The Whole Equation: A History of Hollywood [Paperback]

David Thomson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 14, 2006

With the same style and insight he brought to his previous studies of American cinema, acclaimed critic David Thomson masterfully evokes the history of America’s love affair with the movies and the tangled history of Hollywood in The Whole Equation.

Thomson takes us from D.W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, and the first movies of mass appeal to Louis B. Mayer, who understood what movies meant to America–and reaped the profits. From Capra to Kidman and Hitchcock to Nicholson, Thomson examines the passion, vanity, calculation and gossip of Hollywood and the films it has given us. This one-volume history is a brilliant and illuminating overview of “the wonder in the dark”–and the staggering impact Hollywood and its films has had on American culture.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Reading David Thomson's new book, The Whole Equation: A History of Hollywood is like listening to a favorite older uncle reminisce about his Hollywood career; it's full of interesting stories of yesteryear, lots of valuable insights, and probably good for you--even if some sections go faster than others. Thomson is an accomplished critic who has written for The New York Times and Salon (among others), and is also the author of several books on the subject of show biz, including The New Biographical Dictionary of Film. In The Whole Equation (a reference to F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel about Hollywood, The Last Tycoon), he attempts to cover "the history of American movies," and "the history of America in the time of movies." To do so, he brings in finance, film theory, and just plain gossip. (For those who haven't heard how Jean Harlow died, prepare to watch the facade of glamour crumble as never before.)

It's an ambitious project to say the least, and the movie business is probably too complex a subject to sum up in 350-plus pages. Often a reader can start a chapter, purportedly on one topic, and find themselves completely off the grid--or at least buried under a lot of words--a few pages later. Like that favorite uncle, Thomson isn't necessarily quick to make his point, nor afraid of straying from his main subject. Nevertheless, many parts of the book are enjoyable and valuable--particularly for those who really want to learn about the history of American filmmaking, and wouldn't mind finding out what Brando got paid for Last Tango in Paris in the process. --Leah Weathersby --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

The "whole equation," a phrase borrowed from F. Scott Fitzgerald's unfinished Hollywood novel, The Last Tycoon, refers to the balancing of financial acumen, artistic aspiration and sociological savvy that movie moguls needed to keep Hollywood flourishing during the Depression. It's also what Thomson (The New Biographical Dictionary of Film) aims to achieve in his idiosyncratic chronicle of American filmmaking. He explores personalities (Louis B. Mayer, David O. Selznick) and specific films (von Stroheim's Greed, Spielberg's Jaws) to explain the 20th century's shifting sensibilities. Thomson addresses seminal effects from the last 100 years—from the ramifications of sound and color to the chilling consequences of the McCarthy hearings—to explain the culture of moviemaking. His writing is lyrical, but his pronouncements hyperbolic. (His ire against psychiatry, manifested in a dislike of Method acting, is particularly pronounced; its influence on an acting style, claims Thomson, "could yet destroy a society.") Thomson is considerably frustrated with current films and what he sees as moviegoers' lowered expectations. His melancholy metaphor for survival in Hollywood is the 1974 film Chinatown, where "the lone seeker of truth is told to shut up at the end." This fascinating, sometimes frustrating love letter to Hollywood doesn't shirk from exposing the blemishes on Thomson's inamorata. 23 photos.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Vintage (February 14, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375701540
• ISBN-13: 978-0375701542
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.9 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #295,820 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A thinking person's companion to a life long love of film, February 11, 2005

By 

Richard E. Hourula (Berkeley, CA. United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Whole Equation: A History of Hollywood (Hardcover)

The Whole Equation is a study in one man's passion for, insight into and knowledge of Hollywood film history. Immediately upon having had the pleasure of hearing David Thomson speak (he was introducing a film that was part of a series inspired by "the Whole Equation") I raced to my nearest bookstore and invested in his latest work. It was money well spent. Thomson is a personable writer whose charm and wit sparkle throughout this book.

He has strong opinions on films and directors that readers will sometimes differ with but maintain a healthy respect for. Thomson backs his attacks with reasons, not the kind of hit and run criticism that some film critics engage in.

"The Whole Equation" is not a straight chronology of Hollywood as Thomson frequently digresses, fast forwards and expands on themes -- always with great results.

There is also a delightful mixture of gossip (how could there not be in a book on Hollywood) which comes across more as history than he-said-she-said. Here is the story of "Chinatown" of Jean Harlow, Irving Thalberg, the black list, Michael Cimino Marlene Dietrich and so much more.

Film lovers we'll be inspired. Inspired to learn even more about the movies and more importantly to want to see particular films whether for the first time or with a new appreciation.

"The Whole Equation" is a thinking person's companion to a life long love of movies.

25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great history of Filmdom-very entertaining, December 8, 2004

By 

David J. Gannon (San Antonio, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Whole Equation: A History of Hollywood (Hardcover)

The Whole equation by David Thomson is basically as historical overview of Hollywood and the American filmmaking industry. Mr. Thomson is well placed to write such a book-his other "credits" include a biography of an 18th century novelist as well as one of Orson Welles, an history of an artic exploration and the all inclusive "The New Biographical Dictionary of Film".

The whole equation is an extremely well written and absorbing account of the film industry including, on one side of the equation, the artistic elements of writing, acting and directing, and on the other side of the equation, the bottom line businessmen-the studio chiefs, the producers, agents and assorted bean counters.

Mr. Thomson does not shine his spotlight only on the success stories. He chronicles the rise and fall of several key talents-some well now, some obscure-through all the various means of descent-failure of inspiration, life-styles of enormous excess, bad career management, overrun ego and the nefarious tyrannies of studio chiefs. He also traces the many arcs of success and the juxtaposition of the two often illustrates how often luck---both good and bad-affects trajectories in Hollywood.

This book has a bit of something for everyone. Although written with a novelistic flair, the book adheres to an historian's discipline. It has the "names" one would expect and interesting biographical datum on many great Hollywood personalities. It does a very nice job of providing a vivid picture of how the film industry operates. The book is both informative and fun to read.

A great book for film junkies.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hooray For Hollywood, June 8, 2005

By 

Randall L. Wilson "Randy Wilson" (San Francisco) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Whole Equation: A History of Hollywood (Hardcover)

First off this is "A History of Hollywood" not "THE History of Hollywood." David Thomson isn't writing the chronological, straight-up, blow-by-blow account of Hollywood movies. "The Whole Equation" is an essay that takes as its question, "are Hollywood films ever art like a Beethoven symphony or a Picasso painting?" He says they are both more and less than that. More because American film captures the tension between wanting to make money and wanting to say something which allows for the unintentional to happen. That serendipity is wonderful when it works which isn't often. Less because there are always artistic compromises as someone is always looking at the budget and thinking about the profits.

And unlike most film critics he is just fine with this tension. His argument is that to understand and appreciate American film, you have to understand that it's always about the money and about the art. That means it is never truly art in any pure way (but is any art truly pure?). To tell you the truth, I don't think the book succeeds that well on that level. He points out various people and their struggles with this dilemma through out the history of American film but he doesn't developed a coherent argument that builds on his initial insight.

For me, that just didn't matter. What makes it a terrific read is that David Thomson knows and loves film. He writes with a adolescent thrill and openness about his subject that makes it fun and poetic. He uses the film "Chinatown" as his framing device and as that is my all-time favorite movie, I was in heaven. He is not a deep thinker but his book crackles with his delight in sensations whether of the movie theater, the audience, the actors, the costumes, the music, all of it. He constantly raises questions and throws out insights that just tumble onto each other until you realize that like watching a film, you must just suspend your disbelief and enjoy the ride.