The Playboy Interviews: The Directors [Hardcover]

Stephen Randall (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 26, 2006 | Series: Playboy Interviews

The best movies speak in a universal language, communicating effortlessly on both the emotional and the intellectual levels. While there have been many great films, only a few directors have achieved such facility with the filmmaking medium. In this collection of remarkably candid interviews, seventeen of the screen's most widely acclaimed and creative filmmakers discuss what drives and inspires them. These revealing, thought-provoking and highly personal interviews, possible only in Playboy's open forum, range from Roman Polanski's thoughts on the murder of his wife in the Manson Family massacre to Oliver Stone's frank discussions about the challenges he faced in creating his memorable films. Includes interviews with Orson Welles, Billy Wilder, Stanley Kubrick, Clint Eastwood, Francis Ford Coppola, David Mamet, Spike Lee and the Coen brothers, among others.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. For those who read Playboy magazine "strictly for the articles," Stephen Randall and the editors of the legendary men's magazine have thoughtfully compiled sixteen of the magazine's best interviews with movie directors (sans playmates). Ranging from Orson Welles and Federico Fellini to Quentin Tarantino and the Coen brothers, the lengthy, unpredictable interviews prove compelling throughout. Eric Norden's conversation with Stanley Kubrick begins with a discussion of 2001: A Space Odyssey and quickly veers into the nature of God and the meaning of life. The centerpiece of Larry DuBois' 1971 conversation with Roman Polanski is a wrenching discussion of the director's experience dealing with the murder of his wife Sharon Tate and their friends by the Manson family. Elvis Mitchell's 1991 interview with Spike Lee sparkles; Mitchell engages Lee in a spirited and multifaceted discussion of the state of race relations, as well as Lee's often contentious relationship with the press and his industry peers. Since the interviews have no length restriction, interviewers are able to probe deep into their subjects and allow them to ramble expansively. While some of the material is dated, most of the interviews were conducted during particularly fertile periods for their subjects, resulting in a detailed snapshot of where these directors were at pivotal career moments.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

The latest book of Playboy interviews (long considered the gold standard for in-depth discussion with leading cultural figures) contains 17 talks with filmmakers, from Billy Wilder in 1963 to Quentin Tarantino in 2003. Other subjects include Ingmar Bergman, Francis Ford Coppola, Stanley Kubrick, Spike Lee, Martin Scorsese, and Orson Welles, with Clint Eastwood and Oliver Stone featured twice in interviews conducted decades apart. The discussions' seriousness belies Playboy's salacious reputation; even Federico Fellini, known for the sex in his movies, avoids prurience. Serious cineastes may be disappointed that the pieces offer less on individual movies than on filmmaking in general and personality-driven anecdotes. Their digressions, however, often fascinate, from Stone on his harrowing experiences as a Vietnam grunt to Roman Polanski on his wife's grisly murder by Charles Manson's acolytes. What comes through in nearly all 17 is the strong drive of these artists in relation to their work; as Robert Altman puts it, "All I want to do is what I'm doing. What else would I do?" Gordon Flagg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Hardcover: 300 pages
• Publisher: M Press; 1 edition (September 26, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1595820280
• ISBN-13: 978-1595820280
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #996,580 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great insight into the mind of some of the world's greatest directors., October 24, 2010

By 

J. Spence "J. Spence" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Playboy Interviews: The Directors (Hardcover)

This isn't book about how to make films but a great book about the mind of great filmmakers. These in-depth interviews not only dissect the directors' best and worst films, but they also offer a glimpse into what makes these directors tick and how their views of the world helped shape their most memorable projects. A great read for any film fan who wants to learn more about these famous filmmakers directly from their own words. A more honest perspective on these directors then anything you may hear in the commentary and special features of any DVD.