Deeper Into Movies

Deeper Into Movies

films; criticism

Collected writings from the New Yorker from 1969 to 1973 - largely film reviews, major and more avant-garde, plus some more general essays about the nature of film audiences, in particular a long essay entitled "Numbing the Audience".

Contains Kael's reviews in the New Yorker from 1969 to 1972, a few excellent years for the movies. Here we learn how to look at masterpieces, The French Connection, McCabe & Ms Miller, M.A.S:H.; turkeys, Love Story, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. And also why Patton and Cromwell, while being good films, could have been works of genius. Kael does not hold a stiffer upper lip while reviewing the Bond franchise and treats those movies as they are: non pretentious entertaining. Going down to details, we read details on when a screen play is poor, William Goldman in the Newman / Redford in the above cited movie, and how this will affect the direction of the film and why a director cannot help it. Or when an actor can be a star and at the same time a poor actor, Clint Eastwood in Paint my Wagon and Dirty Harry. Lastly, but not least, we have a lesson in how not to act: Ali MacGraw in Love Story, point by point. Or how not to cast a movie: Robert Mitchum in Ryan's Daughter. (From an Amazon reviewer)

Kael, Pauline

London: Calder & Boyars, 1975

LIB00010

0714507539

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