Although this book provided an acceptably organized compilation of movie classics, I was bugged by the fact that reviews/thoughts included spoilers, or revelations of the movies' endings.
I purchased this book in order to discover movies I knew not of previously or had heard of and was interested in seeing. The occasional spoilers are given without warning and made me read with caution to those movies that I did not yet know the outcome of, which was quite tedious.
Overall, the reviews were convincing and thoughtful when not completely blatant, but do proceed with caution. 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die could be a great film guide. It is loaded with both well-known and obscure films, many of which I have sought out and enjoyed after reading about them in the book. I've really started to enjoy noir films because of this book's recommendations.
The fatal flaw in 1001 Movies is that they frequently give away the endings! For example, they often tell you when an important character dies at the end of the movie -- what is the point of that? Look for a different guide that doesn't spoil the endings.
As soon as I saw this book on the shelf I knew it was for my ever-expanding collection of cinema sources & the selection contained herein did not disappoint. Except maybe for the alarming number of errors I found. ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN did not win best picture in 1976; as the next page testifies, ROCKY did. THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW was not narrated by Dr. Everett Scott; it was narrated by The Narrator(Charles Gray). DANGEROUS LIAISONS did not win Best Picture in 1988; a few pages later it states,correctly,that RAINMAN did. In the piece on Charles Chaplin's brilliant MONSIEUR VERDOUX, the end result of his work & the sentiments expressed in his film made him the target of the political right which led to his permanent departure from the United States in 1952. He returned in 1971 & was presented with a lifetime achievement award at The Academy Awards.
The issue with this book isn't that there are factual errors or that its list of movies isn't what you would pick. The big problem with this book is that the writers frequently spoil the movie for the reader. The most blatant example I've found is the review of "Don't Look Now", where the third paragraph recounts what is probably the entire last five minutes of the film. The writer then has the audacity to add, "It is no exaggeration to say that few scenes in the history of cinema have proven as effective at sending chills up the spines of viewers as this one." Also, I recently watched "Oldboy" and followed it up by reading the review in this book. The second sentence of the first paragraph, if fresh in a person's mind, would definitely have given away an important plot development. I'm glad I didn't read it before watching the movie.
Please, do yourself a favor and don't buy this book. Or if you feel you still want to, watch the movie before reading the review.
With the amount of junk that Hollywood feeds us these days, you need a source to help you find the good stuff. This book helps in the search for quality. It simply and briefly lets you know why these films are worth seeing. I have found many films from years past that I would've never seen if I hadn't read about them here first. Just about every great film from the silent era to the present is in here. Hopefully, more people will start paying attention to the good films of the past. Once you start watching these films you'll notice just how bad most of the the current blockbuster studio releases are. If we keep paying to see bad movies, the studios will keep making them.
For the casual film fan this book provides an excellent overview of the cinema for the past century. In order to fit in the large number of mini reviews and commentaries for the selected entries the editors had to omit a good number of films that many would have deemed worthy of inclusion. The most egregious omissions were of silent films, of which only a relatively small number were included from the many years before the beginning of sound films. Film buffs may argue with some of the selections, but the inclusion of "small" and cult films alongside the well-known Academy Award winners is to be applauded. The editors, though, were often sloppy with the sidebar award section, giving a film credit for an Oscar win when only a nomination was received. There are several instances when at least two films from the same year were cited as winning the same Oscar. For those like myself who can recite year-by-year the Oscar award winners and nominees, the sidebar errors detracted from the scholarship of the work.
I think this is a great book and I really enjoy reading through it's pages, but that is not the main point of my review. I want to clear up what I see as a misconception of the book that I see in a lot of reviews. This is not the "1001 Greatest Movies Ever Made" or "1001 Most Important Movies Ever Made"; it's 1001 movies you should (must) see to get a very well rounded sense of movies and their history. Some movies in the book are included just because they are great, others because of their historical niche in movie makeing, some because they illustrate a certain style, and some for pure entertainment they give. Movies with different types of animation are included and well as a broad spectrum of foreign movies. Think of this book as a watch list for a very in depth cinema appreciation class. Some of these films may not be great, some may not even be entertaining, but all are important, or illustrate an important part of cinema history.
I've had this book for about a year now, and it has truly become my own personal bible. As other reviewers have pointed out, the book spans the past century's film history and includes movies from well-known Oscar-winners to more obscure, independent gems. One thing I love about this book is that it does a fine job at keeping the list neutral -- there aren't more American-made films than foreign ones; there aren't more recent films than older ones or vice versa; there aren't more popular films than relatively unknown ones; there aren't more comedies than horror films, dramas than sci-fis, etc.
The included short essays/reviews on each film are concise and informative for the most part, though I must say it bugs me that some of them give the ending or crucial plot details away. The photos are all gorgeous and make this book a nice one to keep on display on your coffee table.
At the beginning, the book states that one of its goals is to make passionate film lovers out of casual filmgoers, and for me, it accomplished that goal with flying colors. Over the past year, I have become an ardent movie buff and lover mostly from watching at least seventy-five of the excellent films included in the book -- I've yet to encounter one I haven't at least liked. As I said, this book has become my bible and it's never far from my reach -- practically every weekend I find a new movie to rent/buy and immensely enjoy. It'll definitely make a believer out of ya!
The editor also notes that although 1001 movies might seem like an exhaustive list, it quickly becomes apparent that it's really not big enough. There are so many great movies out there (way more than 1001, trust me), but this book serves as an excellent introduction (and then some) to the world of film. Highly recommended to those interested in seeing great movies. - Ebook - Kindle Devices - E-reader - Art'
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