The Great Movies

February 4, 2002
Critic Ebert presents here his own take on 10o of what he calls the "great" movies, illuminating not only why these films are classics but, more importantly, why viewers (himself included) respond to them as such. These short, smart, witty, critical essays first appeared in his biweekly syndicated column "The Great Movies." This collection includes the usual suspects—von Stroheim's Greed, Eisenstein's Battleship Potemkin—but also quirky surprises, such as Sirk's 1950s melodrama Written on the Wind
and Disney's Pinocchio.
Ebert is great when fleshing out the cultural context in which a film opened—Richard Lester's 1964 A Hard Day's Night
was a total surprise to critics who expected just another rock 'n' roll movie but were electrified by Lester's freewheeling, dazzlingly edited work, which influenced all future British cinema—and carefully maps out historical and social contexts for all of the films. He addresses how Depression audiences related to Gone with the Wind's Scarlett O'Hara as a self-determined woman in the tradition of Mae West and Louise Brooks, and points out how Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing
revealed the racism of many white critics. He writes perceptively about how a great film such as Charles Laughton's only directorial effort, The Night of the Hunter, escapes notice because it lacks the "proper trappings" of a clearly defined genre, or how Hitchcock's television work shaped his vision for Psycho. Perhaps the most telling, and charming, of Ebert's talents is his modesty and understanding of the egalitarian appeal of the movies, and his admission that his views, while more informed, are no more valid than the average moviegoers.

February 15, 2002
These two volumes by Ebert, possibly America's most famous film critic, and by the American Association of Film Critics, a group that includes Ebert essentially define the canon of American film studies. Both volumes provide short essays on 100 different films. Although one list has been chosen by a group of film writers and critics after much discussion and dissent and the other is a highly personal compendium of "landmarks of the first century of cinema," the lists are stunningly similar. Together, they provide a survey of the American and foreign films that have provoked the most interest in American film critics. It would be fair to note that American films dominate, with American productions accounting for 50-60 percent of the titles in both volumes and the rest of the world being represented by an assortment of European works and a handful of Asian films. Ebert's essays are culled from his weekly feature in the Chicago Sun Times (check out the paper's web site to read the essays); The A List entries are written by a number of well-known film writers, including Carr, Andrew Sarris, Robert Sklar, and Armond White. The essays in both books are well written, accessible, and, in many cases, thought-provoking. Whether both books are necessary purchases is another matter. It is unlikely that any moderately comprehensive collection will need another couple of essays about Citizen Kane; 2001, A Space Odyssey; or Battleship Potemkin. However, the collections do discuss many lesser-known films, such as Dance, Girl Dance; Happy Together; and the British "Up" documentaries, and so could be a wonderful introduction to 20th-century cinema for the general reader. Both books are recommended for academic and public libraries, though the fact that Ebert's essays have already been published and in circulation for some years recommends The A List over The Great Movies if a choice has to be made. Andrea Slonosky, Long Island Univ., Brooklyn, NY

Copyright 2001 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2002
This book presents a Roger Ebert quite different from the TV personality who offers undemanding moviegoers consumer tips on the latest Hollywood releases. Here he chooses 100 great films--not, he stresses, the 100 "best" films--and explains why they, not this week's batch of mall movies, are the ones that matter. Rising to the level of his subjects, he writes with an eloquence and a conviction he seldom expresses on TV or in his daily newspaper reviews. Unlike contemporary reviews, these assessments are informed by the passage of time and repeated viewings as well as by Ebert's vast general viewing experience. His selections constitute a nice mixture of American and foreign films and of sound and silent films, including inescapable classics ("Citizen Kane,"" Casablanca"), modern masterworks ("The Godfather,"" The Decalogue"), and even a few documentaries ("Hoop Dreams," the generation-tracking British "-Up" films). In his introduction, Ebert chides younger viewers--even film students--who lack any knowledge of the medium's greatest works. If his TV fame leads any of them to pick up this book and subsequently investigate his recommendations, it will go a long way toward making up for his years of simplistic "thumbs up-thumbs down" appraisals. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)