Books I Read and Films I Watched in September 2023

Only two books this month, probably because I watched so many movies. 

Lord of a Shattered Land by Howard Andrew Jones (Baen Books, 2023) 

An excellent book that reminded me of old school historical adventures mixed with sword and sorcery. My full review from last month: We Learn by Writing: Lord of a Shattered Land by Howard Andrew Jones

Cinema Speculation by Quentin Tarantino (Harper Collins, 2022) 

Reading this felt a little like having director Quentin Tarantino in my living room rambling on about films. If that sounds cool, you’ll probably like this book. If not, you’ve been warned. I loved it. While quite a lot of movies are discussed, he focuses on the ones he grew up watching in the 1970s. Of the sixteen chapters in the book, thirteen of them are devoted to specific films. He also discusses a number of other films within those chapters though. Throughout the book he mixes autobiographical anecdotes with background information and film criticism. 

Rewatching or watching some of the movies for the first time, and then reading the corresponding chapters added to my enjoyment of the book. I think it also helped that I like most of the films he discusses, especially Bullitt with Steve McQueen and Rolling Thunder with William Devane, Tommy Lee Jones, and Linda Haynes. Tarantino loves movies, has strong opinions, and tends to ramble, but he does it all with passion. This was a fun read. 

Here are the movies he devotes chapters to:

Bullitt (1968)

I watched this years ago and loved it. It’s convoluted but Steve McQueen does a good job portraying a calm and cool police detective. The car chase scene through San Francisco is amazing, both crazy and suspenseful. 

Dirty Harry (1971) 

Directed by Don Siegal and starring Clint Eastwood. I rewatched this one after first watching it years and years ago. Great cast, action scenes, and some great lines, but the second half didn’t hold up for me. It just gets too over the top towards the end. 

Deliverance (1972) 

I read the book and then watched this before reading the chapter in Cinema Speculation.  Excellent book and excellent film adaptation, but very dark. 

The Getaway (1972) 

Based on the novel by Jim Thompson. I watched this one about two years ago. I didn’t care for the book at all but I liked the film a lot. Steve McQueen and Ali McGraw had good chemistry (off screen as well it turns out…) and I liked the changes the film made to the book.

The Outfit (1973)

Based on one of the Parker crime novels by Richard Stark aka Donald Westlake. This is also one I watched just recently. Not a perfect adaptation but pretty darn close. Tarantino considers this film the best Parker adaptation. 

 

Sisters (1973)  

An early film directed by Brian DePalma starring a very young Margot Kidder. Also watched just recently. I like it but not as much as some of his later films. I liked the nods to Alfred Hitchcock. 

Daisy Miller (1974) 

Based on the book by Henry James, directed by Peter Bogdanovich and starring Cybill Shepherd. I didn’t watch this one. It sounds interesting but it's not high on my list.

Taxi Driver (1976) 

Directed by Martin Scorsese, starring Robert De Niro, with a script by Paul Schrader. I watched this years and years ago and I plan to rewatch. 

Rolling Thunder (1977) 

I watched this the first time a few years ago and just rewatched it. I liked it even more the second time. This also has a script by Paul Schrader but according to Tarantino, William Devane’s screenwriter friend Heywood Gould rewrote parts of it as they thought that the original script was much too dark. It worked for me as some of the scenes added by Gould were my favorites. 

Paradise Alley (1978) 

A sports drama directed, written by, and starring Sylvester Stallone that takes place in 1940s Hell's Kitchen, New York. I plan to watch. 

Escape from Alcatraz (1979) 

Directed by Don Siegal and starring Clint Eastwood. Another one I watched years and years ago.

Hardcore (1979)

Written and directed by Paul Schrader and starring George C. Scott. I’m familiar with it but have never watched it. 

The Funhouse (1981)

A horror film directed by Tobe Hooper. I plan to watch and then read the novelization by Dean Koontz which has extra background and characterization.  

Watching Films

Reading Cinema Speculation got me in a movie watching mood and I really wound up watching a lot this month. After watching and rewatching some of the films discussed in the book, I started watching the early films of Alfred Hitchcock. I watched a number of his later films when I was a university student but the only one I remember well is Psycho. 

His really early films aren’t as polished as his later films but there’s evidence of his genius from the beginning, and it’s been interesting seeing how he grows as a director. So far of his early films my favorites are Shadow of a Doubt (1943) and Notorious (1946). Both are so dark and so well written and directed. I got so caught up with his films that I added a Hitchcock list on my Letterboxd page:

‎Alfred Hitchcock , a list of films by JimReddy • Letterboxd

Currently Reading 

I didn’t finish many books this month but I’m still reading. My interest in movies has me reading three film related books now.

Once Upon a Time In Hollywood by Quentin Tarantino (Harper Perennial, 2021)

I love the movie and have had this on the shelf since it was released. It’s interesting so far as it’s not a typical movie novelization. Some scenes are in a different order, some scenes have been left out, and lots of scenes that weren't in the movie have been added. 

The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929 - 1968 by Andrew Sarris (Da Capo Press, 1996) First published in 1968.

This book includes over 200 entries on film directors by film critic Andrew Sarris. Also included are his two essays on auteur theory. His essays helped raise the awareness of the role of the film director in a time when the producer was given more credit. I had heard of the theory before but never knew the details. I learned that the theory began in France with French film critics, including Francois Truffaut before he became a director himself, and that it considers directors as the “author” of their works, putting their unique creative stamps on their films. 

Sarris ranks directors and the ones that don’t make his “Pantheon” category are regulated to lesser categories. It’s all rather subjective but it’s been interesting to read so far. He has good things to say about two of my favorite directors, Budd Boetticher and Alfred Hitchcock. I recently watched Boetticher’s Ranown Series westerns with Randolph Scott and loved them. It was interesting to learn that Sarris was singing the praises of Hitchcock at a time when he was not as well regarded as today and just considered another commercial director. Which leads to the next book…

Hitchcock/Truffaut Revised Edition by François Truffaut (Simon & Schuster, 1985) Originally published in 1966 and revised after Hitchcock’s death to include his final films. 

I’ve been dipping into this while watching Hitchcock’s films. This book is amazing. It’s based on fifty hours of conversations the two directors had over a week about all of Hitchcock’s work. Included are tons of stills from the films as well as photographs from the interviews. 

I learned that this book had a big part of establishing Hitchcock’s reputation as a director and master of suspense. Having never known a time when Hitchcock wasn’t considered a great director this was a surprise to me. It makes sense in hindsight of course, but it was eye opening. 

Thank you Patrick for making me aware of this book! 

Next Month

I’ll be continuing my journey through Hitchcock’s early films before moving on to his later films. Hopefully I’ll get some reading done too.