Peckinpah: The Western Films--A Reconsideration [Hardcover]

Paul Seydor (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1996

The book that re-established Peckinpah's reputation is now thoroughly revised and updated! When critics hailed the 1995 re-release of Sam Peckinpah's masterpiece, "The Wild Bunch", it was a recognition of Paul Seydor's earlier claim that this was a milestone in American film, perhaps the most important since Citizen Kane. "Peckinpah: The Western Films" first appeared in 1980, when the director's reputation was at low ebb. The book helped lead a generation of readers and filmgoers to a full and enduring appreciation of Peckinpah's landmark films, locating his work in the central tradition of American art that goes all the way back to Emerson, Hawthorne, and Melville. In addition to a new section on the personal significance of "The Wild Bunch to Peckinpah", Seydor has added to this expanded, revised edition a complete account of the successful, but troubled, efforts to get a fully authorized director's cut released. He describes how an initial NC-17 rating of the film by the Motion Picture Association of America's ratings board nearly aborted the entire project. He also adds a great wealth of newly discovered biographical detail that has surfaced since the director's death, and includes a new chapter on Noon Wine, credited with bringing Peckinpah's television work to a fitting resolution, and preparing his way for "The Wild Bunch". This edition stands alone in offering full treatment of all versions of Peckinpah's Westerns. It also includes discussion of all fourteen episodes of Peckinpah's television series, "The Westerner", and a full description of the versions of "Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid", now (or formerly) in circulation, including an argument that the label "director's cut" on the version in release by Turner is misleading. Additionally, the book's final chapter has been substantially rewritten, and now includes new information about Peckinpah's background and sources.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"In this new, expanded, and handsomely printed edition of his 1980 study, Seydor demonstrates that any discussion of Peckinpah's films has to be contained in both the context of the politics of Hollywood and the greater American literary tradition... For any student of American film or of American Western literature, this volume is a must. It's hard to imagine trying to teach a film course-not merely a course in western film but in any film-without it... Exceedingly well written and thoroughly documented...[this book is] a thorough study of one American artist's work, his pain, and his incredible contribution to our culture." - Clay Reynolds, Western American Literature "Seydor in his brilliant book makes us realize how movies such as The Wild Bunch or Ride the High Country emerged not so much from a single, fertile imagination as from the dusty crossroads of America's quintessential mythic tale and Peckinpah's own peculiar unconscious. The Western seemed made for Peckinpah... Seydor is an academic with a doctorate and a film editor with impressive feature credentials. He brings both experiences to bear in this thoughtful, elegantly written book. " - Gregg Bachman, Creative Screenwriting "Reading Seydor's book is galvanizing; it makes the reader a devout believer in the power of the medium, convincing him or her that celluloid running through a projector's gate can beam great art onto a white wall." DGA Magazine "Exceedingly well written and thoroughly documented ..[A] thorough study of one American artist's work, his pain and his contribution to our culture." - Express News, San Antonio, TX ADVANCE PRAISE "The new edition of Peckinpah: The Western Films-A Reconsideration is literally incomparable-the only study of the works of a major film director by a critic who writes both as a former academician with a Ph.D. in literature and as a voting member of that far more exclusive National Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. After all these years, this is more than ever a trail-blazing book, required reading for lovers of film and literature, and for literary theorists as well as cinema theorists." - Hershel Parker, author of Melville: A Biography, Volume 1, 1819-1855 "The most comprehensive and penetrating critical study of Peckinpah's work." - Variety"Stands as a shining example of how a single book from a small publisher can have a profound and lasting impact on our culture. The most penetrating study of Peckinpah, as well as one of the finest pieces of film criticism ever written... It taught me how to look at movies." - From the Foreword by David Weddle, author of If They Move, Kill 'Em: The Life and Times of Sam Peckinpah REVIEWS FROM EARLIER EDITION "First-rate... Its enthusiasm for its subject is among its prime values, for it teaches us to understand, or to understand anew, an artist we may have overlooked, or dismissed, or misinterpreted." - Frank McConnell, Quarterly Review of Film Studies "Solid and sophisticated... Seydor writes of Peckinpah's films in finer detail than anyone else has." - Ernest Callenbach, Film Quarterly "At a time when Sam Peckinpah's reputation is scraping bottom, Paul Seydor's critical study bravely asserts Peckinpah's importance...A valuable study of a major auteur director." - Choice "This intensively researched, admiring, but never merely worshipful study of the westerns of Sam Peckinpah is one of the best tributes any director has yet received." - Booklist "Important... Interestingly ties Peckinpah into the 'cult of masculinity' so indigenous to American culture and literature." - Library Journal "Few critics have documented the agonies of Hollywood moviemaking as scarily well as Paul Seydor does in Peckinpah: The Western Films." - Michael Sragow, Los Angeles Herald Examiner "An exceptional job of explaining the central role of violence in [Peckinpah's] films." - Michael T. Isenberg, The Midwest Review "The book is rich in its insight into the mythology of the West, and the author is most illuminating when he discusses the exploitation of these myths by Peckinpah in developing the favorite themes of regeneration and individualism. Seydor's accomplishment is considerable." - Timothy P. Donovan, Journal of the West "A long overdue tribute to the screenwriter-director of action western movies... An exceptionally well-made biography of an astute writer-director that will stand as a definitive analysis." - David Winston York, West Coast Review of Books "Six of the director's movies, unified by themes, feelings and ideas, are incisively appraised by Paul Seydor. In-depth interviews bring out Peckinpah's complex personality, his assertive views on film art and his impatience with outsiders' perceptions of his style." - George L. George, American Cinematographer "A masterful critic ... correctly assesses Peckinpah's stature as a major artist and details the unbelievably shoddy treatment afforded his films by hostile producers and studio hit men." - Grover Lewis, New West "A highly literate work which will provide Peckinpah fans with more arguments in support of his brilliance." - Mark Busby, Western American Literature "Seydor's analysis of The Wild Bunch ... is one of the finest analyses of a film that I have ever read, and his chapters on Peckinpah's other westerns are equally brilliant." - Kenneth Seib, Fresno Bee "Sam Peckinpah is, arguably, the greatest American film maker to emerge since the Second World War. Paul Seydor's work chronicles and critiques his Western films, unearths new material on his early years, and follows Peckinpah's unsteady course through the wilderness of Hollywood. Seydor argues for this unique director's place alongside artists the magnitude of Melville and Hemingway-both a powerful premise and a compelling reading experience." - Walter Hill "A great critical study of a great filmmaker. Seydor's new revision of his own book is a must read for anyone interested in Peckinpah, the Western, or American film." - Ron Shelton, film writer/director

Product Details

• Hardcover: 410 pages
• Publisher: University of Illinois Press; Subsequent edition (October 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0252022688
• ISBN-13: 978-0252022685
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,739,423 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A thoughtful, intellegent look at an underrated director, June 11, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Peckinpah: The Western Films--A Reconsideration (Hardcover)

This is, quite simply, the finest book on film theory and analysis that I have ever read. I am a great admirer of Peckinpah's work, especially his westerns, so I am very happy to see a serious consideration of his work.

Mr. Seydor writes with great insight, intellegence, and with a thorough understanding of this neglected and under-appreciated director.
Too many people identify Sam Peckinpah as a director of blood and guts movies containing violence for the sake of violence.

Mr. Seydor shows the themes and emotions that saturate Peckinpah's work and tells us that this is a director of immense talent and passion. He also lets you know that he directed other westerns besides "The Wild Bunch".

I hope that someday Mr Seydor will write a book about Peckinpah's non-western films as well. But in the mean time, this book is perfect for movie addicts like myself, but is also very accessable to the casual film fan as well.

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential work on Sam Peckinpah and the Western film genre, May 10, 2010

By 

Chris "Chris906" (Biloxi, MS United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Peckinpah: THE WESTERN FILMS--A RECONSIDERATION (Illini books) (Paperback)

This excellent book by Paul Seydor is informative and just plain fun to read discussion of Sam Peckinpah's Western TV and film work. I enjoyed Seydor's discussions of the TV work that Peckinpah did on among others 'Gunsmoke', 'The Rifleman', and finally his own show 'The Westerner' with Brian Keith (which I wish was available on DVD for viewing enjoyment).

His major Western films are discussed in exquisite and fascinating detail. Discussed by Seydor are Peckinpah's first feature, 'The Deadly Companions' (also needs to be put on DVD in America), the elegiac and wonderful 'Ride the High Country', the flawed but fascinating 'Major Dundee', the interesting TV movie work by Peckinpah 'Noon Wine' (inexplicably not available on DVD), his most famous film 'The Wild Bunch', the enjoyable 'Ballad of Cable Hogue' and Peckinpah's interesting, intriguing take on 'Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid'.

Seydor illuminates these films with keen insight. His discussions of all of these films are excellent. I really enjoyed the discussions on 'High Country', 'Dundee', 'Pat Garrett' and the 'Wild Bunch'. Seydor talks about the restoration of 'The Wild Bunch' in the '90s. This ended up being controversial because for a time the film was going to receive an X or NC-17 rating. Seydor discusses all of this in a fair and interesting manner. He really makes you want to get the DVDs out again and look at these films for the umpteenth time. That is a sign of excellent film analysis.

I hope someday that a companion book on the films done by Peckinpah not discussed by Seydor in this book could be done. I would especially like someone to discuss the best of the rest films, 'Straw Dogs', 'Junior Bonner', 'The Getaway', and 'Cross of Iron' in such an intelligent manner as Seydor did in his work.

I highly recommend checking this book out. Peckinpah has been lucky in that the caliber of authors (Seydor, Marshall Fine, David Weddle, Garner Simmons, Stephen Prince, and Neil Fulwood) working on his life and films have done such an excellent job.

A+

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gift, February 20, 2009

By 

Toady (Northern California) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Peckinpah: THE WESTERN FILMS--A RECONSIDERATION (Illini books) (Paperback)

I purchased this book as a gift for a family member who is very into the Civil War era and US History in general. He specifically requested this book so I assume it is well worth the money.