Category: Movie books
Writing For The Cut: Shaping Your Script For Cinema by Greg Loftin (book review).
Author Greg Loftin points out in the introduction of his book ‘Writing For The Cut: Shaping Your Script For Cinema’ that the art of film editing is almost arcane simply because editors keep so many secrets about the directors they work with. Thing is, editors are the people who shape the material the directors give […]
The Moviemaking Magic Of Marvel Studios Heroes And Villains by Eleni Roussos (book review).
Although ‘The Moviemaking Magic Of Marvel Studios Heroes And Villains’ by Eleni Roussos is designated for young adults, the text is for all ages. For each major character there is a multi-page insert showing the film character design from different angles and not necessarily the costumes you expect. The Iron Man suit is his first […]
Film Directing Shot By Shot by Steven D. Katz (book review).
I wasn’t reviewing publisher Michael Wiese Productions when they first released Steven D. Katz’ book, ‘Film Directing Shot By Shot’ so I came into this 25th anniversary edition with an initial surprise that it is both bigger in size and page count than their usual product. Much of this difference is because this book covers […]
Bulletproof: Writing Scripts That Don’t Get Shot Down by David Diamond and David Weissman (book review).
David Diamond and David Weissman’s book, ‘Bulletproof: Writing Scripts That Don’t Get Shot Down’ has nothing to do with providing your script with a flak jacket and a heavy lining of Kevlar but all to do with not writing scripts with plot-holes in them. It took them 5 years to break into the Hollywood scriptwriting […]
Rod Serling: His Life, Work And Imagination by Nicholas Parisi (book review).
When Anne Serling, Rod Sterling’s daughter, in the introduction says she’s impressed with the research in Nicholas Parisi’s book, ‘Rod Serling: His Life, Work And Imagination’, then it’s time for some serious reading. Do I have to tell you who Rod Serling is then you need to spend some time in the Twilight Zone, although […]
Making Your First Blockbuster by Paul Dudbridge (book review).
British born director Paul Dudbridge’s first book, ‘Shooting Better Movies: The Studentmaker’s Guide’ that I reviewed last year makes an enormous jump to ‘Making Your First Blockbuster’ this year. Part of me thinks I would have preferred to have had a book on just getting a ‘normal’ film directed in a professional capacity before jumping […]
Dirty Harry’s America: Clint Eastwood, Harry Callahan, and the Conservative Backlash by Joe Street (book review).
For those who wonder what happens when I look through a catalogue, I do wonder when something unusual comes up is whether you people out there would be interested as well. I cover a lot of Eurospan’s distribution of SF-orientated non-fiction but they also cover a lot of other diverse subjects as well. I tend […]
Monster Cinema: Quick Takes: Movies & Popular Cinema by Barry Keith Grant (book review).
Now here we are with another ‘Quick Takes’ book, small enough to slip into your pocket for a read on your travels. This time, Barry Keith Grant is into ‘Monster Cinema’. Oddly, this doesn’t just cover your normal SF and horror creatures, but some of the more general genre ones like Norman Bates and Hannibal […]
Typeset In The Future: Typography And Design In Science Fiction Movies by Dave Addey (book review).
Very occasionally I can have a ‘Oh my god’ moment as if deities exist. Looking at the title, ‘Typeset In The Future: Typography And Design In Science Fiction Movies’, it’s pretty obvious that author Dave Addey is going to be looking at various films and be telling you about the various fonts that were used. […]
Filmmaking For Teens: Pulling Off Your Shorts 2nd edition by Troy Lanier and Clay Nichols (book review)
Looking at the title of Troy Lanier and Clay Nichols’ book, ‘Filmmaking For Teens: Pulling Off Your Shorts 2nd edition’, I have to keep reminding myself that the ‘shorts’ they are speaking of are film shorts not clothes. Although from the title, this book is to instruct teen-agers how to make a 5 minute film, […]
