23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
James Agee, an inspiring critic, June 16, 2001
This review is from: Agee on Film: Criticism and Comment on the Movies (Modern Library Movies) (Paperback)
Ever wonder what causes a movie reviewer to *become* a movie reviewer? When I was a ten-year-old kid just getting into classic movie comedies, I went to the library and checked out the book AGEE ON FILM solely because it had references to Charlie Chaplin and W.C. Fields. Thus was my introduction to high-quality film criticism.
James Agee made his reputation writing sterling movie reviews for Time and The Nation magazines in the 1940's. Among other glories, he wrote a much-heralded essay titled "Comedy's Greatest Era" that helped to bring silent-comedy icons (most notably Harry Langdon) out of mothballs and caused them to be re-viewed and discussed seriously among film historians. He later went on to work on the screenplays of a couple of gems titled The African Queen and Night of the Hunter.
Unfortunately, many people who regard the critics Pauline Kael and Stanley Kauffmann have either forgotten Agee's work entirely or have assigned his own work to mothballs. But among the faithful are film director Martin Scorsese, who serves as editor of the "Modern Library: The Movies" series of film books. The series has recently reissued the AGEE ON FILM book, and re-reading Agee's work (or reading it for the first time, if you're lucky enough) proves that film criticism can make for reading material as compelling as any fictional novel.
Agee passes the acid test for any film critic: Even if you don't agree with him, his writing is so lively that you can't help enjoying it. His work ranges from three separate columns (three weeks' worth, in print terms) to Chaplin's much-maligned (at the time) MONSIEUR VERDOUX, to the most concise, funniest review ever: Reviewing a musical potboiler titled YOU WERE MEANT FOR ME, Agee replied in four simple words, "That's what *you* think."
If you want to see what high-caliber movie criticism meant in the pre-Siskel & Ebert days, engross yourself in this sprawling book. It'll make you appreciate the decades before every newspaper, newsletter, and Internet site had its own minor-league deconstructionist of Hollywood blockbusters.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
More than we ever deserved . . ., May 11, 2000
This review is from: Agee on Film: Criticism and Comment on the Movies (Modern Library Movies) (Paperback)
James Agee wrote film criticism in America at a time when the American film industry hardly deserved his attention. His celebrations of silent film comedy, of Preston Sturges, of John Huston [for whom he later wrote the script for The African Queen], and of the handful of worthy foreign films that he managed to see are what make this volume worth reading. Besides Agee's beautiful prose and above all his compassion. Interestingly, Agee was a fan of Frank Capra's comedies (It Happened One Night) and bemoaned the director's decent into serious social films (Mr Smith Goes To Washington, Meet John Doe). His negative review of It's a Wonderful Life, which has never been in print since it appeared in 1946, reveals the extent to which Agee was perhaps too far ahead of his time, and even of ours.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Informative and entertaining for movie lovers, April 4, 2000
This review is from: Agee on Film: Criticism and Comment on the Movies (Modern Library Movies) (Paperback)
Agee on Film, part of Martin Scorsese's wonderful new series of great film books from the past, is a really enjoyable read. It contains a lot of interesting reviews of classic Hollywood films by an articulate, witty writer, who himself wrote the screenplays to some great films, like Night of the Hunter. I love the way that the essays in this book are both thoughtful and direct. He has important things to say about what some films suggest about human nature and society, but at other times he's quick and to the point. Agee writes at the beginning that he thinks everyone is an "amateur" when it comes to films, because what matters the most is not what you know but how a movie affects you; I like that quality in him. He isn't so pretentious that he can't admit when a movie just doesn't move him. He writes in a really down-to-earth way, but his reviews aren't simplistic or rushed, like many of the reviews I read today. Some of my favorite parts of this book are the essays where he quickly gives his take on a bunch of films, writing funny though sometimes harsh one-line quips (for example: "several tons of dynamite were set off in this movie, none of it under the right people"). This book is especially informative and entertaining for movie fans, but also would be useful as instruction on writing about art. Really, though, it should be fun to read for just about anyone.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
