Frida: Bringing Frida Kahlo's Life and Art to Film (Newmarket Pictorial Movebooks) [Hardcover]

Julie Taymor (Author), Selma Hayak (Author)

Book Description

Series: Newmarket Pictorial Moviebook | Publication Date: September 20, 2009

This is the true story of Frida Kahlo and her husband Diego Rivera, the larger-than-life painters who became the most acclaimed artists in Mexican history and whose tempestuous love affair, landmark journeys to America, and outrageous personalities made them legendary. Filmed mainly in Mexico, the movie traces Frida's life from her unbridled high school days to her death at age 47.

This vivid book includes production notes, details on cinematography, set and costume design, and visual effects, music, notes by director Taymor, interviews with the cast, excerpts from books about Frida, reproductions of artwork, a historical timeline, and background sketches on the real figures portrayed in the movie.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Perhaps because it features the vibrant artwork of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, Julie Taymor's Frida: Bringing Frida Kahlo's Life and Art to Film is one of the most aesthetically pleasing film companion books in years. The book's publication coincides with the long awaited release of the film, which stars Salma Hayek as the artist. In her introduction, Taymor, who directed Frida, explains how she condensed 30 years of Kahlo's life into a two-hour film, showed the artist at work, shot the film on location in Mexico and other eye-opening bits about the film. Salma Hayek then offers a brief introduction, which is followed by the illustrated screenplay, with sidebars interspersed that shed light on the characters-notably Kahlo's husband, Diego Rivera-and specific scenes. The book admirably juxtaposes film stills and reproductions of Kahlo's paintings, making this at once a tribute to the film and the life of the great artist.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This illustrated screenplay of the forthcoming Frida offers both an array of set photos and quotes from actors, artists, and others involved in Frida's real and dramatized lives, including the artist herself. The screenplay-adapted from Hayden Herrera's Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo by an uncredited Edward Norton and others-is the focal point of this book, which is being released in conjunction with the Miramax film starring Salma Hayek. Because the book includes both a foreword by Herrera praising director Taymor's translation of her words and Frida's life to the screen and an explanatory introduction by Taymor herself spelling out the steps she took to re-create Frida's physical and mental worlds, the second introduction by Hayek seems a bit unnecessary, although she was apparently the driving force behind the film. Here, as with Kahlo's world, the visual is paramount, so that the photographs of the actors on set help the reader visualize the script. Excerpts from Herrera's book, as well as from other works about both Kahlo and husband Diego Rivera, help give background to their lives and to the paintings reproduced here. A lively accompaniment to Taymor's film and Herrera's book, this illustrated companion is a good addition to film, biography, and art collections.
Rachel Collins, "Library Journal"
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Newmarket Press (September 20, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557045402
• ISBN-13: 978-1557045409
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 8.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #855,961 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Book with Invaluable Content, June 18, 2004

By 

Jan Lisa Huttner - See all my reviews

This review is from: Frida: Bringing Frida Kahlo's Life and Art to Film (Newmarket Pictorial Movebooks) (Hardcover)

Of all of Newmarket's wonderful series of Pictorial Moviebooks, this one is my favorite. The sidebars identifying many of the "real people" who appear in the film are helpful, but the best part is the side-by-side comparison of the paintings & the moments in Frida's life which inspired them. The wedding sequence is especially illuminating: the scene from the shooting script, the stills of Frida [Salma Hayek] examining herself in the mirror in her lace wedding gown, & the picture of the actual wedding painting all combine to reveal Frida's essential self-invention.

If you loved this film, you will definitely want THIS book which supplements BOTH the film & the Herrera biography.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun to simply page through, January 6, 2003

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Frida: Bringing Frida Kahlo's Life and Art to Film (Newmarket Pictorial Movebooks) (Hardcover)

Enhanced with an informative Foreword by Kayden Herrera and with introductions by Julie Taymor and Salma Hayek, Frida: Bringing Frida Kahlo's Life And Art To Film is a superb companion title to Julie Taymor's electrifying and artistic movie "Frida", showcasing the true story of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, the Mexican painters whose acclaimed work and passionate love affair distinguished them during the twentieth century. Featuring full-color photographs on virtually every page which illustrate the screenplay text, as well as interviews with cast and crew members and production notes, Frida is fun to simply page through, a highly recommended addition to academic film libraries, and is a "must-have" acquisition for admirers of the movie celebrating one of the twentieth-century's most remarkable female artists.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for anyone who loved the moive, January 31, 2003

By 

E. Voves (Philly, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Frida: Bringing Frida Kahlo's Life and Art to Film (Newmarket Pictorial Movebooks) (Hardcover)

This book is a visual feast! Great photos and stories
behind the making of the moive...
A must for anyone who loved the moive .

But no mention or photo of Lila Downs???
Did I miss it??

Her fabulous singing is a vitual part of the film!!
I still gave the books five stars....but what gives??