You Gotta See This: More Than 100 of Hollywood's Best Reveal and Discuss Their Favorite Films [.exe] [Mass Market Paperback]

Cindy Pearlman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 30, 2007

Everyone has a favorite movie - even movie stars themselves. In "You Gotta See This", veteran entertainment reporter Cindy Pearlman gets the scoop on the top movie picks of Hollywood's entertainment elite. Through over one hundred interviews with actors, writers, and directors, Pearlman discovers the eclectic - and sometimes surprising - tastes of the people who make the movies we love. From Bruce Willis on "Dr. Strangelove" to Jim Carrey on "Network", "You Gotta See This" is a compulsively readable, star-studded tribute to the movies.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

What is your favorite movie of all time? This is the question Pearlman, senior entertainment writer for the New York Times Syndicate, asked hundreds of Hollywood heavy hitters over the past two years, resulting in this collection of more than 100 incisive interviews with actors, screenwriters and directors. High points include David Cronenberg explaining why Fellini's La Dolce Vita remains his perennial favorite ("How many modern directors deserve to be adjectives?") and Julianne Moore admitting "there's nothing I love better than a scary movie" in her discussion of Rosemary's Baby. The collection also unearths the inspiration that set some on the path to stardom: Jennifer Lopez says that West Side Story left her "in that dark theater crying because here was my proof that my people could sing, dance, and act," while Johnny Depp fell for The Wizard of Oz because he "wanted to have a tornado sweep me up and take me away from the life I was living as a teenager." This slim book's brilliance lies in its numerous reminders that even stars are movie fans, too; it should hold great interest for cineastes hoping to expand their horizons and average pop culture junkies alike.
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About the Author

Cindy Pearlman is an entertainment journalist, this is her first book.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Plume (January 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0452288231
• ISBN-13: 978-0452288232
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,819,872 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars "Gotta See Movies" Fluff Piece!, November 11, 2008

By 

Michael OConnor "Wordsmith" (Wausau, WI USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: You Gotta See This: More Than 100 of Hollywood's Best Reveal and Discuss Their Favorite Films (Mass Market Paperback)

Soliciting favorite movie choices from Hollywood types may have seemed a nifty idea but, judging from YOU GOTTA SEE THIS, nifty ideas don't always result in great books. Or even good books.

The title page of Cindy Pearlman's book states that "more than 100 of Hollywood's best reveal and discuss their favorite films." I have several problems with that statement. First of all, I don't know I'd class Spencer Breslin, Fran Drescher, Naveen Andrews, Chris Klein, Kimberly Elise, Fenton Bailey, etc. as Hollywood's best. Second, I thought the word 'discuss' meant to talk about something in some depth. Many of the comments in this book are pretty skimpy; often just a couple of sentences. A few are barely coherent. Then too many of the respondents talk more about where they were and/or the effect that 'special film' had on them rather than discussing the movie itself. The book almost reads like tape-recorded, 'snatch-and-grab,' curbside conversations Pearlman had with Bruce Willis, Jennifer Lopez, Vin Diesel, Jet Li, et al.

YOU GOTTA SEE THIS would have made an OK magazine article but as a book, it's fluff.

An optional purchase.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars fun, light volume for reading about your favorite stars' favorite films, October 19, 2007

By 

Magic Man (Brigadoon) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: You Gotta See This: More Than 100 of Hollywood's Best Reveal and Discuss Their Favorite Films (Mass Market Paperback)

Cindy Pearlman interviewed 135 film directors, producers, and stars, asking them each the same question: "What is your favorite film of all time?" The result is a paperback encyclopedia, referenced alphabetically by star, of classic (and not-so-classic) films. Each entry consists of a few paragraphs from the star describing why a film is her favorite, followed by a short description of the film and of the star. The entries span a broad range of personalities, from Tommy Lee Jones and Helena Bonham Carter to Martin Scorcese and Chris Columbus. Young stars (like AnnaSophia Robb) and television actors (America Ferrera) also feature.

Some of the choices are surprising: Julianne Moore's favorite is Rosemary's Baby, and Queen Latifah includes Blacula in her list. Three different stars list The Wizard of Oz, and Dr. Strangelove comes up repeatedly. Sometimes the stars' comments touch on deeper issues, such as Tim Allen's remark on the relative shallowness of comedy* (his favorite is Seven Samurai) or Sanaa Lathan's observation on the complete lack of black people (except as maids) in her own favorite oldies. The introduction also includes a couple of gems, such as Jodie Foster's flat refusal to answer the question: "It's like asking which arm I like better... I just can't even go there."

I found this on the discount shelf at my local bookstore, picked it up, and enjoyed it thoroughly. It's not a great book to read straight through (I did) since the structure of each entry is identical and occasional Pearlman inserts an insufferable joke (the bio of Elijah Wood calls him a "hard hobbit to break"; yes, it does). But it's given me dozens of ideas to add to my To See list (marked "2C" all through the margins of my copy).

* Allen needs to see the exceedingly entertaining French film Moliere, wherein the playwright claims there are no important comedies, to which his lover responds, Then write them!

1.0 out of 5 stars Could have used a fact checker, September 5, 2010

By 

Cyn D - See all my reviews

This review is from: You Gotta See This: More Than 100 of Hollywood's Best Reveal and Discuss Their Favorite Films (Kindle Edition)

While I get that this is just candy for your brain, given the time I'm sure it took to compile this information one would think Ms Pearlman could have taken the time to check her facts. Scout's brother's name in "To Kill a Mockingbird" is not "Jim". Judy Garland did not sing "I'll be Home for Christmas" in "Meet me in St Louis".

I stopped reading this book because the idea that I actually paid for something so sloppily put together made me want to just throw it away.