The Proprietor: The Screenplay and the Story Behind the Film (Newmarket Pictorial Moviebooks) [Hardcover]

Ismail Merchant (Author), Jeanne Moreau (Foreword)

Book Description

Series: Newmarket Pictorial Moviebooks | Publication Date: July 21, 1999

The complete screenplay, photos, and Merchant's own account of the making of this special film. 24 colour photos.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This book is a testament to the value of friendship in the creative process--passionate friendship, trust, and gernerosity. -- Paul Theroux

Product Details

• Hardcover: 213 pages
• Publisher: Newmarket Press; 1 edition (July 21, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 155704306X
• ISBN-13: 978-1557043061
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,272,402 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Magical Process of Making Film, January 19, 2000

By 

S. Antonio Arch (Toronto & Grand Cayman) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Proprietor: The Screenplay and the Story Behind the Film (Newmarket Pictorial Moviebooks) (Hardcover)

One of the most overused words in my vocabulary has always been "process". I think this must be because it seems that all sorts of works from all sorts of genres require their respective processes so as to be able to grow, evolve, and develop; as do all sorts of people. The finished product may be a published book, a film, a healed person. Thanks to process (there I go again) the finished product is often the result of some transformation from a spark of intuition to story and dialogue to the the finished work.

This book is not only a short chronicle of of the process (this time Merchant did not have a house to work around as in Howards End, but the face, stature and unmistakeable voice of the legendary Jeanne Moreau) but also a sort of sample of the finished film, its script. Not only is the reader treated to intimate details of the obstacles at every step of this particular process (!) but the triumph at the end. The book, script and film are thus rather special. They are a peek into a world of creation that we, the movie audiences, are rarely given access to. If only there were more accounts such as these written around such special films.