5 comments about Serpent of the Nile: Women and Dance in the Arab World.

1. Lots of colour pictures ... past & present ...including old paintings, quotes & accounts of the people who actually watched belly dancing...& then tried to describe it!

   For those just starting out to find out about Bellydancing & such enthusiasts,there are some pictures of famous older dancers, past & present .. Samya Gamal, Fifi Abdou & Sohair Zaki.
   More like a collection of cameos than a real in-depth exploration of the Art Form, or Elucidation of the styles & Expression... but it IS a good coffee-table book & nice, informative read .




2. I can't speak to the accuracy of Wendy Buonaventura's history of belly dancing, though I found no evidence of the most controversial complaint, that she fails to note the role of European Orientalists in fabricating our notions of Middle-Eastern dance. In fact, she discusses this very thing at length.

   The treasure in the book is the collection of paintings. Where else can you see Dinet's gorgeous watercolors? I had never even heard of him. Are the pictures accurate? I suspect they are. Are they representative? Of course not. Like Gauguin in Tahiti, the Orientalists saw what they wanted to see.




3. Wendy Buonaventura obviously loves raks baladi ("country" or folkloric belly dance) with a passion. As sometimes happens with authors passionate about a subject, she unfortunately treats her opinions as facts upon occasion. As a dancer, I love the glorious Orientalist pictures, early 20th-century photos and fascinatingly slanted accounts from Western travellers, and I love her feelings for the dance. It's a beautiful book to peruse, and you can get some marvelous ideas for theatrical costuming from it. But like the Orientalists she reviews, Buonaventura presents an exotic and monolithic Middle East, where Egypt represents this entire diverse region and where nothing changes over time. She also perpetuates the popular myth that this is a *women's* dance, whereas in truth both sexes dance at private functions, and in both Egypt and Turkey, men historically performed as well. (Western tourists just weren't interested!) Read this for its lovely artwork and, if you're a dancer, for a feel-good spiritual connection with earlier dancers--but if you're interested in the subject of dance history, do some further research. And if you are involved in the Society for Creative Anachronism, PLEASE don't use this book for costume documentation. Egyptian clothing pre-1600 was very, very different.



4. The quality and quantity of pictures in this book is wonderful and there is also some good information but unfortunately all the information is not very accurate and there are even many things that are not true. As a book this is nice to watch but as this book has become "a bible of belly dance" when other more accurate documents have been hard to find I can't rate this higher because readers tend to believe everything that is written here.



5. "Serpent of the Nile" is a wonderful book for anyone with an interest in Middle Eastern Dance, which is currently gaining tremendous popularity in the West. The author traces the art of 'Beladi,' what we now refer to as 'belly-dancing' from its origin to how it has changed over time. There is a lot of very interesting information in here, written concisely and accessibly, even for those of us who are not overly concerned with history; such as the need for male dancers to entertain the public when women were forbidden to do so, how the patriarchal nature of Arabic society affected Beladi, and how the Westerners exoticised and perhaps even corrupted the original form of dance. But the beauty of this book lies in its stunning pictures, a treat for the eyes! Photographs of sculptures, paintings and engravings of dancers and musicians fill the pages and make it an ideal coffee table book. A wonderful resource.

4 comments about Jacques Tourneur: The Cinema of Nightfall.

1. Jacques Tourneur has long been a favorite of horror fans, French critics, and a few sensible American observers like Manny Farber as a creator of some of cinema's most subtly potent effects, particularly in his trio of B-horror films for Val Lewton at RKO in the early 1940s and his Lewtonesque Curse of the Demon in 1958. His most famous film noir, Out of the Past, is also widely considered one of the genre's greatest. Fans who have wished to better understand Tourneur have had to cobble together a biography, production histories, and analysis from widely scattered sources -- obscure academic journals like Film and Psychoanalysis, zines like FilmFax and Photon, French-language studies for those who can read them, and one of the several books devoted to Val Lewton. The Edinburgh Film Festival issued an anthology of essays in English devoted entirely to Tourneur, but that book was aimed squarely at academics. It's Chris Fujiwara's book Jacques Tourneur: The Cinema of Nightfall, which straddles the academic and popular, that will likely be the standard reference in English for the foreseeable future.
   
   Fujiwara begins by persuasively rescuing Tourneur from one of Sarris' gulags: the dreaded third ranking in American Cinema. Sarris' backhanded praise in phrases like "subdued, pastel-colored sensibility" and "a certain French gentility" has been seconded by many critics, who attributed the virtues of the Lewton-produced films to Lewton and the brilliance of Out of the Past and Night of the Demon to Tourneur's "intelligent" manipulation of prosaic generic elements. Fujiwara argues that the things that distinguish Cat People, I Walked with a Zombie, and Leopard Man -- narrative ambiguity, lyrical mise-en-scene, understated dramatics -- are also present in such unjustly forgotten thrillers, westerns, and historical dramas as Experiment Perilous, Stars in My Crown, Way of a Gaucho, and others. By examining Tourneur's early French features and many MGM shorts, he shows decisively that the director's stylistic maturity occurred before his first widely acclaimed feature, Cat People, and only grew from there.
   
   Fujiwara devotes meaty individual chapters to each of the features, with a close reading and critical analysis leavened with production data and contextualizing commentary. True to the author's missionary zeal, some of the best material is the most polemical, as when he effectively articulates the minority view that Leopard Man is not the mess that many (including Tourneur) have claimed, but a major work of "precise and inexhaustible poetry" that presaged the anti-narrative cinema that would be de rigeur in Hollywood two decades later. Fujiwara is also strong on the visual beauty of Stars in My Crown, the sense of personal conviction in Night of the Demon, and the connection between the underrated Experiment Perilous and the Lewton films. Overall, a worthy, well-written and -researched tribute to an auteur who deserves a higher ranking than Sarris, and too many other critics, has given him. Included are a detailed bibliography and filmography, along with photos.



2. A fascinating look at the work of this remarkable director whose horror films are among the great films of the genre. The book is well researched and nicely wirtten with good photos.



3. Chris Fujiwara is one of the world's best film critics. (Look for his soon-to-be-published work on Otto Preminger.) "The Cinema of Nightfall" is specifically about the great(and vastly underrated) Jacques Tourneur, but it is much more than that. It is one of the best books ever written about how to see and experience movies. Fujiwara goes inside the process of just how a film creates meaning, using Tourneur's very subtle genius as his base. The chapters on the more famous works("Cat People", "I Walked with a Zombie" and the immortal "Out of the Past") are the best analyses ever written on those titles. However, perhaps the most impressive part of Fujiwara achievement is his coverage of the more obscure Tourneurs: "Stars in My Crown", "Canyon Passage", "Berlin Express", the shorts. (His chapter on "Nightfall" is worth the price of admission -- a whole film theology in miniature.) "Cinema of Nightfall" is a model of film understanding and film love.



4. Jacques Tourneur was a uniquely talented director with a string of distinctive films to his credit, including Cat People, Canyon Passage, I Walked With a Zombie and Out of the Past. Tourneur's best films look and sound like no one else's, stylish, subtle and strangely...quiet. At last there is an intelligent, discerning book on the subject of the talented Frenchman. Perhaps a bit more background on the making of the films would have been appreciated, otherwise this is an excellent and eye-opening bit of original film scholarship.

1 comments about The Essential Songwriter.

1. As a wannabe songwriter this is a sweet little book crammed with ideas. The book is an easy read. It is accessible and a quick reference. What more could you want? When I sell my next tune to Britney, I will have these people to thank. Hey, on second thought, these songs are too good for Britney! Thank you, Kachulis and Feist.

5 comments about The Journey of Luke Skywalker: An Analysis of Modern Myth and Symbol.

1. Quite an outstanding analysis of he steps through which we all pass in life. The author takes you through Carl Jung's theory of development of "normal" human to achieve their full potential. By taking Carl Jung's theories and using the steps Luke takes from immature and undeveloped young man to a mature and self-actualized adult/hero (something we all need to pass from and to), Galipeau explains Jung and Luke extremely well and interestingly. Well done....well worth a couple of weekends to read and digest.



2. Joseph Campbell wrote "The Writer's Journey" and "The Hero with a Thousand Faces"; two books which have altered storytelling and which were a direct influence on the creation of Star Wars. Go buy those books.

   This book, on the other hand, is a glorified retelling of Star Wars with not a single ounce of valuable insight.

   Let me repeat that: this book is a retelling of the Star Wars saga. The author is clearly trying to make a buck off of that name. His commentaries are uninformative and uninteresting. What a waste.




3. This book is yummy. Definitely not a cocktail table book. I love understanding why I have enjoyed the series of movies so much. It puts into words my feelings and occasional thoughts. I appreciate the author's style, I can hear and see the movie as he writes. At first it may seem dry or difficult to grasp, yet as one reads the author explains concepts clearly and the subject matter kept me reading.



4. I was very excited to come across this book as I have been looking for a Jungian analysis of the Star Wars saga for quite some time. I have always been fascinated by George Lucas' use of various mythical motifs and archetypes throughout his amazing Star Wars saga. It is no secret that Lucas was an enthusiast of Joseph Campbell and his Jungian analysis of myths and legends and how they resonate across cultures and generations. Lucas himself catagorized his saga as modern myth and it is loaded with powerful images of the collective unconscious. But Galipeau's "The Journey of Luke Skywalker" doesn't really touch on these aspects so much as describe scene by scene the various nuances of the scenes and characters. It isn't a bad book in any regard. In fact, there are many interesting psychological aspects of the story that I had never even anticipated. For instance, the use of color and it's inherent meaning throughout the saga, particularly references to alchemistic symbolism. Also, images of the Jungian anima and animus appear throughout the Star Wars storylines, especially regarding Luke Skywalker's quest for the Self. And of course, there is no missing the concept of the Shadow in regard to Darth Vader and the Empire. Thus, this is really the tale of two entities, the individual (Luke Skywalker), and the Galaxy at large (human civilization and its many manifestations). This shows that there is much deeper meaning involved in this wonderful space adventure than meets the eye. Unfortunately, I am still left to search for a thorough discussion of the profound mythical aspects of this great epic elsewhere.



5. I always enjoy reading other people's thoughts on the underlying themes of Star Wars. And this book takes a great Jungian approach to it. Several times the author points things out that make you think "Hey, i never thought about it like that." On the other hand, there were some parts where I felt the author was making an observation that was a litle out there. But then, I'm not a psychology student.
   The majority of the text in the book is relating the events of the movies. So even if you're not a hardcore fan like me, who's seen the movies a bazillion times, you'll be able to follow along as if you were watching the movies.

No comments about Beethoven's Symphonies: Unlocking the Masters Series (Unlocking the Masters).

5 comments about Seriously Funny: The Rebel Comedians of the 1950s and 1960s.

1. This book brings together more information about more comedians than any other book I've ever read. It is a collection of short biographies, not a comprehensive history of the 50s and 60s. Even so, the 50s and 60s came alive for me as I encountered in quick succession Mort Sahl, Lenny Bruce, Steve Allen, Bob Newhart, Woody Allen, Elaine May, Mike Nichols, and a score of other comedians who hit it big during that time.



2. This is an interesting book, a chapter per comic on "sick" comics of the 1950s and 1960s such as Lenny Bruce, Mort Sahl, Shelley Berman, as well as other groundbreaking comics of that era such as Bob Newhart, Bill Cosby, Jonathan Winters, Dick Gregory, Stan Freberg, Jean Shepard etc.
   
   It's a great overview and gives you a good thumbnail sketch of each comic's talents and personal style. However, it could have been much better edited, much of the information is repeated again and again in chapters that relate to certain comics, such as chapters on Mel Brooks, Sid Caesar, Woody Allen, who all shared certain experiences, but they are all relayed again in each comic's individual chapter.
   
   And, due to the format, little depth is provided in terms of analysis or the particulars of any one comic or style of comedy. In sum, I would recommend if you would like to learn a little about many of these great comics, but you would need to look elsewhere for substantive analysis or a deeper understanding of the era or the comics in question.



3. After reading this book, and RAISED ON RADIO I'm convinced... Nachman is a brilliant chronicaller of generations, passioniate and on such a mission his enthuisiasm gushes through with each Peabody Award waiting to happen phrase whether or not you share his enthuisiasm. - - Like RAISED ON RADIO, the book is neither definitive nor wishy-washy either. The chapters simply paint portraits of the people. In fact, the book goes a bit DEEPER into the subject manner than RAISED ON RADIO though not too deep. Further, though Nachman did interview subjects and did research, a lot of the information isn't exactly new (atleast if you're a nerdish comedy album collector and already into what the book is about.) - - And although yes, sometimes he goes on and on to make a point, especially in the way he breaks down the personalities of the comics he analyzes, I have to say, Nachman's writing is so delightful its forgivable (whether or not some of the chapters could have been cut in half.) Also what I like about this book is the choice of comedians go well beyond the obvious and really make you think... recognizing not just the Lenny Bruce's and Mort Sahls, but radio and TV comics that paved the way... (Bob and Ray, Ernie Kovacs and Steve Allen included !)
   
   All in all, this is a great book presented through the mind of a brilliant columnist... and yes NACHMAN definitely is a columnist... a master storyteller who can schpiel by the column inch and hold your attention all the way. The only danger of reading this book is that after each chapter you want to go out and get the CDs... but with so many comedians covered, that's a lot of bread !
   
   Though I happen to be a fan of the topics covered in this and RAISED ON RADIO, I have to say, whatever Nachman decides to write about next, I'm fair game for it !



4. I began flipping through this excellent book in a moment of boredom and just kept reading. Though I'm a fan of a few of the comedians covered in the book, many of them are of no particular interest to me -- moreover, I don't even care for most stand-up comedy (preferring sketch comedy), and the majority of the stories told here are stories of great stand-up comics. But the author is so good at describing the talents, contexts, and events that made these individuals important comic entertainers, that the book really grabbed and held my interest. I recommend it for anyone interested in glimpses into some brilliant comic minds from the heyday of sophisticated comedy, and in concise yet adequately detailed accounts of why and how these people evolved from unknowns to household words.



5. I was looking forward to this book; I had grown up with the comedy of Sahl, Lehrer, Freburg, Cosby and the others. I was unable to finish the book, primarily because of many egregious errors of fact that Nachman and his editor allowed to pass into print. I list here a few of the problems that I found with the chapters I read:
   
   In the Introduction, re: Allan Sherman, Nachman mistitles "Shake hands with your Uncle Max", calling it "Shake hannds with your Uncle Moe"; he also erroneously attributes the original tune of the parody as "McNamara's Band"; it is actually a parody of a tune called "Dear Old Donegal", also called "Shake hands with your Uncle Mike"
   
   Re: Tom Lehrer, he titles the song "MLF (Multi-lateral Force)Lullaby" as "MFL Lullaby"; and later claims that Lehrer "set his `Elements' to the tune of [Kurt Weill's song from Lady in the Dark] `Tchaikovsky'"; in fact "The Elements" is set to Sir Arthur Sullivan's song "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General" from The Pirates of Penzance. In addition, Nachman
   incorrectly transcribes and alters the order of the lyrics he quotes to "National Brotherhood Week":
   
   It's national Brotherhood Week
   National Everyone-smile-at-one-anotherhood Week
   It's only for a week so have no fear
   Be nice to people who are inferior to you
   Be grateful that it doesn't last all year (Nachman's text)
   
   Actual lyric:
   
   But during National Brotherhood Week,
   National Brotherhood Week
   It's National Everyone-smile-at/One-another-hood Week
   Be nice to people who/Are inferior to you
   It's only for a week, so have no fear
   Be grateful that it doesn't last all year.
   
   Re:Stan Freburg, he attributes the source of Freburg's parody of "Rock Island Line" to Johnny Cash; actual source is a version of the song recorded by Lonnie Donnegan and His Skiffle Group, a popular English band
   
   Re: Freburg's parody of "Sh-Boom"; Nachman calls Freburg "an engineer [presumably the recording engineer of the faux-recording session at the heart of the piece] screaming for more mumbling"; in actuality, Freburg's character on the recording is that of the lead singer of the group making the record
   
   Re: Freburg's parody of "Rock Island Line", he states that " `Rock Island Line'. . . ridicules the whole precious folk-song craze ("Are you going to sing this or read it?" asks an irritated Freburg) [Nachman's italics]." In the parody, this question is actually asked by a character played by the actor Peter Leeds, a Freburg "repertory company" member for many years, who in this case is, in all likelihood, supposed to be either the producer or the recording engineer for the "session."
   
   Re: Freburg's Lawrence Welk parody, "Wun'erful, Wun'erful"; after describing the confrontation Freburg claims to have had with Welk over the piece (where Welk denies ever having said "Wun'erful, Wun'erful"), Nachman states: "Decades later, to Freburg's everlasting joy, Welk titled his autobiography Wonderful, Wonderful." Which misses the entire joke, of course, since Welk's autobiography is actually titled Wunnerful, Wunnerful: The Autobigraphy of Lawrence Welk.
   
   How any book, presumably edited and published by professionals, could have this many errors (and who knows how many more in the sections on comedians whose lives and careers I was not as familiar with) is beyond me.

1 comments about Pericles (Folger Shakespeare Library).

1. This play was extremely popular. But like other romances, it is overrated. (Romance has a way of making written material more popular than the material merits.) This is a good play, but there are some notable flaws. Pericles is somewhat of a reincarnation of Romeo. He is a young romantic. (Not a rationalist.) This is prevalent when he is willing to seek the hand of a daughter of a wicked king. (Even though he is gambling with his life. If he can't guess a riddle, he dies.) Well, here is the first flaw. Pericles is naturally horrified when he realizes that the king had a daughter, and that this woman is a product of incest (the issue of the king and his daughter). It does not make sense that the king would reveal this secret (even in a riddle) that he doesn't want people to know. Well, Pericles flees because he knows the wicked king will want to kill Pericles so as to silence the secret. We then meet Helicanus (the eccentric, but loyal servant of Pericles). Pericles feels that he won't even be safe in his own kingdom against the wicked king. (Apparently King Pericles doesn't even feel safe with the defenses and guards he must have as a king.) Romantic Pericles leaves Helicanus in charge. On an errand of mercy, Pericles offers relief to Tharsus. (A land plagued with famine.) Cleon, the governor is of course grateful. After hiding with his friend Cleon, Pericles makes his way to Pentapolis. To make a long story short, he takes part in a contest, falls in love with the good king's daughter Thaisa, and they marry. Also, the wicked king from Act 1 is dead, and Pericles can stop running. All seems well, for a short while. In Act 3, Pericles is on the way home, and Thaisa has a little girl. (Mariana) But apparently Thaisa is so ill that the sea servants think she is dead. (Another flaw!) As ill as someone may be, it doesn't take a lot to tell if someone is at least breathing! The superstitious seamen feel that the 'dead' Thaisa must be thrown overboard. (FLAW!) Even providing Thaisa is dead, no one would just throw a person overboard (let alone a queen)! She would have a funeral and a burial! Well, fortunately, Thaisa's sea coffin floats safely to Ephesus where Thaisa is rescued and takes up the Greek equivalent life of a nun. (Priestess to Diana.) Moving on, we have yet another flaw. The wicked king is dead, but Pericles leaves his daughter with Cleon at Tharsus. This does not make sense. Certainly a king would have ample resources at home to care for an infant daughter of royal blood. But Shakespeare needs some excuse for the rest of the events. Cleon is a loyal friend and educates Mariana as Pericles wishes. Dionyza is jealous of Marian and wants her dead. (Talk about short lived gratitude after Pericles saved the land from famine!) This just doesn't work for me. Well, the assasin fails, but Mariana is kidnapped by pirates. (Though Pericles and Dionyza believe she is dead.) Cleon is furious when he learns what Dionyza has done, but this bit of truth does not seem to survive the play. The assasin feels he can twist the truth and say Mariana is dead, but Dionyza kills him anyway. Mariana is taken to a house of prostitution that is short staffed, but she refuses to become a valuable employee so to speak. She actually meets her future husband there. One of the staff becomes sympathetic to Mariana, and he helps her escape. (She intends to become an instructor of arts. Cleon's education probably helped her here.) Well Lysimachus (who Mariana met at the house of prostitutes) has heard of Pericles's tragic state and goes to visit him with Mariana. Apparently, Pericles and Mariana never met on speaking terms. (FLAW!) Even granted Pericles left Mariana with Cleon for some time, he would have still visited her. Dinoyza began her evil plans when Mariana was 14. Pericles never saw his own daughter in 14 years? Well, moving on, Mariana and Pericles speak not knowing their relationship, but they eventually realize that they are father and daughter. But another flaw comes in. Mariana accuses Cleon of plotting against her. (FLAW!) Even the man who tried to kill Mariana named Dionyza as the villain. Either Mariana is forgetful, or she doesn't care about accusing an innocent man. Pericles vows vengeance on poor Cleon. (FLAW!) Cleon and Pericles were friends. He may have at least tried talking to Cleon and establishing the facts. But Pericles is a Romeo who lived a little longer. Wonderful at love and romance, but not to good at reason. Well, Pericles has a dream and Thaisa commands him to come to the temple of Diana at Ephesus. Well he does and the family is together again. But this romance offers one final flaw. Rather than allowing the play to end on a happy note, Shakespeare has Pericles burn Cleon's palace killing him. (Even though Cleon was TOTALLY INNOCENT of the attempted murder of Mariana!) As I said, romances tend to be overrated. But I suppose we shouldn't be surprised. Britney Spears is the most popular thing around while King Diamond's records (that display great work and effort) are often only found in 'you name it, we got it' places. "Pericles" is a good play, but better Shakespeare certainly exists.

1 comments about Eddie Izzard: Dress to Kill.

1. It's been almost 10 years since the book has been out. It's about time that someone dropped a line about it. Whether you are a fan or not, this book will not disappoint. It shares photos & memories of growing up, frequent relocation (home & school), loss of his mother, and realizing his belief in total clothing rights.

4 comments about A Killer Life: How an Independent Film Producer Survives Deals and Disasters in Hollywood and Beyond.

1. The book is readable in as much as trash pop and pulp fiction is watchable and readable.No matter what is said,at the end of the day,this producer is yet another example of someone grandfathered into the industry ,with a production loan to get her started.A lump sum equvalent of about USD 100 000 today.There were a handful of active indie female producers operating in those times(most without that financial leg up.)Vachon is but one story.For that reason this is an ill researched book.
   A few other women may not have stood on others toes as much as Vachon is capable of, nor claimed as much public or industry credit for themselves, but this book is but one story from the nineties,and it is in that context only it is best read.There were a small handful of extremely strident indie and studio women in Hollywood at the time,who broke significant paths for other women,not just themselves- in the choosing of projects they developed and the actions they took.The book is readable but indulgent insider name dropping. In one aspect a shallow take on a very political hollywood film business at the time.



2. ...which kind of gets me wondering--why the heck don't *even more* aspiring producers and D-boy and D-girl wannabes get their hands on this amazing compendium of production experiences, take them to heart, and learn themselves a whole lot about the global film game in the process. If you've got the answer to that question, let me know. I'm still scratching my noodle.
   
   Okay, so you're going to totally dig this book. Christine Vachon and her Killer Films outfit in N-Y-C, using that well-known convention of theirs--break the bounds of traditional (read: boring) publishing with a rather unconventional approach to bookwriting. Prepare for a wild wooly ride of a read...Christine's deft collaborators (egs. directors, financiers, and studio consigliatores) have chimed in here in various sections, offering up sage advice on the pit- and prat-falls of the indie and studio sides of the filmmaking biz, and what it's generally like working with Christine and her able band of brothers and sisters. That, for this here reviewer, was a right privilege...live recordings of Christine's conversations with her colleagues wouldn't have been richer. And like I tell you in my title...you couldn't pay Vachon enough to give this course. For a couple of Lincolns, this was a gold mine.
   
   By the way, I think I've tattooed my entire Netflix wish list with every single Killer title known to Movieland. As luck would have it, ONE HOUR PHOTO was one of the better films of 2002, and little did I know that Christine was even responsible for getting this one made. Small world, baby.
   
   It's an unsung job, the producing game can sometimes be, but mark it--without Christine's valuable input at various stages of the process, many of these so-called little pictures mightn't have been made, languishing in that purgatory of "development hell" (or turnaround) like 98% of the projects out there are in (according to every single statistic known to the filmmaking poobahs). One of the most inspiring statements from the entire book which I triple underlined, dogeared, and highlighted in tri-colour was her frank admission that producers must maintain "eternal optimism." They are the ones who are enthusiastic at all times, oftentimes when there's no reason to be, and oftentimes when there's no production necessarily to speak of. The equivalent to selling short on the stock market. If your sources' predictions are bang on, chances are you're going to make a "buchta" of cash.
   
   Such boundless enthusiasm the mark of a truly gifted deal-maker, and in the trenches which is the modern-day studio system (read: the business of making movies), and the relatively recent advent of the "mini-majors" (or classics divisions of the major Hollywood studios), this brand of relentlessness has become all the more critical. Remove one element from the positivity puzzle, strip away a single grain of that much-needed goodness which is a key ingredient of the all-encompassing feelgood--by definition, a must towards smooth functioning on the film set--and off your high film concept goes into the grey ether.
   
   Just for the rekkid, listening to podcasts helps, kids! I'd heard about this title after listening to Claude Brodesser Ackner's THE BUSINESS on NPR (goo-search it). I was so intrigued by Christine's outspokenness, that I simply couldn't curb my enthusiasm to hop on over to my favourite online book purveyor and pick up the nearest copy of her A KILLER LIFE.
   
   Where is that extra star when I need it? Five estrellas, kids. Count 'em. Cinco.
   
   --ADM in Prague



3. This book is riveting reading for the fan or the filmmaker. Vachon has a talent for balancing intensive amounts of details with storytelling skills. You really will want to know how a distribution is made before the first frame is filmed. Her personality -- tough, passionate, centered -- also makes the book a compelling read. Even when her foes are completes a-hats, Vachon does not descend into bitterness, but rather, makes another compelling lesson.



4. As an aspiring producer, I have long looked up to the indie queen Christine Vachon, and I was interested to read this book after having read her excellent SHOOTING TO KILL. I read that book when I was back in college, but this book is better. It's definitely more personal - in a way it reads like a memoir.
   
   You feel like you are going through all the trials and tribulations with her. There's a lot of exciting stuff here - she battles the MPAA over Boys Don't Cry -- the bond company takes control of Far From Heaven-- she has interactions with big stars like Jude Law and Julia Roberts.
   I have never been to Sundance, but Vachon's Sundance diary takes you through that festival with her.
   
   All this makes for a book that's immensely readable; I couldn't put it down. I really liked the spotlights from other industry figures, agents, studio heads and directors like John Cameron Mitchell (who did my favorite film, HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH!) If you are in the industry, want to learn about the industry or are just plain curious about how movies get made, go out and get this book now!

3 comments about The Complete Plays.

1. I had to get this boook for an acting class because the professor (who is Russian) wanted to use a translation other than the more well known Paul Schmidt complete works.
   
   While I like Paul's for a very American translation accessible more to American Actors and audiences, there is admitedly something Russian in spirit about Laurence Senelick's translation. I beleive that translations should really be called adaptations because they are merely another, less exact form of the original. Especially when it comes to language and character, and not merely a plot driven play (e.g. Ibsen) Senelick's translation offer a sense that is less American and probably closer to the russian. The only thing that bothers me and it has taken me some time to be somewhat ok with is that I feel like it reads like a translation and I tend to like more seamless adaptation if I'm going to call it that, which takes authorial intention (to the best of their opinion of what authorial intent is) to create their version of the original version. From a performative aspect I am still not sure how much I like it in the mouths of American tongues, but I see the merit in language that requires and american actor to really invest in a a foriegn thought process and construction.
   
   Other pluses: Variants to every play chekhov wrote, including what can only be described in this day and age as the special features section with deleted scenes. Great look and style to the book overall, if you like that kind of thing, but it will feel like a bible you are carrying around. Paul Schmidt's is nice because it looks and carries like a normal book, but has virtually every play Chekhov wrote.



2. if yer looking for an english-language translation of chekhov's plays, and have come across any of the (at least three that i know of) editions containing the translations by Senelick, there is no need to continue searching: these are, by far, the absolute best renditions currently available. they are not merely literary / intellectual translations, but simultaneously capture the dramatic as well... read and perform. there is simply no other translation that accomplishes both of these feats. actors rejoice! readers revel!



3. A brilliant translation for all lovers of great and enduring literature.
   
   W.W. Norton has published all of Chekhov's dramatic works in a single stunning volume. The translator is a professor of drama at Tufts University and is fluent in the Russian of the period. This volume contains works that have not previously been translated. The plays are heavily annotated for clearer understanding and appreciation of the nuances and subtleties of the original. Before each play, the author includes an interpretation in the context of Russian history at the time. The plays are consequently better understood and enjoyed.
   
   The translator includes variants of the plays, different endings encouraged by the actors who played the parts, unfinished plays, and dialogues.
   
   Senelick includes an illuminating chronology of Chekhov's life in the context of history. Chekhov wrote his great plays while practicing medicine as a physician and suffering from tuberculosis.