A Third Face: My Tale of Writing, Fighting, and Filmmaking (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "Hammer!" Hell if I know why that was the first goddamned word that came out of my mouth..." (more)
Key Phrases: naked kiss, forty guns, helluva lot, New York, Big Red One, Park Row (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

" `Hammer!' Hell if I know why that was the first goddamned word that came out of my mouth," writes cult filmmaker Fuller (1911-1997) in his autobiography's opening line. But "hammer" is an apt word for Fuller's abrupt, shocking style. With such classics as Pickup on South Street and Run of the Arrow, Fuller brought seriousness and art to the Hollywood B-movie. "I'm a storyteller," he proclaims, and this straightforward, unsentimental account of his life and substantial career is reflective of his film sensibility. The book details Fuller's early days as a journalist on the crime beat who wrote expos‚s of the Klan and later as a soldier in WWII. During his long career, Fuller wrote and directed 23 films, wrote another 16 and published 11 novels. Famous for his gritty stories with stark plot details-the bald prostitute beating up her pimp in The Naked Kiss; the asylum race riot started by a black man who thinks he's in the KKK in Shock Corridor-Fuller was one of Hollywood's most political filmmakers, and his memoir neatly conflates his artistic and political visions. Of Shock Corridor, he reflects, "It had the subtlety of a sledgehammer. I was dealing with insanity, racism, patriotism, nuclear warfare, and sexual perversion... my madhouse was a metaphor for America." Always energetic and often gossipy-he writes of his odd, intense friendship with Jim Morrison and how Barbara Stanwyck did her own stunts in Forty Guns-Fuller's last work is a joy and an important addition to film and popular culture literature. 171 photos.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Ebullient and cantankerous, director Sam Fuller probably hadmore personality than anyone else in the movie business. It camethrough clearly in his films, particularly in the outrageously lurid,low-budget likes of Shock Corridor and The Naked Kiss.Happily, it is also fully displayed in his wildly entertainingautobiography, which with characteristic excitement recalls breakinginto Hollywood, describes the shooting of his 29 films, and relateshis struggles to continue working on underfunded projects in Europeafter the studio system died in the late 1960s. Fuller's earlier lifewas actually more colorful and exciting than his Hollywood years. At17 he became a crime reporter for a New York tabloid, at which hedeveloped his expertise in sensationalism, and later he took part inthe D-Day landing at Omaha Beach. He always saw himself as astoryteller first--he turned to directing to keep his scripts frombeing butchered--and his final story (he died at 85 in 1997) showsthat his own life was the greatest tale he had to tell. ((ReviewedOctober 1, 2002))Gordon Flagg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 608 pages
• Publisher: Knopf (November 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375401652
• ISBN-13: 978-0375401657
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.6 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #894,141 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Helluva Life!, November 9, 2002

By	S. Berner (Boca Raton, Fl USA) - See all my reviews

Samuel Fuller was, depending on your outlook, either the director of a lot of fun "B" movies, or one of the seminal forces in cinema. Nevertheless (to borrow a word he quotes in the book), it cannot be argued that he didn't lead one of the most exciting lives of the 20th century! His portraits of America in the 20s & 30s, Hollywood (and the world) in the 40s through the end of the century (or, close enough-he died in 1997) are brilliant, hilarious, moving, frivolous, and profound portraits of who we ALL are, and how we got that way. If you're a film buff, read this book! If you're an history buff, read this book! And, if you just want to read one of the most entertaining, enlightening, pieces of (forgive me, Mr. Fuller!) literature, READ THIS BOOK!!!!!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A helluva yarn of a life. Go have a copy!, January 14, 2004

By	Giancarlo Nicoli "Pharmacist and Publisher" (Appiano Gentile, close to Como Lake, Italy) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

It was someone else's review that sparked my interest in this book. I even didn't know who this Mr. Fuller was!
Life is short, and I always look for suggestions from elder people: especially those who lived their life with passion and at full speed.

"If there's one reason to recount my personal history, something inspirational that I'd like my life experiences to offer you, the reader, be you young or young at heart, then it would be to encourage you to persist with all your heart and energy in what you want to achieve - no matter how crazy your dreams seems to others. Believe me, you will prevail over all the naysayers (...) who are telling you it can't be done!"

And inspirational indeed it is!
I warmly suggest you to read this book because it is well written, because the yarn makes sense, because it is enthralling, because it tells you a life full of energy, because it'll give you relief when you are in pain, hope when you're dreaming a better future, reasons and support while you fight for your ideals - like Fuller did, and not just in a metaphorical sense - and of course, because it's the author's true experience (i.e. it can be done - don't listen to the naysayers!).

It is possible to roughly divide this book in three parts: part one is when Fuller was able to work as a reporter in New York; part two is the tale of Fuller that chose to volunteer into the Second World War, infantry, that makes about thirty percent of an army and suffers eighty percent of its losses.
Third part (it makes up for more than half the book) tells of Fuller back from the war, when he had quite a successful career as a film director.

I'd just like to quote excerpts from the book, I think this is the best way to lure you into reading it!

A dialogue between Sam Fuller and Hank Wales: " 'Let's you and I write a movie together!' said Hank. 'Got any good stories?'
We both laughed. With all his amazing experiences, Hank Wales was asking me for a yarn. I was thrilled that such a remarkable guy wanted to collaborate with me. But I had a book to finish.
'Look, Hank,' I said, 'I'm writing the great American novel!'
'Everyone is writing the great American novel, Sammy. Forget about greatness. Let's have some fun.' "

"One guy I couldn't forget was Griff, who'd barely survived a land mine explosion. When I first got back to the States, I went down to Washington, D.C., and visited Griff at a veterans' hospital there. He was a basket case, no legs, no arms. Only mumbled words came out of his lips. Believe it or not, we had a wonderful reunion. Griff's eyes sparkled when he saw me. He laughed when I recalled some of the funny shit we'd gone through together in the war. I put my arm around his neck and kissed him, happy to find him alive. I couldn't keep the tears back. Griff didn't want me feeling sorry for him. He was born optimist and refused to accept my pity. Or anyone's. I was trembling when I left the hospital that day.

Griff's invincible spirit would always be an inspiration. I will take his optimism with me to my grave. Life is too precious and far too short to get hooked on negativity. In my scripts and stories, you'll find a helluva lot of characters named Griff. It was my way of saying thanks for his will to survive."

"Young writers and directors, seize your audience (...) as soon as the credits hit the screen and hang on to them! Smack people right in the face with the passion of your story! Make the public love your characters of hate them, but (...) never - never! - leave them indifferent!"

"You young people sitting around watching the (...) television! (...) Go see the world! Throw yourselves into different cultures! You will be always be wealthy if you count your riches, as I do, in adventures, full of life-changing experiences."

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars We need a guy like Fuller to come out of the sky, January 24, 2003

By	brian loatman (New York) - See all my reviews

We need a guy like Fuller to come back in this age of corporate greed and fascism. That's the first thing that came to mind as I ventured into the first few pages of this memoir. I myself am a filmmaker, and have been moved by Jean Renoir's autobiography, MY LIFE MY FILMS and I find this to be it's American partner. The sheer sense of freedom and protection for democracy which Sam Fuller speaks of when describing his actions and decisions throughout his career inspired me greatly. He is the example of a man who refused to be a governement stooge when his film always showed both sides of the issue, and I believe that anyone who is making films now should read this book to see that they don't have to make the people with the money happy. Where are the Sam Fullers of the world now where have they all gone. His message has gotten to me.