Making Movies

Interesting insofar as Lumet so carefully considers every aspect of his films, and then fills you in on what he was thinking, how he achieved that effect when it succeeded, and where he thinks he went wrong in the cases in which his movies didn't work.

There is wisdom in the first quarter, irrespective of the movie-making project; it's decent management or art-creation advice. The back three-quarters, though, is pretty locked into the movies themselves, and depending on your excitement about specific movies (Long Day's Journey, Dog Day Afternoon, 12 Angry Men and Network are all thoroughly spelunked), or his filmography as a whole, you might find your interest waning rapidly on technical discussions of lighting those. Even if you do like show more those movies a lot (as I do), there is discussion of how to handle actors, but nothing specific about any of them, so if you're curious how Ned Beatty's insane short scene in Network came to be so thunderously intense, no luck for you; it isn't even mentioned.

For '70s[1] movie fans I could see it being considered essential. It just isn't for me.
______________________

[1] Oh, and also, he admits/brags about hauling off and slapping an actress at one point, in order to have her performance be "more real." Not a great way to get me on one's side. show less

A wonderful overview of the film-making process, full of practical info and great anecdotes from an experienced man-of-the-trade. It's also very well written, leading from the technical information to the personal process seamlessly. And it makes you want to watch all Lumet's films!

Great book that has a lot to say about making movies of course, but also pursuing any kind of craft or art form in general. Very well worth the read for any film buff, my head is full of new understanding regarding nearly every aspect of film-making. Some technical details are probably out of date due to the ever advancing march of technology but the fundamentals still hold and learning about the technical limitations and constraints of analog film allows for understanding regarding many film-making techniques that are still widely practiced today.

Not the usual name-dropping, anecdote-rich, it's all about me movie autobio - rather, a really detailed and literal account of how this director went about making movies including Prince of the City, Serpico, Dog Day Afternoon, The Verdict, 12 Angry Men, Network, and 39 others, including how he worked with actors like Paul Newman, Al Pacino, and Katharine Hepburn, among many others.

This was utterly fascinating. I read it for a film class in college, & I was enthralled. It's pretty much an instructional how-to, from picking a script, getting financing, to the final cut. It's written by one of the best directors of our time, and I don't recall him relying on unnecessary name-dropping or anecdotes. If you wanted a first-class, respected, commercially & artistically successful director to tell you how to make a movie, you have it right here.

Sidney Lumet is one of those powerhouses of filmmaking. His films don't all have the greatest financial success, but over the years he has delivered some amazing cinema. I mean, this is the man who adapted 12 Angry Men and Murder on the Orient Express for the screen, who brought us Dog Day Afternoon and Network. Lumet has always been one of the best, so when I saw this book on the shelf, I knew it would be a must read. Took me a while to finally get to it, but here we are.

The book itself is part memoir and part manual on moviemaking. Lumet explains each technical aspect; starting with directing, moving on to writing, dealing with actors, lighting, music, sound, and even going through the processes of rushes and prints before the show more concluding chapter dealing with the studio and focus groups. Having been in the business since the late 50s, Lumet has had a wide and varied experience with every aspect of getting his movies made, and he shares them all here.

If you're looking for a straightforward technical manual or an up-to-date look at the process of making film in the digital age, this isn't the book for you. When Lumet wrote this, digital filmmaking was still in relative infancy, and certainly wasn't being used on the simple dramas that he made. But, if you're looking for some solid advice and storytelling about making a movie from one of the best directors out there, this is definitely a welcome addition to your library or reading list. show less

I was surprised to learn that this book was published in the mid-90's, as a good chunk of it (the sections dealing with the technical aspects of movie making) is technologically passé. The book gave me a decent appreciation of the complexity of making a film and the challenges a director faces in terms of limitations and the simple realities of light and sound. The author is a serious name-dropper (there is one long paragraph towards the end of the book that is merely a list of directors he admires) and although he exercised tight control over his movies came across as a bit insecure. I would recommend this or Understanding Movies if you know nothing about filmmaking, but don't expect a thrilling read.