1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die (Hardcover)

~ (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Film lovers seeking critical guidance more discerning than daily newspaper reviews but less daunting than scholarly journal articles depend on a handful of critics who write about rarefied films for a general audience. 1001 Movies You Must See before You Die puts a user-friendly mask on the serious thought animating its effort to create a roster of indispensable films and rather belies the erudition of its well-qualified contributors. The chosen 1,001 are chronologically listed, from the surreal sf short A Trip to the Moon (1902) to Russian Ark and chicago (both 2002). This list has been compiled with an eye to historical importance and popular acclaim, which explains the presence of such critically suspect crowd-pleasers as Saturday Night Fever, Top Gun, and E.T. Since Chantal Akerman's nearly four-hour Jeanne Dielman and the Czech psychedelic farce Sedmikrasky (Daisies) also appear, it can't, however, be accused of pandering to popular taste. Attractive design, incorporating stills from most chosen titles, makes the volume a browser's delight as well as a useful guide for casual viewers and film buffs alike. Gordon Flagg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

“1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die is one heavy, fat tome, but it’s a great motivating guide to cinema. After reading one of its engaging, often profound entries on a missed film, you want to run out to Premiere Video and rent it. Best of all, it includes international, silent, animated and recent films such as City of God. And yes, Richard Linklater’s Slacker is here.”


—Dallas Morning News, April 29, 2004





“Instead of simply summarizing the plot, Schneider and his team of experts briefly explain why each film is a must see. … Schneider’s choices are irrefutable. Highly recommended for all film, general public, and academic reference collections.”


— Library Journal, April 15, 2004





“An excellent new film anthology from Barron’s Publishing… 1001 Movies will serve as one of your ultimate movie guides. It presents everything you need to know about the must-see films… For students of cinema, for discerning film buffs, for enthusiastic fans, and for readers who enjoy thumbing through reminiscing over unforgettable screen memories, here’s the place to start reading.”


—The Wave Channel Guide, February 14, 2004





“…the book is a pretty good one, Schneider’s sources are solid… the book is much more reliable that the New York Times book of ‘1,000 Movies Ever Made.’ … illustrations often opt for choice rarities rather than ordinary iconography.”


—Buffalo News, February 22, 2004





“The critical essays that I’ve sampled are concise and intelligent.


Style: *** 3 Stars


Usefulness:*** 3 Stars”


—Charles Matthews, Mercury News, February 29, 2004





“If you’re constantly wondering what to pop into the VCR or DVD player, get this book!”


—The Star, March 8, 2004





“A mammoth-size, newspaper-weight coffee table book celebrating the twentieth century celluloid canon…”


—Gotham, April 2004





“Every essay demonstrates Rosenbaum’s fervent dedication to the cinema and more important that he has the knowledge and insight to support his impassioned opinions. … compiled with an eye to historical importance and popular acclaim. … a useful guide for casual viewers and film buffs alike.”


—Gordon Flagg, Booklist, April 1, 2004



“Packed with color photos throughout, this is eye candy at its best.”


—Booklist, June 2004

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 960 pages
• Publisher: Barron's Educational Series (November 8, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764157019
• ISBN-13: 978-0764157011
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6.5 x 2.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #630,608 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

62 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Caution, February 22, 2005

By	Jarvis Marley "Jarvis Marley" (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews

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.

101 of 111 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Beware the spoilers!, March 22, 2006

By	Blindfish (Lawn Guyland, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die (Hardcover)

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.

49 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great source but a few errors...., January 12, 2005

By	M. DALTON (Brisbane, Queensland Australia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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.