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THE BEST AMERICAN MOVIE WRITING 1998

Name: THE BEST AMERICAN MOVIE WRITING 1998
Author: George Plimpton
ISBN: 0-312-18049-7

edited by George Plimpton ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1998

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The year’s social and cinematic concerns are captured in this well-sculpted inaugural volume on film from guest editor and cameo actor Plimpton (The X Factor, 1995, etc.). Beginning with Libby Gelman-Waxner’s gleeful trashing of Barbra Streisand’s The Mirror Has Two Faces, the collection lopes nimbly among subjects and moods, from sly critique to Evan Hunter’s wistful recollection of Hitchcock to Gerald Peary’s amiable portrait of John Waters regulars in Provincetown. Together they fulfill series editor Jason Shinder’s belief that movies are “arguably the most influential form of communication we have today,” and that film writing is an “emerging genre.” Equally varied are article sources, which include not only Premiere and Vanity Fair but such small magazines as the Michigan Quarterly Review and Parnassus, and authors ranging from film writers (Donald Bogle) to filmmakers (Martin Scorsese) and novelists (Alice Walker). Despite the assortment, some common threads for the year emerge, notably in the treatment of black women and gays in the cinema. The dismal state of choices for black actresses is seen in two pieces, including one on current biopic hot property Dorothy Dandridge. Likewise the gay experience of films is seen in two works, one of which is a trenchant analysis of the necessary death of diva worship. A thought-provoking commingling of shop talk, sociological meditation, and personal memoir that shows the range of responses possible for an art form at the height of its popularity.

Pub Date: April 1, 1998

ISBN: 0-312-18049-7

Page Count: 336

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1998

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE MAN IN THE FLYING LAWN CHAIR
by George Plimpton & edited by Sarah Dudley Plimpton

- BOOK REVIEW
LATIN AMERICAN WRITERS AT WORK
edited by George Plimpton

- BOOK REVIEW
HOME RUN
edited by George Plimpton

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.