December 2023 MBR The Theatre/Cinema/TV Shelf

The Theatre/Cinema/TV Shelf

Making The Best Years of Our Lives
Alison Macor
University of Texas Press
https://utpress.utexas.edu
9781477318911, $45.00, HC, 208pp

https://www.amazon.com/Making-Best-Years-Our-Lives/dp/1477318917

Synopsis: Released in 1946, The Best Years of Our Lives became an immediate success. Life magazine called it "the first big, good movie of the post-war era" to tackle the "veterans problem." Today we call that problem PTSD, but in the initial aftermath of World War II, the modern language of war trauma did not exist.

The film earned the producer Samuel Goldwyn his only Best Picture Academy Award. It offered the injured director, William Wyler, a triumphant postwar return to Hollywood. And for Harold Russell, a WWII double amputee who co- starred with Fredric March and Dana Andrews, the film provided a surprising second act.

With the publication of "Making The Best Years of Our Lives: The Hollywood Classic That Inspired a Nation" film critic and historian Alison Macor illuminates the film's journey from script to screen and describes how this authentic motion picture moved audiences worldwide. The film's nuanced critique of American ideals also made it a target, and the picture and its creators were swept up in the anti-Communist witch hunts of the late 1940s. In this authoritative history, Macor chronicles the making and meaning of a film that changed America.

Critique: A seminal and detailed study of extraordinarily impressive film, "Making The Best Years of Our Lives: The Hollywood Classic That Inspired a Nation" will have a very special interest to fans of one of Hollywood's most iconic and influential films of the 20th Century. Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, and enhanced with the inclusion of a section of historic B/W photos, "Making The Best Years of Our Lives: The Hollywood Classic That Inspired a Nation" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and college/university library American Film History collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, film buffs, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Making The Best Years of Our Lives: The Hollywood Classic That Inspired a Nation" is also available in a paperback edition (9781477328330, $29.95) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $22.49).

Editorial Note: Alison Macor (http://alisonmacor.com) received a Public Scholars grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities for her book "Making The Best Years of Our Lives: The Hollywood Classic That Inspired a Nation" (University of Texas Press, 2022). She is also the author of "Rewrite Man: The Life and Career of Screenwriter Warren Skaaren" (UT Press, 2017) and "Chainsaws, Slackers, and Spy Kids: Thirty Years of Filmmaking in Austin, Texas", which won the 2012 Peter C. Rollins Book of the Year Award. She holds a PhD in film history and taught for more than 20 years at the University of Texas at Austin, Texas State University, Austin Community College and the Austin Museum of Art.

Cultural Theory in the Films of Alfred Hitchcock
Gary McCarron
Anthem Press
www.anthempress.com
9781839988462, $110.00, HC, 240pp

https://www.amazon.com/Cultural-Theory-Films-Alfred-Hitchcock/dp/1839988460

Synopsis: "Cultural Theory in the Films of Alfred Hitchcock" by Professor Gary McCarron is neither a biography nor a conventional film critique. Rather, the text explores aspects of Hitchcock's work in relation to theories drawn from the social sciences and philosophy.

The various chapters focus not on specific films, but on broader ideas central to Hitchcock's work. There is, for instance, a chapter on his idea of the MacGuffin in which Professor McCarron uses Ernesto Laclau's theories of equivalent substitution to explain how the MacGuffin functions in Hitchcock's works.

There is also a chapter on his notion of 'pure cinema' which moves from the idea of purity as an anthropological concept to consider purity in relation to current debates regarding so-called hybrid media, and Hitchcock's relevance to these issues in respect of his dissatisfaction with the advent of sound to the cinema world.

With the publication of "Cultural Theory in the Films of Alfred Hitchcock", Professor McCarron utilizes the films of Alfred Hitchcock to illustrate ideas in the social sciences and philosophy and applies those same ideas to illustrate aspects of Hitchcock's films.

Critique: A seminal and ground-breaking work of original scholarship, "Cultural Theory in the Films of Alfred Hitchcock" by Professor Gary McCarron will hold a very special appeal to readers with an interest in film criticism in general, and an analysis of Alfred Hitchcock's cinematic philosophy in particular. Exceptional, informative, thought-provoking, and unique, "Cultural Theory in the Films of Alfred Hitchcock" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, film school, and college/university library Cinematic Studies collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.

Editorial Note: Gary McCarron (https://www.sfu.ca/~gmccarro) is an associate professor in the School of Communication at Simon Fraser University. He is also the Graduate Chair of Simon Fraser University's program for Graduate Liberal Studies.

Classic TV Icons: Action & Drama
Edward Gross
BearManor Media
www.bearmanormedia.com
9798887712697, $42.00, HC, 386pp

https://www.amazon.com/Classic-TV-Icons-Action-Drama/dp/B0CHL8ZG3X

Synopsis: " Classic TV Icons: Action & Drama" from BearManor Media is the first in a series of books profiling actors and shows making up our collective television nostalgia. It's written by veteran entertainment journalist Edward Gross, who has been on the editorial staff of a wide variety of film and TV magazines. He is also the author of more than a dozen books, including oral histories on Star Trek and Superman (the two-volume The Fifty-Year Mission and Voices from Krypton, respectively) and Above & Below: The Unofficial 35th Anniversary Beauty and the Beast Companion -- all of which are available from Bearmanor Media.

Critique: Illustrated with B/W photos, "Classic TV Icons: Action & Drama" will prove to be a highly prized addition to personal, professional, community, and college/university library Television History/Criticism collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. Impressively comprehensive, exceptionally 'reader friendly' in organization and presentaton, "Classic TV Icons: Action & Drama" is also readily available in a paperback edition (9798887712680, $32.00) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.95).

Editorial Note: Edward Gross (https://us.macmillan.com/author/edwardgross) is an entertainment journalist who has covered film and television for a wide variety of publications, including Geek, SciFi Now, CFQ, SFX, Starlog, Cinescape and many others. Additionally he's written a number of non-fiction "making of" books, including this year's two-volume Fifty-Year Mission: the Complete Oral History of Star Trek (co-written with Mark A. Altman) for St. Martin's Press.

Save Me a Seat!: A Life with Movies
Rick Winston
Rootstock Pubishing
https://www.rootstockpublishing.com
9781578691289, $18.99, PB, 262pp

https://www.amazon.com/Save-Me-Seat-Life-Movies/dp/1578691281

Synopsis: Rick Winston's lifelong love of movies led to the creation of one of Vermont's leading cultural institutions, the Savoy Theater in Montpelier, Vermont. With humor, heart, and the publication of "Save Me a Seat!: A Life with Movies" he takes us behind the scenes of the hard and rewarding work of building a film venue over decades in a grateful community.

"Save Me a Seat!" is the story of how a vibrant film culture took root in unlikely surroundings, as well as the story of how a boy from the New York City suburbs landed in Vermont and became a preeminent film programmer and historian in the Green Mountain State.

Critique: Illustrated throughout with B/W images, "Save Me a Seat!: A Life with Movies" is an inherently fascinating and impressively informative memoir that will prove to be of immense interest to readers concerned with cinema history, criticism, and movie theatres. An extraordinary memoir of an extraordinary man, "Save Me a Seat!: A Life with Movies" is an unreservedly recommended pick for personal, professional, community, and college/university library Contemporary American Biography/Memoir collections and supplemental Cinematic History curriculum studies lists.

Editorial Note: Rick Winston (http://rickwinston.org) grew up in Yonkers, New York, and became hooked watching old films on TV at a young age. He went to Columbia College and University of California, Berkeley, where there were many opportunities to catch up on films while putting off writing English Literature papers. He co-founded the Savoy Theater in Montpelier, Vermont in 1981, and was co-owner until he and his wife Andrea Serota sold it in 2009. Winston's previous book, "Red Scare in the Green Mountains" (Rootstock, 2018) won the 2019 Richard O. Hathaway Award from the Vermont Historical Society for "Outstanding Contribution to Vermont History." He currently teaches film history throughout Vermont.

Withnail and I: From Cult to Classic
Toby Benjamin
Titan Books
https://titanbooks.com
9781803362397, $50.00, HC, 144pp

https://www.amazon.com/Withnail-I-Classic-Toby-Benjamin/dp/1803362391

Synopsis: Authorized by author and director Bruce Robinson, "Withnail & I: From Cult to Classic" by Toby Benjamin charts the extraordinary journey of a beloved cult film from being 'just thoughts really' to becoming a permanent feature in any list of the Best British Films ever made.

For the first time all of the surviving players have been interviewed for this definitive study about their parts in the making of the movie, and the lasting effect it had on their lives. Bruce Robinson offers detailed insights into his creative process and influences, while new interviews with the film's stars Richard E Grant and Paul McGann provide personal insights into the impact that making and living with Withnail & I had.

Illustrated throughout with never-before-seen photography and archive material, and featuring contributions from famous fans like Sam Bain, Margaret Cho and Charlie Higson, this is the definitive publication on the now legendary British film - - Withnail & I.

Critique: This large format (10.36 x 0.7 x 12.28 inches, 2.73 pounds) hardcover edition of "Withnail and I: From Cult to Classic" from Titan Books is a definitive, in-depth exploration of the creation and legacy of the cult classic British Film Withnail & I. The featured interviews, essays, photos, and fascinating archive materials are deftly organized and presented making this an ideal template for treating the histories of other seminal British films. As fascinating as it is informative, "Withnail and I: From Cult to Classic" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and college/university library Cinematic History and Movie Direction/Production collections.

Editorial Note: Toby Benjamin has originated and co-authored The Spirit of Talk Talk (Rocket 88 Books, three editions 2012- 2020) and My Eyes Have Seen The Glory (Mooney and Lambert, 2021). Toby's writing focuses on his great passions: music, football and film, in the pursuit of anecdotes with a background of authenticity. He lives in Brighton, UK.

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