now, only the lucky few attendees of Film festivals have been able to catch a glimpse of Jim Vanbebber's radical reworking of the Manson Family story since the Film has yet to have been distributed to Theaters. Now, while Vanbebber finishes his final cut, you can read the screenplay itself, browse the photos and add his take on the crime spree to your collection of classics like HELTER SKELTER. Of course, I can hardly wait for the film, but in the meantime... I'll take this. The retelling itself focuses on a theory of the crimes that has not been in the forefront. Vanbebber's take on the big question of WHY the murders took place is disturbing since it demystifies the crimes and shows them for the dirty, filthy, stupid and brutal murders they actually were rather than some statement on a fictional Race War. Ultimately, I feel his telling of the stories is more disturbing as a result of his refusal to be swayed by media myths.

An Appetizer while we wait for the Film of this screenplay
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 1999-11-26
I've been hearing about CHARLIE'S FAMILY for over five years and ever since I've been dying to see Underground Wunderkind, Jim Van Bebber's retelling of the Manson story. Sadly, it seems that the film is either not yet finished or has not yet acquired a Distributor. In a year when Blair Witch made so much money on such a false pretense, I gotta ask myself why this film hasn't seen the light of day? Still, Creation has now published the screenplay to this long-awaited project along with lots of groovy production stills which has calmed me down some. However, after reading the story which is a poignant but slightly sardonic look at Tabloid Culture, I only want to see the film more and more. Even so, I think anyone interested in Van Bebber's work (My Sweet Satan) can appreciate his narrative style and enjoy reading this screenplay. One advantage to reading it as a screenplay instead of some novelization is that you can see in your mind's eye, what shape the film will take place. It's like a secret glimpse into the creative process that few people outside of a studio ever get access to. The story itself is very up to date even if it is about Manson. The wrap-around story brings the moral questions of the Manson mystique into focus while the flashback scenes transport us back into the harrowing summer of 1969 when the Hippie movement jumped the tracks and a small band of Free-lovers and their ex-con Guru, Charlie, decide it's End Of The World Time and take their paranoia to the streets. The back then and then and the Here and Now of this telling blend very well and make us all wonder if it's very wise to objectify the monsters of our past. Personally, I'd like to see the author move on to a serious, sociological exploration of Manson-Worship but I doubt even he could stand to wallow in the Manson story much longer. Still, if you can overcome your reluctance to read a screenplay, you won't be sorry because in here are all the big answers to the questions raised by the Manson Murders, not the least of which is WHY ON EARTH they happened in the first place. Oh.. and the answer has very little to do with Helter Skelter.

Most interesting Take on Manson to date
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 1999-12-09
I have purchased five copies of this book already and probably will buy more as gifts. This is a MUST HAVE BOOK for True Crime readers. Yes, I know, It's a screenplay. Even so, it manages to put across more hard info about the transformation of Charlie from Love Guru to General Charlie of the Acid Apocolypse than any book, article or expose since Ed Sanders' THE FAMILY. If you have a heart at all, the scenes recounting the murders of first Gary Hinman, the forgotten Manson Victim and then Sharon Tate and friends and then the poor La Biancas will leave you broken and weeping. I felt that for the first time, a work about Manson has put the Victims first. Not much else to say except buy this, read it, think about it and tell anyone else who might be falling into that "Manson was a misunderstood genius" rap that they NEED to read this book too.

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A Christmas Carol and Its Adaptations : A Critical Examination of Dickens' Story and Its Productions on Screen and Television
Published in Hardcover by McFarland & Company (1999-11-25)
Author: Fred Guida
List price: $45.00
Used price: $145.00

Average review score:

Excellent - extremely comprehensive and insightful
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-25
This volume assuredly would be a welcome addition to the libary of anyone who loves Charles Dickens and/or the history of film. The style of writing is quite engaging, yet it does not descend into sentimentality or nostalgia.

The opening chapters, which provide a relatively brief yet surprisingly insightful treatment of Dickens' Christmas writings and social conscience, are a concise picture of the setting in which Dickens brought his classic to life. For those unfamiliar with the period, I would find this to be an essential background, lest A Christmas Carol be reduced to a fairy tale, as it is in certain film treatments. Those who are acquainted with these matters undoubtedly would find the quotations from Dickens' more obscure Christmas writings, and references to such other Christmas scenes as those in The Pickwick Papers, to form a comprehensive image of the combination of commentary and imagination in these works, and underlying themes which influenced a Christmas Carol itself.

The treatment of film adaptations, including the earliest silents, is extremely well researched and comprehensive. Even the biggest fan of "Scrooge pictures" would find some in this collection which were unknown. The classic films (for example, Alastair Sims' version) are analysed with an insightfulness that would increase anyone's understanding and enjoyment of their content.

As a Dickens lover, and also as one who is a "Christmas nut" (for whom the insights in this volume were a welcome and lovely nutcracker), I would highly recommend this book on all counts.

Very Well Done
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 5 total.
Review Date: 2003-12-17
Dickens dose a great job introducing this book. He has very high vocabulary and his words are sometimes very confusing. However, that should not cloud over the book because it is a great read. In my opinion it is a must read. I think if any Christmas hater reads this book they will love it. It certainly was interesting.

A Wonderful Treat
Helpful Votes: 5 out of 7 total.
Review Date: 2000-02-16
Fred Guida has presented an incredibly well researched and beautifully written book that blends the literary history of this story along with the history of its various screen presentations. Thank you for this unique presentation.

Excellent Reference Material
Helpful Votes: 6 out of 6 total.
Review Date: 2001-12-18
I've been a fan of the 1953 version of a the Carol for as long as I remember. It was family tradition every Christmas eve to watch it. I've looked at as many possible versions and have yet to find it's match. This book is an amazing resource of all the various interpretations of the Dicken's classic has gone through from early lantern projected pictures, through the silent era, talking films, television, and animated specials. The early version were fascinating and I found it a special bonus that the author made note of various television shows which featured a special Christmas episode inspired by A Christmas Carol. Who could ever forget the "Six Million Dollar Man" Christmas special using the ideas from the novel. This brought back a lot of great television special memories. I was even able to track down two hard to find T.V. animated specials shown in the early 1970's but not seen since. (I found them on Amazon). All in all a great read, especially for fans. I did not agree with all of the criticisms, and the text is a rather dry read, maybe a little too academic. But still great stuff!!

A Treat for "Carol" Lovers
Helpful Votes: 9 out of 10 total.
Review Date: 2000-01-16
Everyone has a favorite film or television version of Dickens beloved "A Christmas Carol." But few of us have any idea how very many adaptations there have been. Mr. Guida's wonderful book examines first the written "Carol," then goes on to detail some of the hundreds of adaptations and variations, from the early stage versions and magic lantern slides to modern made-for-television Carols. Mr. Guida discusses the major Carols with wit and humor as well as rare discernment: his love for his subject is evident. Minor Carols and variations are also covered, albeit more briefly. If you cannot find your favorite version in the text, you are sure to find it in the superb and very thorough filmography. The filmography is worth browsing in and of itself; did you know that there have been Western, country-western, rock-and-roll, and even science-fiction variations on "A Christmas Carol"? Or that actors as disparate as Cicely Tyson, Basil Rathbone, and Mr. Magoo have played Scrooge? If you love "A Christmas Carol" or simply dote on film trivia, I promise you will enjoy this book.

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Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun: Prima's Official Strategy Guide
Published in Paperback by Prima Games (1999-08-25)
Author: Steve Honeywell
List price: $19.99
New price: $8.62
Used price: $2.29

Average review score:

Break through tough levels
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-05-19
This was a huge help to me to get through some tough levels that I was really stuck on. It is not so much a "cheat" as a walkthrough of what is going to happen. I only gave the book four stars because I thought it could have gone over actual in game controls more thoroughly.

This book helped me out a lot
Helpful Votes: 11 out of 13 total.
Review Date: 1999-10-27
This is a really good book i don't think that i cold have beaten the game without this book it tells u all about the units and what to do in each of the missions

This book is great!
Helpful Votes: 3 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2000-12-01
It includes instructions on how to beat the individual missions, tips for playing the AI, differences between Nod and GDI. A great book for a great game! A definite buy!

I think it was a great book.
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 5 total.
Review Date: 1999-11-04
This book helped me beat Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun. It helped because I was stuck on the last GDI mission and the sixth Nod mission. The book helped me beat these missions so that I can go on.

I think it was a great book.
Helpful Votes: 9 out of 11 total.
Review Date: 1999-11-04
This book helped me beat Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun. It helped because I was stuck on the last GDI mission and the sixth Nod mission. The book helped me beat these missions so that I can go on.

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The Complete Pinball Book
Published in Hardcover by Schiffer Publishing (1999-10-01)
Author: Marco Rossignoli
List price: $59.95
New price: $133.65
Used price: $60.00

Average review score:

A Mine of Information
Helpful Votes: 14 out of 15 total.
Review Date: 2002-02-23
Having been a Pinball addict since my teens (too many years ago), I bought this book to re-live some of those memories. I was not disappointed. It is full of information on all types of machines together with excellent colour pictures. Many of my favourite pinballs of the sixties and seventies (but also modern ones if you prefer those) are featured together with explanations of what made them special.

The only problem is that it brought back my enthusiasm to such an extent that I went out an bought my own machine, so this book cost me a lot of money!

Best Pinball Book Ever!
Helpful Votes: 14 out of 15 total.
Review Date: 2000-03-29
If you like pinball, you'll LOVE this book. I own several bookson my favourite hobby and this one is by far the best. It covers allaspects of the silver ball and has a great many beautiful colour photos.

An incredible book!
Helpful Votes: 16 out of 16 total.
Review Date: 2000-12-30
I own over 10 different pinball books which I've bought over the years but none of them comes REMOTELY close to this one. This is an exhaustive book which has over 300 jam-packed pages of information. Every imaginable feature that has ever been in a pinball machine is documented in great detail throughout the book. There is even a chapter which talks about and lists every video pinball game ever made for home video game systems and PCs! If you have even a passing interest in pinball machines, you must have this book. Period. The price seems a little steep, but when you hold the actual book in your hands, you'll know where that money went...

Stunning!

Ballpin Hammer
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 29 total.
Review Date: 2002-08-16
Pinball? Strange word grouping. I don't really see how a pin can be a ball, but I am just one little guy trying to think this out. No matter, Keynote told me all about the pinball arcades and games of this nature. And he bought me this terrific book. Now I know a whole lot about all kinds of balls made out of pins and the way you can play games with them. This was very cool. I like this book very very much. And you will too.

Fantastic book and an amazing enterprise
Helpful Votes: 8 out of 10 total.
Review Date: 2001-02-13
Well layed out, informative, impressive amount of detail. The author's love of every part of the game shines through on every page. A truly great pinball book.

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Crackpot: The Obsessions of John Waters
Published in Paperback by Scribner (2003-10-21)
Author: John Waters
List price: $14.00
New price: $3.24
Used price: $3.08
Collectible price: $13.00

Average review score:

Crackup
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-02-18
This book is hilarious and creepy all at once. It is also extremely well written by a unique individual with outstanding literary skill.
His Love/Hate essays had me clutching my sides and his observations are so far out of the mainstream that you just want to hug him! There should be more of it!! Viva Waters.

crackpot
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 3 total.
Review Date: 2007-12-28
amazon actually asked me to write a review of this book. some people must have found my last review useful (I've only written two previously).
anyway, I've only given the book 4 stars instead of five because its neither comprehensive nor definitive, but I value just about anything pertaining to john waters. so, let's see. john waters lives in a real city (Baltimore), and goes to new York and L.A. on business (expensives paid). living in baltimore gives john waters a wonderful slant on events. (Baltimore is associated with E. A. Poe -- I don't even like verse except for "the raven"!) so, we know from reading the book that john waters will subscribe to any publication that will publish an article he has written. the early days of his films must have been desperate times, requiring divine to eat dog excrement. can't say enough about the importance of divine to some of john waters's films. so far the best john waters movie seems to be "hair spray". divine and riki lake were incredible! can't imagine john travolta as Tracy's mom in the new picture directed by someone else, but the actress playing Tracy looks very good from what I have seen of the trailers. so, the book is definitely worth reading just to find out more about john waters. for instance really good to know that john waters steaks out the locations of his films in his tuna boat car like a detective before filming in Baltimore. imagining john waters in his comfortable apartment pondering his next move, while drinking
ovaltine.

Goldmine
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-02-01
This book is so well-written, I think if John Waters hadn't become a film director he would have made an even better author. This book is so funny, but it is also a goldmine. There are so many references to obscure and interesting movies, books...all sorts of things. I learned so much! I had never heard of the film "Christmas Evil" before, but read about it in the book and was delighted to find it on netflix! It was insane!!! What a gem!

You could literally keep a notepad to scribble down movies to rent, books to read and things to google while reading this book. Lots of fun to read, and tons more to discover after you are done.

Soda will come out of your nose!
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-09-05
I have been a fan of John Waters for years. I read Crackpot: The Obsessions of John Waters while sitting at a coffee bar near Bloomingdale's in NYC. I was surrounded by "the ladies who lunch." The book made me snicker, chuckle, guffaw, and produce a series of embarrassing noises produced when you try to suppress hysterical laughter in an inappropriate place. The embarrassing sounds made me laugh even more, and the looks of disgust from disapproving shoppers ultimately sent Diet Pepsi through my nose.

I could not offer a finer tribute to anything produced by the mind of John Waters. God bless you, John.

John Waters is hilarious!
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-04-16
I just finished reading Crackpot last week, and it kept me entertained from beginning to end. I'm not an avid reader, so being able to get through any book is usually impossible for me, no matter what the length. Not only was the book nice and short, but John Waters really does know how to keep your attention. His writings are a great compliment to his films and I can't wait to read Shock Value! I love you, John!

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Crime Movie Posters (Illustrated History of Movies Through Posters)
Published in Paperback by Bruce Hershenson (1997-10)
Author: Bruce Hershenson
List price: $20.00
New price: $9.00
Used price: $9.00

Average review score:

Crime Movie Posters
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2000-12-12
Absolutely stunning! Superb graphics of some of our favorite movie posters! Highly recommend.

Here's to Crime
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2000-12-12
How can crime be bad and yet so good! Look inside the cover of these pages for the answer. Not much reading required but plenty of illustrations. And what illustrations!! Cigarettes, dangling from shadowey faces, killer guns begging for victums, and behind every crime there's a "good" women to lead him on to both heaven or hell. These images can usually sum up the classic Crime Movie Poster. In cronological order the images take us from the birth of this gendre to it's present. This is no small feat, as the first poster is dated 1913! That's how many years? Page after page is loaded with poster art that grabs the eye and makes you want to view the film. Vivid coloring shows the excellent printing quality of this volume. One only needs to turn the pages to discover "the stuff dreams are made of".

Here's to Crime
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2000-12-12
How can crime be bad and yet so good! Look inside the cover of these pages for the answer. Not much reading required but plenty of illustrations. And what illustrations!! Cigarettes, dangling from shadowey faces, killer guns begging for victums, and behind every crime there's a "good" women to lead him on to both heaven or hell. These images can usually sum up the classic Crime Movie Poster. In cronological order the images take us from the birth of this gendre to it's present. This is no small feat, as the first poster is dated 1913! That's how many years? Page after page is loaded with poster art that grabs the eye and makes you want to view the film. Vivid coloring shows the excellent printing quality of this volume. One only needs to turn the pages to discover "the stuff dreams are made of".

A spectacular volume of fabulous images!
Helpful Votes: 16 out of 16 total.
Review Date: 1999-11-19
Everyone has their own favorite film genre (animation, action and adventure, science fiction, etc.). This one is mine. If you are the least bit interested in the jaw-dropping beauty of what has become a lost art -- the exercise of drawing images associated with the advertising of a Hollywood film -- this is the book to have. No other genre, in my opinion, was more dark and foreboding and in turn experienced a burst of creativity than posters associated with the film-noir period of Hollywood, which roughly ran from the mid-1940s to the mid-1950s. This book is part of movie poster maven Bruce Hershenson's exhaustive multi-volume series of books highlighting the history and beauty of what much of mainstream America has only in the last ten years begun to recognize. And that is movie posters are a "popular art" form that can stand proudly next to all other styles of art from gothic to modern, from expressionist to impressionist. Great film art borrows from all of these styles and this volume, which focuses only on posters associated with crime and film-noir films, is my favorite. It illustrates innumerable examples of the ranges in style, despite the superficial expectation that all art from this genre was the same. It was not. From Gilda to This Gun For Hire, Hershenson and Allen have built an incredible archive of images in all of his books, capturing a period (when all posters were drawn by hand and then printed, as opposed to today's method of using a montage of photos and manipulating them digitally and printing them by the thousands) that would otherwise be lost forever. A fine book for any collector (get the hardcover edition if you can, it's harder to find; if Amazon doesn't have it, it's available from Mr. Hershenson directly at mail@brucehershenson.com.

Every last shot....
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2000-12-14
Every last shot heard in the world of motion pictures is displayed here. From Pre-code films like LADIES THEY TALK ABOUT to the Code-in-your-face PULP FICTION, Bruce Hershenson captures the poster art of these films in splashy high quality color. A bonus is that Bruce always includes lobby card art, cherished by many a collector, but not displayed often.

Video
Dialogue Editing for Motion Pictures: A Guide to the Invisible Art
Published in Paperback by Focal Press (2007-05-11)
Author: John Purcell
List price: $44.95
New price: $38.41
Used price: $38.42

Average review score:

Good info, easy to read.
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-04-25
I recommend this book. It uses ProTools to illustrate the various aspects of dialogue editing and succeeds in getting the info across in a clear manner. I would have given it 5 stars if the book had been accompanied by a CD containing examples / exercize files.

Highly recommended!
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-04-29
In my opinion, Purcell has written the definitive book on post-production sound editing for feature film. This is the best yet. Though this book focuses primarily on dialogue editing (a largely misunderstood and under-appreciated craft), there is a wealth of information that would benefit anyone who works in post-production from the picture cutting room to the final mix dubbing stage.

While so many books on this subject are written from the point-of-view of the technician, the academic, or the bedroom studio warrior insulated in his own "home-brewed" workflow, it's clear from the first few pages that Purcell has spent many years working in the professional film industry. Many times I feel like I've been on some of the same crews that he describes.

Overall, this book is not only informative but very funny and cleverly written. As someone who works in the industry myself, I got a lot out of this book and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in this field or who wants to broaden their understanding of how the "Invisible Art" really works.

Sound Designer - Yaniv Bitran
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-02-05
Hey there,

I read the amazing book of John Purcell all night and I couldnt stop.
This book contains everything that sound editor & sound desginer need for Dialogue editing.

The book doesnt patronizing or try to goes a round by his language. Its talking straight to you as an editor. step by step building you as Dialogue editor and construct John famous and modest System.

I was student of John Purcell, and I am using his methods from college time, because of his system I get compliment & awards.

Director that I used to work with John system got compliments for the Sound Editing & Design on her movie from Mike Leigh - The famous Director. that close the case. The book is must in every sound desginer or Dialogue editor who take himself seriously...

Yours With truthful respect
Yaniv

Dialogue Editing on a professional level.
Helpful Votes: 5 out of 5 total.
Review Date: 2007-09-18
This is the best book I have ever read on dialogue editing! It explains everything from budgeting time for a project all the way up to the final mix. John Purcell clearly loves his job and his enthusiasm comes through in his writing. I highly recommend this book to all filmmakers as a way to learn exactly what goes into the dialogue editing process and I consider it a must read for all sound editors.

John uses pictures and examples to demonstrate what he is talking about. He shows how to organize EDLs and how to use them to find alternate takes and locate wild sound for a particular scene. Though every film has its own quirks, John also demonstrates how to handle common problems with matching rooms tones from different angles in scenes. Those two aspects alone make the book worth getting, but there is a wealth of information in this book that makes it an excellent purchase.

A good professional book for aspiring film professionals.
Helpful Votes: 6 out of 6 total.
Review Date: 2007-07-27
Clearly phrased, easy to read, concise and extremely useful, this book is a step by step guide to every pop, crackle and roll of the core part of sound editing - making the dialogue heard. It also has a great overview of the context - how to transfer production sound from the picture editing room, what you'll need from production as well, favoured/time saving procedures and the required contacts in other departments of production (a crucial though rarely covered issue).
The basic feel is somewhere between a 'how to' guide and a master-class. The book covers a lot more than which plug-in gives you what or how to use your mouse. Anyone with a few basic concepts in editing would probably be able to give it a go him/herself, or at least have a very good clue on what should be done in order to get the job done, and done well.
It's also packed with illustrative materials of most dialog boxes and written materials you should run into while working.
I'd recommend it to editors (both picture and sound) and post production facilities (in case a producer might wander in and wonder what's the big deal with dialogue).

Video
Disney: The First 100 Years
Published in Hardcover by Disney Editions (1999-10-13)
Authors: David Smith and Steven B. Clark
List price: $40.00
Used price: $39.60

Average review score:

Great for Disney fans!
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2005-09-20
Catch up on your knowledge, or review what you know. Fun series of all that's Disney.

No details
Helpful Votes: 5 out of 7 total.
Review Date: 2002-04-17
This is a great book about Disney Company. It goes chronologically from 1901 to 1999 and beyond. Every event in the company's history is put in the book, but without much detail.
Since he maintains Disney Archives, Dave Smith could have done a litle better, like he did with Disney's Encyclopedia.

Excellent
Helpful Votes: 5 out of 9 total.
Review Date: 2002-01-31
This book was excellent! It had terrific pictures and it told from 1901 when Walt was born until 2001. It is a great keepsake. I purchased mine at Walt Disney World during the 100 Years of Magic celebration.

An excellent overview of Waltýs life and of the Disney Co
Helpful Votes: 51 out of 53 total.
Review Date: 2000-08-01
I really enjoyed this book. It is packed with lots of great photographs and artwork from Walt Disney and the Disney Company. It also has a really nice overview of the life of Walt Disney and the work of the Disney Company in text.

I appreciated the organization of the book. The book is arranged chronologically, which helped me to understand the flow of events better. This book has a very upbeat, positive tone and paints a very bright and exciting future for the Disney Company.

This book does not contain nearly as much information about Walt Disney as some of the biographies that I have read, but I don't think that was the goal of this book. This book does a very nice job of chronicling the art and the work of this great American icon and then continues the chronology with the work of the Disney Company in the post Walt era.

This book starts with very early Disney and takes the reader all the way through to Fantasia 2000. This is an excellent coffee table book. I highly recommended it to anyone that loves Walt, his work and the continuing work of the Disney Company.

Great Disney Book Loaded With Photos and Info !!
Helpful Votes: 8 out of 8 total.
Review Date: 2004-07-13
This 213 page book is just full of an endless supply of full color photos of everything Disney for the past 100 years. You'll learn all about Walt's early life and how his ideas created worldwide Disney worlds. Each chapter covers a decade from 1901 to 2001 !! Many of these pictures are archival and never made available before. The book provides many memories for "children" of all ages. It's a keeper. Enjoy !


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