Amazon.com
Fans of Woody Allen have long waited to hear him tell us in his own words about his life, his tastes, and his films, but until recently he has been reluctant to give lengthy interviews. This book is the conversation we've been waiting for, a dialogue with Stig Bjorkman in which Allen speaks openly about himself and his art. Bjorkman invites the writer/director to talk at length about his lesser-known movies as well as his famous ones. We also learn about Allen's filmmaking technique, his feelings about his stock company of actors, his influences, and why Stardust Memories and The Purple Rose of Cairo are his two personal favorites.
Book Description
Over the course of his long directing career, Woody Allen has portrayed contemporary American life with an unmistakable mixture of irony, neurotic obsession, and humor. Woody Allen on Woody Allen is a unique self-portrait of this uncompromising filmmaker that offers a revealing account of his life and work. In a series of rare, in-depth interviews, Allen brings us onto the sets and behind the scenes of all his films. Since its original publication, Woody Allen on Woody Allen has been the primary source of Allen's own thoughts on his work, childhood, favorite films, and inspirations. Now updated with one hundred pages of new material that brings us up to his Hollywood Ending, Woody Allen on Woody Allen is a required addition to any cinephile's library.
Customer Reviews:
My Dinner With Woody.......2006-08-21
Reading this book was like having dinner with Woody Allen while his films played on a wall behind us. I appreciated the European interviewer because it brought a fresh perspective to Allen's material. Getting Allen's insights into the characters in his films was worth the price, and, as you know, we all need the eggs.
A good book..........2003-11-25
Great. Read it. Don't read this if you're a fan. Buy this book now. Don't waste time. I know i've always wanted to have a conversation with woody allen...even if it is someone else giving it. He's great. I admire him and adore his films. If you're a fan, you'll love his little tidbits and personal things. Remember - the man - not just the films...
Simply Amazing!!.......2003-07-15
The only reason that I didn't give this book 5 stars in because it only goes up to Husbands & Wives. For anyone who loves Woody and wants to hear him speak in detail about his films, other films and his ideas, this book does not disapoint. I have many other books by or about filmmakers and this is certainly up there with the best. Woody talks about Bergman, Godard, Fellini, Truffaut, Hitchcock and many other filmmakers and films he likes. He discussed in depth each of his films from What's New Pussycat? to Husbands and Wives. This book is a must for fans of Woody Allen and for fans of film.
Fans of the Director Will Enjoy.......2003-02-28
Conversations between Woody Allen and journalist Stig Bjorkman about the Woodster’s films, from “Take the Money and Run” to “Manhattan Murder Mystery,” along with interviews about his childhood and early acting roles. While there are sometimes less details than one would like (don’t look for more than a paragraph or two about “What’s Up Tiger Lilly” and “Casino Royale.” “Sleeper” only gets a page), but it’s very nice to read Allen’s insights about some of his work years later. Hopefully soon there will be an updated guide. I’m curious about what he has to say about “Deconstructing Harry” and even “Curse of the Jade Scorpion.”
Frank and enlightening discussion.......2002-11-10
A very relaxed and interesting discussion regarding the development of Allen's style and indivisual films that is very entertaining. This is an excellent companion to his earlier films. Bjorkman asks excellent questions that keep the discussion flowing in a chronological sense yet allow for Woody Allen to address many interssting topics related to his work.
The focus here is really the body of work and not Allen's personal life. Like sitting with a bottle of wine and talking to two intelligent filmmakers about their craft.
Average customer rating:
- Great Fun
- brilliant
- Belly-laughs a minute
- The Ultimate in Intellectual Humour
- Hysterical. The Woodman cometh.
|
Complete Prose of Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Manufacturer: Wings Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0517072297
Release Date: 1992-03-29 |
Amazon.com
Born in 1935, Allen Stewart Konigsberg (better known as Woody Allen) is today one of the most influential figures in cinema. He has written and directed such memorable films as Annie Hall and Manhattan, and has acted in over 40 films. He is also the author of three books--Getting Even (1971), Without Feathers (1975), and Side Effects (1980). The Complete Prose of Woody Allen brings these memorable titles together for one bumper collection--a must-have for Allen addicts.
Getting Even is a collection of 17 of Allen's magazine pieces from the late 1960s discussing such bizarre topics as the invention of the sandwich, laundry lists, death, obesity, and, of course, rabbis.
Without Feathers delivers more of Allen's New Yorker-style humor. Worthy stand-outs include "If the Impressionists Had Been Dentists," a genius piece that puts oral surgery in a whole new, much more exciting, light.
Finally, Side Effects compiles Allen's best New Yorker essays from the late 1970s. Although not as outrageously funny as his previous books, this is still a classic piece of comedy. --Naomi Gesinger
Customer Reviews:
Great Fun.......2007-08-14
Three great books all in one fun filled volume of sheer funny. Including:
Getting Even is the comedic genious at his ludicrous best. The reparte between the two chess playing opponents, via e-mail, is worth the price of the book alone. Very funny.
Side Effects was released in 1980. It is a very funny collection of Allen's work, much of which first appeared in the New Yorker and other publication. The books is pretty even, and rather funny. The high point here is The Kugelmass Episode which features a professor named Sidney Kugelmass who is, via a magician, tranpsorted into the novel Madame Bovary.
Without Feathers is a witty humorous book with 15 or so short essays/stories on a variety of topics. The humor here is very funny and not dated at all. You most pay close attention as the one-liners fly off the pages. Simply hilarious stuff. Hard to believe this was released in 1975.
A 5 star book, well worth the price... enjoy!
Note: This collection is also available in paperback and titled The Insanity Defense: The Complete Prose
brilliant.......2006-11-06
Brilliant Woody. Not the best of this type, but still fasciniating. I heartily recommend.
Belly-laughs a minute.......2006-09-10
I read the three volumes this book is comprised of years ago and, to this day, I've been hard pressed to find other books,
on a line to line basis, funnier than Woody Allen's works. It's
too bad he hasn't written any more since these books. It is our
loss. If you like to laugh until your brains dribble out your
ears, read this book. Highly recommended.
The Ultimate in Intellectual Humour.......2004-08-28
This is genuinely hilarious and intelligent prose. My favourites are "Mr Big", "Viva Vargas!" and "Reminiscences, People and Places". Prepare to convulse. People will stare at you while you gasp for oxygen. Pure genius. The only mystery is why Allen isn't as well recognised for his writing as his movies. If you read this you will also wonder.
Allen sometimes seems to step over the line separating sharp satire from outright cynicism, especially in the later writing - but who cares? It's still a class apart. Highly recommendable.
Hysterical. The Woodman cometh........2001-06-13
Disillusioned by, "Interiors" or "Hannah And Her Sisters"? Think Woody is just not funny? Man, are you wrong. This book (which contains pretty much everything Woody wrote in book form) just kills you from the beginning & never stops. As goofball and irreverent as you'd expect from a comedic genius(Think, "Bananas" or "Take the Money and Run"- era Allen), don't be frightened off by the fact that Allen's later movies quit being side-splittingly funny. This book recaptures all the great, classic humor that made the Woodman famous to begin with!
Amazon.com
Moss Hart was in the thick of American theater when everyone wore black tie on opening night and the world's most witty people entertained each other around a grand piano at late-night supper parties. It's an era of glamour that will never come again, but we have Hart's words on paper, and that is no small thing. A renowned director and theatrical collaborator, the brilliant Hart died too soon after the curtain went up on Act Two. If you want to know what it was like to be on the inside track in NYC in the '30s, '40s and '50s, here's a good place to find out.
Book Description
The Dramatic Story that Capitvated a Generation
With this new edition, the classic best-selling autobiography by the late playwright Moss Hart returns to print in the thirtieth anniversary of its original publication. Issued in tandem with Kitty, the revealing autobiography of his wife, Kitty Carlisle Hart, Act One, is a landmark memoir that incluenced a generation of theatergoers, dramatists, and general book readers everywhere. The book eloquently chronicles Moss Hart's impoverished childhood in the Bronx and Brooklyn and his long, determined struggle to his first theatreical Broadway success, Once in a Lifetime. One of the most celebrated American theater books of the twentieth centure and a glorious memorial to a bygone age, Act One if filled with all the wonder, drama, and heartbreak that surrounded Broadway in the 1920s and the years before World War II.
Customer Reviews:
Timeless!.......2006-11-03
A look back in time to understand the struggles in defining-and reaching your goals. A study in human nature. Things haven't changed. Great lessons still!!
Good autobiography.......2006-03-19
This book is a down to earth, heart warming story of how Moss Hart became a premiere playwriter. Good book for those interested in working in the theater.
Act One.......2005-08-10
A great read; very inspiring and funny and well written. A tale of a writer in a city which he knew so well, at least Broadway, his own neigborhoods, and the subway. His spontaneous decisions are what great showbiz tales are made of and from! His book made me want an Act Two and Act Three....excellent investment. Book in GRAND shape. Quick delivery too.
Superb Theater Autobiography.......2003-06-23
Act One is one of my favorite books. I have rearead it often since the first time I picked it up in my late teens. I love the anecdotes about the Broadway greats ans near greats and how Mr. Hart became famous, but my favorite parts of the book concern his memorable Aunt Kate, a woman whose fate in life was other than she deserved. She is very humanely portrayed, and so is the rest of Mr. Hart's family. I also enjoyed learning more about George Kaufman and his wife. This book's great!
The best book about the theater ever written, Act One........2003-06-13
Moss Hart is arguably one of the finest and most successful authors of the 20th century theater in this or any other country. Like many successful men in the theater, he came from a background of serious poverty and the true drama of Act One is his perseverence and victory in extremely trying circumstances. There are fascinating glimpses into the theater world of NYC in the 40s and 50s, excellent sketches of George Kaufmann, Beatrice Kaufmann and Max Siegel, and poignant views into the people and places that forged Moss Hart into the extremely urbane, charming and successful man he became, against the hardest possible odds. Superb book!
Book Description
Woody Allen (b. 1935) is one of America's most idiosyncratic filmmakers, with an unparalleled output of nearly one film every year for over three decades. His movies are filled with rapid-fire one-liners, neurotic characters, anguished relationships, and old-time jazz music. Allen's vision of New York—whether in comedies or dramas—has shaped our perception of the city more than any other modern filmmaker.
Woody Allen: Interviews collects over twenty-five years of interviews with the Oscar-winning director of Annie Hall, Manhattan, Hannah and Her Sisters, Crimes and Misdemeanors, and Bullets Over Broadway. The book's interviews reveal a serious director often at odds with his onscreen persona as a lovable, slapstick loser. Allen talks frankly about his rigorous work habits, his biggest artistic influences, the attention he devotes to acting, screenwriting, and directing, and how New York fuels his filmmaking.
Along with discussing film techniques and styles, Allen opens up about his love of jazz, his Jewish heritage, and the scandal that arose when he left his longtime partner Mia Farrow for her adopted daughter. Including four interviews from European sources, three of which and now available in English for the first time, Woody Allen: Interviews is a treasure trove of conversations with one of America's most distinctive filmmakers.
Book Description
This book reprints a four-hour conversation between Mr. Schickel and Mr. Allen and includes a long essay of introduction by Mr. Schickel, which places Woody Allen's entire career in critical perspective, as well as a complete filmography. Readers will find Mr. Allen's reflections on his major preoccupations--the battle of the sexes; the conflict between reality and fantasy in his major films; mortality, religion, and the role that chance plays in the unfolding of our lives. The book also offers insights into Mr. Allen's working methods as a writer and the growth of his skills as a director.
Customer Reviews:
Embarrassing. Shameless waste of time.......2004-10-01
I'm a huge Woody allen fan but this book is an embarrassing and shameless waste. Nothing new here is gleaned from Woody and his thougts on his films are much better presented in Woody Allen on Woody Allen: In Conversation With Stig Bjorkman. In an introduction seemingly ghost-written by Allen himself, Schickel uses at the end to defend the Soon-Yi situtation and even delves into the Mia Farrow charges, "I do not think anyone believes the hysterical (and preposterous) charges of child abuse Mia Farrow brought against him; certainly the courts did not." Did Schickel not read the court transcripts that Farrow attached to the end of her book where the Judge said he was unconvinced that something did not take place? It is as if he has made a deal with the devil just to land a prize interview, except he completely wastes his opportunity by asking almost nothing of interest or get anything new from Allen.
He lets Allen get away with saying his plots are fabrications and have little to do with his own life, ignoring the fact that many of the films parallel Allen's life almost exactly. In fact, in "Deconstructing Harry," there is a fight scene between Harry and his wife which uses almost the exact words that Farrow wrote occurred between her and Allen! Yet, all that is not spoken about. Schickel, who thinks he is an authority on Allen, questions him about Bob Hope, who Woody Allen is well-known to have admired, but seems ignorant of the fact that "Love and Death" is almost a loose reworking of Hope's Monsieur Beaucaire (1946) - some film authority!
There is nothing new of interest here at all. Read the "Woody Allen on Woody Allen" book instead- Schickel seems so excited to be talking to Woody, he even thinks something as awful as "Hollywood Ending" is acceptable. This book is less a book on Woody Allen and his films and more about how a film critic can lose integrity and a respect for his craft by cashing it in to talk to Woody Allen. It's sad.
A Great Filmmaker's View of Himself.......2003-11-01
Woody Allen makes films like no one else. Sure, the themes of Allen's films (New York, anguished intellectuals) aren't ones that are shared by most blockbusters, but his process of making films is different. Since he started making his own films over thirty years ago, he has put out about one every year, a record no other American director has come close to, and of course he writes them and acts in most of them. It is no metaphor that he has put his life into films, and in _Woody Allen: A Life In Film_ (Ivan R. Dee), the movie critic for _Time_ magazine, Richard Schickel, examines the life work along with Allen. The book is the complete text of a four-hour interview shown last year on the invaluable Turner Classic Movies channel; that version was edited to ninety minutes. It also has an essay of appreciation about Allen's work, which Schickel clearly values. He admits that he is biased, not because of friendship for Allen, but because of similarities between them, being roughly the same age and distrusting organized religion, corporate America, and aromatherapy. Allen "... speaks to me - and _for_ me sometimes - in a quite uncomplicated way." If you do not share his bias, he warns, you are reading the wrong book. If you do, you will find Schickel's essay, and especially Allen's own words about his work, a delight.
The film a year output has lead to many people thinking that along with all the other neuroses that Allen has depicted for himself, he is a workaholic. He denies it. He likes the work. "It keeps me sane to the degree that I'm sane. It helps me." But if he can't get the shot exactly right, and it is time for the Knicks game, he lets the shot go. He may love making the movies, but he is distinctly modest about them. "I think I'm going to write _Citizen Kane_ every time out of the box, and it's going to be great." And then he is humiliated by what he sees on the screen. "I have failed almost every time..." He reflects here on his ability to make jokes; even in high school, he could get out of class at one and go into New York to start writing jokes for clients to put in the newspapers. His films are not all just funny, of course. Even though there is humor in, say, the masterful _Crimes and Misdemeanors_, the sad lesson of the movie is that good intentions don't count; "... they do in your heart - but to society success is the bottom line." The earnest film-maker in the movie is a loser and the murderous doctor loses nothing. "I just wanted to illustrate in an entertaining way that there's no God, that we're alone in the universe..." No wonder people like his early funny ones.
Schickel has done a masterful job asking the right questions. He does not go much into Allen's personal life, but sticks to the work. Allen gets to explain his attitude toward actors, and it is clear why he can continue to get the best of them to work with him. He lets them improvise, and he lets them alone: "You get out of the way and let them do what has made them great." He is laudatory about Mia Farrow's participation in the films, and for all her subsequent acerbity towards him, he did provide her with an enormous body of work. Schickel rightly gets Allen to talk on the magic in his movies, like the character leaving the screen in _Purple Rose of Cairo_. Magic is the only thing that could save us, but it doesn't do so for Farrow's character because she, like all of us, has to choose the real world. There is a surprising segment on gangsters in Allen's films, who play roles more often than I had remembered. Allen says that with his father having been a pool hustler and his own having grown up on the streets of Brooklyn, he is closer to gangsters than intellectuals: "I mean, I was thrown out of college in my freshman year." There are insights in this small volume aplenty, and if you like Allen's films, you will learn much about him by hearing what he has to say about them.
More interview, less essay!.......2003-10-02
The prefatory essay is about 65 pages long, and the entire book, stopping short of the filmography and index, is about 174 pages. Because the book is so slim, I felt a bit cheated once I finally got to the interview. Maybe the publisher wanted an extended essay to make the book long enough to be marketable, but just beware -- interesting essay, fascinating interview (if you like Allen), but when you see how slim the book is, just realize less than 2/3rds of it is interview.
Book Description
Now fully updated: The only critical study available of Woody Allen's entire body of work.
Woody Allen has carved out a unique place for himself in American movies, becoming our national auteur as well as the most prolific director in the country, and creating a singular world with each film he has released since his first movie in 1969. Foster Hirsch analyzes and celebrates that world in this expert study of the themes, visual style, and acting in each of Allen's films. With the addition of a new introduction and chapter covering the eleven movies Allen has made in the last decade, from Alice to The Curse of the Jade Scorpion, this is a vital book for Allen fans and students of film alike.
Customer Reviews:
A MUST READ.......2000-12-18
Having very little immersity in woody allens work I read Hirschs book anyway. The book was fun to read and well prepared. I was able to share the authors enthusiasm even without famililarty of allens work. If youv'e seen just one of allens film then this is a must read, it is comically and insightful, with enlightning critizism and praise.
Average customer rating:
- Woody's Feminist Biographer.
- In Allen's case, unruly is not equated with unaccomplished
- An engrossing, entertaining read
- Visionary vs. voyeur, contributor vs. parasite
- Trashy Biography With Contempt For Its Subject
|
The Unruly Life of Woody Allen: A Biography
Marion Meade
Manufacturer: Cooper Square Press
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0815411499 |
Amazon.com
Woody Allen once controlled the press like his actors--and as critic Andrew Sarris observed, Woody "is almost a ventriloquist and all his actors are marionettes. It's his nature. He has to be on top." The Soon-Yi scandal cost him $7 million and his protected reputation, and now we've got Marion Meade's unblinking look at his blighted life (superior to John Baxter's Woody Allen, not quite as good as Meade's Dorothy Parker: What Fresh Hell Is This?). The son of a loveless dad and mom who respectively ignored and beat him daily, Woody grew up mean, scarred, and scared: he slept with a night-light until his early 40s and considered suicide daily until at least age 51. His uncanny gift for comedy gave him no comfort, but movies did. His most autobiographical character is Cecilia in The Purple Rose of Cairo, who took refuge in theaters from "the ugly light" of real life.
Boy, does Meade cast ugly light on Woody and his work. His best role for a woman, Annie Hall, is "basically stupid," as Diane Keaton said. In life and art, Woody sought leading ladies he could dominate. He stalled Mia forever before granting her the right to keep her shampoo at his apartment "alongside toiletries belonging to Diane Keaton, preserved there like so many fossilized relics in King Tut's tomb for more than a decade." Mia was horrified that he spilled her family's nasty secrets in Hannah and Her Sisters, and fretted over his obsession with Keaton and her sisters, Mariel Hemingway's sister, and Mia's own sister Steffi--whose photos she discovered (shades of Soon-Yi!) in his apartment. Woody's lovable persona was as fake as his transplanted, dyed hair. And Mia's no sweetheart herself: having caught her scuzzy dad with Ava Gardner one night as a child, she married Ava's squeeze Frank Sinatra at 19, and then stole her friend Dory Previn's husband, André, saying, "You don't fight what feels good."
If Meade's sour, thorough tome is true, nobody in Hollywood fights what feels good, and they all come out looking pretty bad. --Tim Appelo
Book Description
Based on interviews with dozens of people who know him, both friend and foe, this biography examines the life and career of Woody Allen.
Customer Reviews:
Woody's Feminist Biographer........2007-02-13
It was my hope that Marion Meade's book would provide a critical and unvarnished examination of this controversial figure. Initially, I was quite sure that it had due its fact-filled, brisk, and concise narrative. Ms. Meade is a talented biographer and writer. She cites a plethora of primary sources who offer up unique and important observations about this cinematographic legend. Allen's enigmatic personality is dissected in full, and, after finishing it, his oeuvre makes considerably more sense as there seems to be little truly fictional about his storylines. Quite clearly, Allen is a man whose pathology cannot be denied. He is full of obsessions, compulsions, and neuroses in general. As if those demerits weren't enough, he also appears to be a snob and an elitist. Yet it is hard to fathom how one could find Farrow much healthier. At best, hers is a manipulative, passive-aggressive, and violent personality. Ms. Meade must see Farrow as being a Grade A societal victim which then cleanses her of guilt for every horrific behavior she commits.
The biographer is incredulous that anyone could find anything wrong with Farrow's single parent martyr act--which necessitated her adopting 11 children (to make for a total brood of 15). Well, let's consider the possible motivation for these habitual adoptions. We can rule out that she was a saint as nothing in her life seems to suggest that this is a possibility. A desire to spend every waking moment with children is not likely because she maintained a busy professional and social life the entire in which she cruised the international orphanage circuit. That her infant acquisition often corresponded with her entering some kind of personal crisis should give us pause. Could she have been using these children, and the enticing emotional bonds they offered, as a form of self-medication? The explanation is quite feasible. During her crackup with Allen, she readily turned the two children he loved against him, and alienated them from the person they once saw as their father. She also made a point of sharing details with them to ease her own pain while exponentially increasing theirs.
In a country where corrupt feminist statistics concerning domestic violence are actually believed by law enforcement agents, Meade makes no direct mention of the way in which Farrow the only physical aggressor in this particular relationship. She battered Allen repeatedly. During one of their arguments, she "punched him in the face" and "thwacked him hard across the back." These acts continued months after she first heard of his infidelity so no crime of passion defense is possible. Perhaps violence is a sign of health when it is directed towards a man. Farrow harassed Allen on the phone and threatened to kill him along with herself. She gave him a 1992 Valentine's Day card with a picture of her family inside. It was adorned with "steel turkey-roasting skewers" that pierced the hearts of her children. It's hard to imagine a person who wouldn't find the preponderance of the evidence to be quite damning regarding Farrow. If a man comported himself in the same fashion he would be quickly placed into a jail cell. Only a writer with a serious agenda could overlook Farrow's pathology.
In Allen's case, unruly is not equated with unaccomplished.......2006-02-06
I'm a big Woody Allen fan. But unlike many fans that I've encountered, I wasn't too terribly pleased with the widely-read Eric Lax biography entitled, Woody Allen: A Biography. It seemed to border on hagiography too much of the time. It's not that I was looking for a bio that dished a lot of hitherto unknown dirt. In fact, in Marion Meade's Woody Allen biography, there really isn't much in the way of hitherto unknown dirt. For the most part, Meade imparts to her readers what is already generally known, and then presents multiple viewpoints. For example, with the Soon-Yi scandal, the author gives you the story from many sides, including but not limited to Woody's, Mia's, and Soon-Yi's, and fairly much allows the readers to come to their own conclusions (something that many reviewers of this book have failed to see).
As for the title of this book, yes, Woody Allen has been difficult to control, but where did that lead him...? Has there been any filmmaker in the past 35 years that has consistently aimed higher than Allen...? In film after film, he has challenged himself and his audience to explore the most important question: Why are we here? Congratulations to the author for pointing this out and giving Allen the credit he deserves for having the highest aspirations.
Another item. Inspired by this book, I sought out recordings of Woody Allen's stand-up comedy routines from the 1960's. As it turned out, these recordings have some of his funniest material ever. The routines include bits on his first wife (he describes her as a "really weird woman" who underwent half a dozen sex change operations "but couldn't find anything that she liked") and also include "The Moose," which just might be his funniest stand-up routine ever (Woody goes hunting in upstate New York, bags a moose, ties it to his bumper, and while driving home through the Holland Tunnel, the moose wakes up and begins signaling for an illegal turn).
As for Allen's filmography, this book is fairly much right on target a lot of the time, but falls quite a bit short of providing a complete analysis.
This book is not a hagiography; and despite what its title and cover photo might lead you to believe, it is a far cry from being a scandal sheet.
Overall, a very informative and entertaining read.
An engrossing, entertaining read.......2005-08-22
After reading this book, I'm still not clear as to whether or not Woody Allen acted inappropriately with his young, adopted daughter, Dylan, but I do know this--it's one thing to be a fan of Woody Allen's work and an entirely different thing to be a fan of Woody Allen, the man.
Meade is thorough in detailing Allen's life, from his days as a child in Midwood, New York to his adulthood reign as King of New York Cinema. She adeptly guides the reader through major events in Allen's life and through each of Allen's movies, including insider reports from "key players" (childhood friends, teachers, actors, crew members, etc.).
Meade discusses the Farrow-Allen relationship in detail. She provides significant information re: the highly publicized end to the relationship, and concludes the book by describing where Allen is now, both professionally and personally.
If you're a diehard fan of Allen's, you might not want to read this book. While Meade attempts to report the information in an objective manner, the scales topple wildly in a direction unfavorable to Allen. The reader is left fascinated, wondering how a man considered by so many to be "brilliant," was able to build a career in which he openly exploited his relationships, communicated disdain for women, and wallowed in his own arrogance. This book is comprehensive (despite the author's inability to interview those closest to Allen, she seems to have utilized nearly all of the resources available to her, including books written by others, court transcripts, interviews, etc.) and engaging. It's fitting biography for a man who creates characters in most of his movies based upon himself, yet remains so intensely private--if you want an honest account of Allen's life, it's the best you're going to get.
Visionary vs. voyeur, contributor vs. parasite.......2003-06-27
What a great opportunity a Woody Allen biography represents. Here's one of the great masters of American cinema, an artist who has been producing prolifically for over thirty years. Before our eyes, he went through mastering various cinematic styles and then transcending them all, contributing as a philosopher, writer, comedian, actor, director, even musician. Along the way, Allen produced a body of work replete with a quality all too rare in any, particularly American motion pictures: a thinking, interesting approach. The audiences and critics speak for themselves: here's a true visionary.
Unfortunately, those who make a name for themselves are destined to attract parasites. Enters Marion Meade, the voyeur. Unable to create worthwhile art or even advancing the cause of understanding it better or enjoying it more intelligently, she has nothing to offer that's pertinent to the art of Woody Allen. What she does offer is plenty of gossip and garbage. After having the Allen-Farrow "scandal" publicly dished out for too long, who needs more of this? Is it really a surprise to anyone after watching W.A. movies that the man should have character flaws, past pain and ongoing neuroses. Isn't the genius of his work to allow us to identify so readily with his character?
If you need gossip to make yourself feel superior to a man who has had something genuinely great to offer, then don't pass this one up. If you prefer some degree of integrity in your writing, and are desirous to learn about subjects worth remembering, avoid this one at all cost.
Trashy Biography With Contempt For Its Subject.......2003-03-11
Very rarely has an author of a biography shown such contempt for the subject than in this volume, written by Mariod Meade (who has authored “Buster Keaton: Cut to the Chase”). “The Unruly Life of Woody Allen” mostly seems focused on portraying Woody as a not-very-nice man. While I doubt he is, Marion Mead never misses an attempt. In fact, a whopping one third of the books pages are devoted to the sex scandal of the early nineties, while “Deconstructing Harry,” “Everyone Says I Love You,” and “Celebrity” are all crammed into one chapter. Frankly, “The Unruly Life of Woody Allen” reads more like a National Enquirer expose than a biography of a great filmmaker.
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The Films of Woody Allen (A Citadel Press Book)
Douglas Brode
Manufacturer: Citadel Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0806512598 |
Amazon.com
This affectionate biography of Woody Allen is the best account of his life you can buy. Eric Lax, a longtime friend of Allen's, does not recite Allen's story by chronological rote. Instead, he begins in the present day and digresses from it to past events. The result is an anecdotal account that manages to give all the details of Allen's development as an artist and a man while remaining consistently entertaining, enlightening, and funny.
Book Description
The definitive biography and national best seller, now back in print and fully updated.
When it first appeared in 1991, Eric Lax's splendid biography, written with nineteen years of access to Woody Allen, was universally hailed as the definitive portrait of a film genius. The next year, as Allen's long relationship with Mia Farrow disintegrated amid scandal, a new phase of his life and work began. For this edition, Lax has written a chapter on the break-up and the personal and professional changes that followed. He chronicles the last eight films, from Shadows and Fog to his latest Small Time Crooks, and again offers Woody's candid opinions of his art and himself. Published to coincide with Allen's sixty-fifth birthday, this updated biography will continue to be "required reading for Woodyphiles" (Kansas City Star).
Customer Reviews:
This one doesn't rip him apart in matters that don't matter.......2001-07-12
A natural stage in my succession of becoming a Woody Allen freak was picking up a biography. Any single one would have suited my needs, because I knew only as much as somebody who had seen ten or so of his movies and was beginning to show some serious interest in this singular personality.
It turned out that by accident I had picked out just the right book. Eric Lax delivers over 400 pages of what seems to be a very detailed and reliable account of Woody's life. Contrary to the tabloid-like obsession with Allen's women which many writers of today appear to revel, Lax's primary emphasis is on his work, influences, and progress as a comedian. A special section was added to the end of the book to summarise the events of the last ten years (the first edition of this biography was published in 1991), including the row with Mia Farrow and Woody's marriage to Soon-Yi Previn. But it remains a biography of the man it boasts in the title, not a collection of second-hand conjectures and prejudices about what he might seem to be. Indeed, this is left to the army of Woody admirers who like to derive his character from the roles he has played or written.
The shattering of preconceived images that surround the private self of Woody Allen is probably one of the major strengths of Lax's book. Woody is shown as somebody who has been engaging in his beloved trade for years and now shows genuine surprise about all the fuss that is being raised around his straightforward life. Nevertheless, I refuse to buy such a portrayal, simply because I am one of those blind followers who have merged Woody on-screen with the real-life Woody. True or not, it is an illusion I am prepared to live, for that is the main attraction of his movies.
Reasonable bio of one of America's great artists.......2000-04-28
It's a commonplace that many artists have questionable private lives. What Mr Allen does or doesn't do in his private life is of passing interest to me. That he likes younger women doesn't make him much different, maybe unfortunately, from millions of other men (is Rupert Murdoch a classic example or what?) If I want gossip I read a magazine. Mr Allen's work on the other hand interests me very much. This bio by Mr Lax is good for excerpts from Mr Allen's comedy routines and in revealing the movie making experience from the editting point of view, shooting, casting, writing and rewriting. I don't think the prose skill of Mr Lax is especially high but the book's subject matter is interesting enough, and Woody Allen's writing amusing enough, to carry it along.
under his thumb.......2000-02-11
I read this book long before Woody Allen's personal troubles became public. (I've always been an admirer of Allen's films.) It is, hands-down, the worst biography I ever read. Lax is more than reverent of Allen; he is obsequious and subservient. At a very early point in the book, I began to sense that every word had been approved by Allen. By the end, I though Allen's publicist and psychiatrists had probably signed off too.
P.S. If I had an option of giving this book no stars, I would have done so.
under his thumb.......2000-02-11
I read this book long before Woody Allen's personal troubles became public. (I've always been an admirer of Allen's films.) It is, hands-down, the worst biography I ever read. Lax is more than reverent of Allen; he is obsequious and subservient. At a very early point in the book, I began to sense that every word had been approved by Allen. By the end, I though Allen's publicist and psychiatrists had probably signed off too.
P.S. If I had an option of giving this book no stars, I would have done so.
A Superior Introduction to a Superior Filmmaker.......1997-04-16
When I first picked up this book, I knew very little. When I put it down, I had become a lifelong "Woodyphile". It is a great introduction to Allen's life and work. By having exclusive access to Allen, Eric Lax presents a side of Allen that the average person could never know. A must read for anyone, whether they be a friend or foe of Woody Allen
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