Video Books

I gave this as a gift to someone who likes to read about the movies as much as he enjoys watching them. Because he has a collection of movie guides, this one caught my eye because it was different with a more unique take on film.

I have purchased other movie guides in the past but always end up getting the current Videohound. It's more concise than other books. Lots more information available. I love the catagory lists. Some of the catagory titles they think up are great! I would recommend this book for video lovers over any other that I've purchased.

i consider myself a movie buff, and this is my bible. this is the fourth edition of this book that i bought, and i will continue to buy one every year. it helps me to choose the movies i watch, and answers the questions that plague me. with the many options for reference (title, category, actor, director, composer, awards), i find this book very easy to use. not only does this book list actors, awards, directors, etc. a description of the film and a rating are included. i freaking love this book! 'nuff said.

The only short side is that it only produces info for on tape or DVD. Other than that it is a gem. When ever you don't remember an actors name, find the movie or the movie you remember them in and your there.

The bones critic of the film (ergo hound) is very good, a real persons review of the film.

Look for info by genre, title, actor or whatever.

This is a film buffs must and a great conversation starter!

What was Bogart's final film? What was Lizabeth Scott's first film? How many movies did Gregory Peck make? How many movies did Raoul Walsh direct? When did John Wayne die? And what was Vincente Minnelli's final film? Answers below! All this and considerably more movie information is included in the veritable encyclopedia "Golden Movie Retriever". There are fully 929 pages of movie synopses and ratings. Also included are indices on movie writers, cinematographers, composers and categories -how many Zorro movies are there? (13!). There are over 30 pages of major awards- and even a section on alternate titles! Apparently, "Summer Stock" may also called "If You Feel Like Singing"! It could easily take a lifetime to mine the nuggets here. The only possible weakness to GMR is the paper cover, which should be well worn very quickly. Answers to the questions above are: "The Harder They Fall" (1956); "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers" (1946); 49 (count `em!); 43; 1979 and "A Matter of Time" (1976). What's not to like? There is absolutely nothing for a movie fan to ponder here. Hit hat "Add to Cart" button now!

What a wonderful book! The illustrations are breathtakingly georgous and intricately detailed as is typical of all Jan Brett's books. The story of the Gingerbread Baby is a surprising and delightful retelling of the classic story. My children and I loved this book!

I really feel like the odd one out, but I wasn't too impressed with this book. Sure, the illustrations are gorgeous...By no means am I knocking Ms. Brett's skill here, but I just find the text a little long winded and ackward. Maybe it's the way I'm reading it...? It just doesn't seem too terribly well-written to me.

Beautiful illustrations. This is a great children's adventure book. It also teaches children the names of some animals.

When a Gingerbread Boy is peeked at when not supposed to, he becomes Gingerbread Baby! This is the main idea of Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett. This story is about a boy named Matti in Switzerland. This is a great children's book. I strongly recommend the book.

A boy named Matti decides it's a perfect day for gingerbread. But, when his mother tells him not to peek, he does anyways. Then out pops ... not the Gingerbread Man but ... The Gingerbread Baby! The Ginger bread Baby runs away and everyone chases him. It's very funny.

I think that the Gingerbread Baby is the best character. He's the best character because he is my favorite character. The main characters are, Matti, The Gingerbread Baby, and the animals. The writing style is great. The story is very easy to read. It's a great book.

I really like the illustrations. They really tell the story. Some of the pictures are funny. The Gingerbread Baby even has his own little saying like the Gingerbread Man. One saying is "Catch me if you can!"

The story was great and funny. I really enjoyed the book. I really hope you like the book too. I recommend the book for grades k-5. This book can be for any age, boy or girl.

The book was as promised, prompt delivery and good packaging. I will use this seller again.

...particularly if you are one of those people who think Shakespeare is boring or too difficult (most of us remember the NIGHTMARE of getting through one play at school, right?). Well, kiss boredom goodbye, banish your nightmares and prepare for a TREAT! This is funny, intelligent, fast-paced and heartbreaking, all at the same time - rather like Shakespeare, in fact!

If you're a sucker for Shakespeare, like me, I would defenately bye this book. I had a proffessor who told me once that people go to the movies to escape from reality. This movie supports that statement. When I watch this movie or read the screenplay I fall into another time were love is the object your heart longs for most. One thing I like about this movie is how it brings facts into a fictional affair. The "actors" portrayed in this movie really did exist and they played in the very theatres dipicted; I love that! Marlowe, Shakespeare's "enemy" was really stabbed in a bar fight and there are many more factual things about the movie. I also like how the writers made it so that Will Shakespeare gave Viola the sonnet Shall I Compare Thee To A Summers Day and incorporated Romeo and Juliet into the movie. Sheer genious! And a great tear jerker! Wonderfully acted and written. It makes you fall in love with a time period almost forgotten. I simply loved it!

This movie showed us what true love really is. One person said "Ryan should have gotten best pic". Well, Red Line was way much better than that pic becuase it explored emotions and showed the feelings of each character. Ryan...good effects. Shakespeare In Love is well written and well acted. It is a love story that is never told. Just like our own lives.

I truly love this book! It shows passion,love,comedy,and history.The movie, Shakespeare in Love is my favorite movie, so I loved this book!

Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard wrote the screenplay of Shakespeare in Love. The film is marvellous and so powerful that no one can resist that love drama. The story of Romeo and Juliet is itself so frightfully emotional that no one can resist the charm of the tragedy and the pain of the love story. So many artists, in so many genres and arts, have tried themselves at adapting this story, this play, this tragedy to their stages or screens or canvasses, and all have been inspired so deeply by Shakespeare's story that Romeo and Juliet have become a true galaxy of masterpieces and stars. The latest ever produced is Shakespeare in Love and the screenplay is richer, more poignant and freer than the images of the film. The screenplay is enriched with stage directions that are so brilliant, so precious that the text, the dialogue, what is going to become the words of the actors, is enhanced and beautified by them. After a while we don't even know what is the gem and what is the golden bed that carries the gem. The screenplay is by itself a work of art, a masterpiece, and the film, if you watch it again afterwards, finds tremendous new meanings and undeemable finesse in the recollections you may have kept of all those lines that are not said, that are not shown, that are at best translated into images, settings, flying visual impressions that the words of the stage directions anchor in your memory, your heart and your brain with delicate tendrils that cannot break anymore. Any lover of Shakespeare, any lover of literature, any lover of love dramas and hate tragedies must read that screenplay to see how laughter and tears can intermingle in an unbreakable alliance. Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, Universities of Paris, IX and II.

STAR WARS VAULT BY STEPHEN J. SANSWEET AND PETER VILMUR: Celebrating it's thirtieth anniversary this year, the Star Wars franchise is in a similar predicament to the time after the release of Return of the Jedi: no plans for future movies, apart from a continuing animated series of the Clone Wars. By the same token, fans are in the same state with little to nothing to look forward to. Thankfully, to commemorate the third decade of the blockbuster, internationally bestselling movie series, there's the Star Wars Vault: "thirty years of treasures from the Lucasfilm archives with removable memorabilia and two audio CDs.

This is not just a nicely decorated picture book in a sturdy slipcase; it's an experience, a journey that one is immediately taken one when they open up the cover. Star Wars Vault is part of the new style of picture being published, like that of 1776: The Illustrated Edition, where the book goes beyond glossy, colorful pictures and photos, but incorporates all types of media, and with the rich heritage of the Star Wars franchise which literally revolutionized the world with merchandising, Star Wars Vault is a gift that would make any fan of the series, no matter how old or how much of a fan, respect you greatly in your choice of gift.

Sansweet keeps his story short, taking up little room on the page, and leaving the evidence reproduced here in various forms to speak for itself. He begins with the fascinating tale of how the first movie, Star Wars Episode IV, barely made it to release, and with little support, until the enormous numbers of audience members proved that the studio executives were very wrong. While Sansweet spends less time on the development and release of the rest of the movies, the experience as one turns the pages and relives the history of the Star Wars empire is unlike that of any other. With unique photos, movie posters, and a plethora of pictures from around the world, there are innumerable insets and handouts of unique items like patches, stickers, collectible postcards, film cells, and even two audio CDs with a variety of different pieces ranging from the mid-eighties radio ads, to special interviews, to a recording of the song sung by Carrie Fisher for the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special.

While the price for Star Wars Vault is considerable, no one will regret it when they turn the page and discover the world within. It is a book that will immediately be quickly read, the stickers and patches possibly used, and added to the shelf to be rediscovered over and over.

[...]

I bought this book for my husband. He really loves it. Its like a scrapbook collection of 30 years of Star Wars. Very neat! I was disappointed because the shipping caused the book to be dented in the corners. I know its a heavy item, but Amazon should make sure to accomodate.

My 8-year-old, who is a huge Star Wars fan, loves this book. Unfortunately, because it's so cheaply made, it fell apart shortly after he got it. The pages have completely separated from the hard cover, probably because the materials/methods used in the binding are too flimsy. For a more-than-$50 "collector's edition," the publisher should have made the book to last more than two weeks. It will cost me $85 to have it repaired.

This book is a must for every star wars fan, the presentation, the wealth of the material, and the incredible Memorabilia, plus 2 audio cd's. make this a must Own.

I highly recommend this book. It's a collector's must have. It comes with several pull out items and pictures of some things you might not see too many other places. I'm just a little concerned with how well the pockets that hold some of the pull out items will hold up over time. I feel that I have to be extra careful pulling the items out. If it wasn't for that, then I'd be giving it the full 5 stars.

I really enjoyed reading this screenplay. It's the kind of screenplay you can read and I know this might sound silly, but I actually felt I was inside the book with them all. P.T Anderson , has created intense, interesting characters that engulf your curiousity. You'll read this in one sitting. It's the kind of screenplay you don't want to put down. Definately worth owning. I wish I wrote it.

Anderson is brilliant and this is a great screenplay to buy for anyone interested in screenwriting and/or directing. The story, or stories, are so compelling that the suspense is there even when you read this book. Good stuff, good times.

Paul Thomas Anderson is a very vulnerable & giving author!He really nurtures the reader with secrets that aren't even revealed in the wonderful "making of" additional feature on the DVD. Get both & you will be powerfully inspired by a true artist, who went against the rules & won brilliantly. Thank God award season appreciated the wonderful work of art Magnolia was, and still is in my collection.

I have to say when I first read the script I was kinda of disappointed because there are changed lines in it like the scene where Frank meets his father for the first time its almost completely changed but I'm not mad its cool reading stuff from what Anderson wrote first But disappointing there are so many great stuff that are in the film but not in the script thats why I'm disappointed. Its a very well done script but changed.

See Magnolia first and then read the screenplay.

Matt

Magnolia is the only film that made me cry last year. The way the characters fall apart bit by bit makes this an amazing look into the lifes of people who appear to be strong. Every character in the script is amazingly ordinary and fasinating , and the actors who played them did a PERFECT job. Also how the film builds in tenison of saddness makes you wonder what will happen next. And then something you forget and unexpected happens. It is brillant, moving film.

This book isn't for new filmmakers or independent filmmaker. basically you will not need this book ever to make your future because we are living the new digital era of the film making unless you are academic student and your professor asked you to acquire it then you have to.

You can buy a book speaks about specific thing you desire. you can find thousands of books here better than this. in my opinion this book is passed history not coming future, complicated and confusing.

The new digital age will bring soon new equipments like combining 2 or more equipments into one only. simply, the book is boring.

Buy any other book like DV Filmmaking for Ian Aronson. you can support yourself by other specific and simple book but not this 600+ pages (hands book).

great book if you plan on going into the film industry. i would recommend this book.

The Filmmaker's Handbook is exquisitely detailed in it's delivery of filmmaking knowledge and know-how. It cover's everything from film to video and from the film industry to the television industry, delivering updated information that will prepare even the most amateur videographer for the professional industry. However, it would be a good idea to start with some basics before tackling this book because it IS quite detailed and technical in it's delivery. Overall though, it is an excellent resource! Bravo!!!

I bought this book few months back in order to study the film making process. The book has details for practically everything and best for beginners as well as professionals. however since the version dates 5 years old so I'd suggest anybody interested in learning the aspects to consider this book as a base and then also subscribe to a magazine as you'll have a know how of latest stuff happening in the movie making technology. something like movie maker magazine. anyway the book still deserve 5 stars for its content.

This is a required text book, and is used in many colleges. It is a great book and it is so good to read that studying is not a chore

Since "Save the Cat" was supposed to be "the last book on screenwriting you'll ever need", why buy the sequel?! Good question!

STC was indeed the best book yet written on screenwriting, but "STC Goes to the Movies" goes beyond... The basic principles covered in "STC" are retouched in "STC Goes to the Movies", but author Blake Snyder (a very successful screenwriter in his own right) goes one step farther in this second installment by actually breaking down dozens of past film scripts that illustrate his theories.

Because most of the topics covered in STC are revisited in the second book, it isn't necessary to read the first book before this one. On the other hand, they're both jam packed with great ideas, so I strongly suggest you read both. Thanks to Mr. Snyder's helpful techniques and models, writing processes that used to take me weeks now take hours.

If you want to know how to write a script that will sell, don't miss these 286 pages of time-tested wisdom.

Reading this book is no chore, but a delight! I laughed evilly to myself that finally, finally I knew all the secrets that all those OTHER books tried to keep hidden from me. But alas, you can have them, too. I know, I sound silly, but you would be exuberant too if, after reading through masses of material, you finally came to a book that spelled it out simply and clearly. I read the first STC and was amazed. This book compliments the first. It really, REALLY helped put it all together. I highly recommend this book for your writing career. Happy reading (and writing)!

In STC2, Blake Snyder puts into practice his theory that there are ten timeless story templates. He takes fifty diverse, well-known movies (from "The Lion King" to "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind") and filters them through these story templates to show that all of these movies, whether commercial blockbuster or art house, hit similar marks structurally. And that those marks are important to a successful telling of the story. I wish I'd read this book earlier in my career. It would've saved me countless hours agonizing over structure.

I am a fan of both Blake Snyder books. They're not only an excellent synthesis of ideas in other screenwriting books, but he implements several fresh theories that he's formulated during his writing career. His unique gift is the ability to make subtle, even complex insights into the craft simple to understand. Like the original "Save The Cat", this book is an easy read without being shallow. And Blake's enthusiasm for his subject is contagious. I highly recommend it.

Mark Hentemann
Writer/Producer, "Family Guy"

You won't find the traditional genres "action-adventure" or "romantic comedy" here. Synder swaps those for genre-predicaments like "Monster in the House" and "Dude with a Problem." He identifies ten of them as the engines of all hits. He then decomposes the plots of several blockbusters in each genre to show how that engine operates. His insights are fascinating because, without the distinction of genre as he defines it, you might assume that "Three Days of the Condor" and "Sleeping with the Enemy" are fundamentally different. By traditional definitions, one is a spy thriller and the other is a woman-jeopardy thriller. But in the gospel according to Blake, those two movies are twins. Knowing why will not only make you a better screenwriter but will also give you a better appreciation of the high art of crafting the blockbusters that almost never win the snob awards.

Do get this book if you are writing spec scripts. But if you are writing indies, proceed with caution--with any book of rules. Certainly the gurus will preach that the rules of structure can strengthen any story and that, at the very least, you should master the rules before you break them. True enough.

But you don't want to get so locked into the box of rules that you can't think outside of it. The goal in indies, in my humble opinion, should not be to make blockbusters on the cheap but to take risks and evolve the cinematic form in ways the studios won't.

Gerald Everett Jones is the author of My Inflatable Friend: The Confessions of Rollo Hemphill and several books on digital filmmaking, including 24P: Make Your Digital Movies Look Like Hollywood

I am currently taking a class on screenwriting. My teacher used an example from this book in a lecture. I bought it and love it. It helps you get the big picture of your screenplay instead of just staring at the details for hours. My favorite section is the one on superheros. The screenplay I am working on now is about a female antihero. So this really helps.
The beat sheet works!!

This is a must own for anyone who has ever needed to know why something works the way it does in Star Trek. This covers almost everything you can imagine in how Deep Space Nine and space craft work. If it isn't covered in this book it is covered in the TNG Tech Manual. If you write Fan Fiction, play a character in a Trek RPG, or operate a Trek Website You will treat the Tech Manuals as your gospal in Trek technology. Other good books are out there, but they don't compete with this book.

The tech isn't much different in manner from the TNG Tech Manual, but the images in this, the DS9, manual are far superior. All Trek Geeks (come on, fess up) need this book.

I never picked up a copy of this wonderous guide when it was published. There were a few mistakes I made last decade, not buying this book was one of them.

There is not much storyline given away here. Mostly background info regarding the Cardassians, Bajorans and the Federation. Deep Space Nine was the best "Star Trek" series, in my humble opinion. This guide is useful to those who wish to write about the series of the future, as well as daydreamers like myself. The thrill of walking down every corridor, knowing the details of Quark's bar and Ops...

It is all like dream, now that it is over. I never watched the original broadcast in the 1990s. What a loss on my behalf. Now in the age of hopelessly dull reality T.V., what a better way to pass the time than watching the epic unfold on DVD. Though a little overpriced, to an avid fan like myself, worth every penny! Make sure you have a copy of this manual sitting close by!

This book is amazing. I read it from cover to cover and ended up satisfied with all the details the authors placed in them. The book carries details ranging from the subspace communications system to the weapons and even the environmental system of the station. The information on it is not contained only to details about the station but everything connected to it including the Runabouts, and the Defiant. It gives off an effect that there is really a station named Deep Space Nine. The paper used was high quality glossy paper which doesn't crumple easily and the numerous images in them were in color. Although it could have been better with a hard cover, it's excellent the way it is.

First off, this book is anything but a disappointment. It is a packed with information on the series and its fictional technology from the station's basic layout to things like tricorders and sensor probes. It has great illustrations, mostly rendered in 3D by Doug Drexler and all in color. This is a quite obvious advancement since the STTNG Technical Manual.

One reason why I like the DS9 Technical Manual less than its "sister manual" is that its reliability is lacking. This is in part not the fault of the authors, considering that technical specs and especially the size of the station and of the Defiant were always subject to change throughout DS9. Nevertheless, it is dissatisfactory that none of the size figures given in the book correspond with the schematic diagrams in the same book, the latter of which consistently show a smaller 120m Defiant and a station diameter of at most 1000m. The section on starships is even much worse, since ship types and specs are arbitrarily and hastily made up, sizes of well-known ships are wrong and the Saber and Norway class even have exactly the same specs. Considering that many fans who took the specs for their websites didn't even notice the latter error, I may be overly critical, but from an officical manual I would expact much more carefulness than that.

The other point of criticism is that the Deep Space Nine Technical Manual isn't very technical and it isn't useful as a manual. It is rather like prose that has been supplemented with a certain limited amount of Technobabble, a couple of size figures and many nice images. It doesn't care about the technology in such detail as the STTNG Technical Manual, and if it is only shown how to operate it. Summarizing, as a novel the book is rather boring, while it is just not complete enough for a technical manual. Anyway, at least the drawings are great, especially the fold-outs, and most of the book with the exception of the starship section is pleasant reading, so I recommend to buy it.

While I am a long time Star Trek fan, I tend to stay away from books such as this one because I just see it as another way for Paramount to get into our pocket books. I just lightly browsed this book one day in a book store and next thing I knew almost an hour had gone by!

This has to be one of the most engrossing works of fictional tech I have ever seen. There are times where you almost wonder if some form of prototype exists for the items they discuss.

Both richly written and illustrated this book is a absolute must buy for the die hard Star Trek fan! And if your favorite Star Trek is DS9 (like myself), I am not sure how you have lived without this book!

What a beautiful collection this is. The afternoon it arrived, I wandered again in Middle Earth, lost in Alan Lee's art. But most wonderful, it seems to me (who came to the movies from many readings of the books,) is that as I looked at these drawings they recalled not just scenes from the movies, but returned me to the tactile pleasure of discovering this world as I first had found it --in Tolkien's books. I love both the books and the movies. Now, when time constrains, I don't have to choose between the two. Thank you, Alan Lee.

this book is awesome!
it's like looking into Alan Lee's Sketchbook as its name indicates.
the renderings are beautiful. any Tolkien fan will appreciate this as a wonderful companion to the books, as well as any one interested in fantasy art and drawing!

If you're looking for the film's information literally, this might not be what you want. But, if you're looking for a trip into the cretive process that brought Tolkiens masterpiece to life, you might like this one.
Alan Lee is a wonderful artist, his drawings are really impressive, and in this book he shows how he created his version of Tolkien's world, trying to be faithfull to the autor's ideas.
There's plenty of drawings and sketches from all parts of the story, and the text explains how and why they were developed to the movie's scenes.
I loved.

In the amazon review we can read: "the book contains 20 full-color plates", but this is a lie: The book contains only 7 full-color plates (2 of them in small size). The book is really beautifull, but it is not as amazon shows it.

Our son was "more than pleased" with this most unusual contributiion to his library. It was on his Wish List, and delighted to receive it for Christmas.

I loved this little book! Not only was it a quick read, but it was also filled with a variety of solidly helpful information for new and experienced screenwriters. I found the "10 Point Checklist for Completed Scripts", the "Big Eight" and the section on pitching particularly useful and now put the information to use on every project. The book is certainly worth more than you pay for it!!

An industry veteran of 25 years, Kathie Fong Yoneda is both a story analyst at Paramount and a script consultant. Her background as a development executive gives her an excellent perspective for helping screenwriters can break down the gates to Hollywood. And this book aims to do just that.

The book is divided into four major parts: working on the script, meetings and pitches, submissions and relationships. It is a very clearly structured guide to the do's and don'ts for writers looking for their breakthrough (hint: the first step is to WRITE A GREAT SCRIPT!).

Yonada includes advice on how to behave towards executives, how to find an agent, the special vocabulary used in Hollywood, how to start a writers group, even how to prepare for a conference. All of this is written in a clear manner, making the book a very useful reference.

The downside to this is that most of this information is out there already. If you read screenwriting magazines and keep up with recent books on the business side of screenwriting, there will be very little here you don't know already. Moreover, the book is very "pro-system" -- there is no criticism of the way things are done, and the advice is very much "mainstream" common knowledge.

I don't think this book has very much to offer veteran writers who are already well acquainted with the vagaries of getting their scripts through the Hollywood maze. For writers who are starting out, however, the book will serve very well to inform them about the basics of getting your script sold to Hollywood.

After writing my first screenplay, I was stuck on how to sell it. I have ran my own business for over tens years and have a natural flare for marketing - thinking that selling a script would be commonsense WRONG! After reading The Script Selling Game I was blown away by the fantastic real life tips and jargon given. It's motivated me more than ever to see my projects on the silver screen. IF YOU ARE SERIOUS ABOUT breaking into Hollywood - You MUST BUY THIS BOOK! It's easy-to-read and only an insider would know how to write it's contents.

The book never forgot who was reading it. If you are at a point in your career where you need guidance in what to do and what's important, this book offers you that. Kathie Yoneda, I feel, just got the balance right between fact, figures and emotion. Kathie actually cares.

The Script-Selling Game is your "Biedecker's", your "Fodor's", or your "Lonely Planet" guide to the exotic, exciting, sometimes confusing, sometimes dangerous yet ultimately rewarding territory of Hollywood Script Sales.

Kathie Fong Yoneda has not only explored this territory, she has actually carved out, tamed, and settled a lot of it in her years as a studio executive. Her expertise in the special jargon, the specific tools, and the appropriate approaches will help you craft an effective presentation of your unique creative project, be it a feature film, a TV series, or any other media production.

Read Kathie's book. Smile, frown, gasp.... Yes, Hollywood can be just as she says. It's a closed world unless you have an interpreter and a guidebook. Thank goodness hers is accessible, informative, specific, and comforting. Well then, follow her guidelines, learn to speak the language, do the currency exchange from creativity-to-commerciality, and watch the barriers go down and the doors open up for you.