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Title: The Director's Vision: A Concise Guide to the Art of 250 Great Filmakers by Geoff Andrew ISBN: 1-55652-366-1 Publisher: Chicago Review Press Pub. Date: October, 1999 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $24.95

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Average Customer Rating: 3.55 (11 reviews)

Rating: 5
Summary: Brief but good, but we need a Volume 2...
Comment: Simply put, this is exactly what it says with one page sections for each entry as well as a still for each as well. Though the comments are great, the filmographies are a bit light. Some glaring omissions however, and I'm going to list a bunch for you so you're forewarned:

Ron Howard, Sam Raimi, Peter Jackson, Joel Schumacher, Robert Rodriguez, Wolfgang Peterson, Chang Cheh, Atom Egoyan, John McTiernan, Tsui Hark, Tony Scott, Michael Bay, Paul Verhoeven, Steven Soderbergh, Robert Wise, Darren Aronofsky, Hayao Miyazaki, Katsuhiro Otomo, Tom Tykwer, David Fincher, Don Bluth, Richard Donner, Blake Edwards, Rob Reiner, Ivan Reitman, Kevin Smith, Alex Proyas, Victor Fleming, the Farrellys, the Wachowskis, the Hughes, John Hughes, Chris Columbus, M. Night Shyamalan, Ken Burns, Paul Thomas Anderson, Wei Lo, the Zuckers, Chuck Jones, Frank Oz, Jim Henson, John G. Avildsen, Kenneth Branagh, Cameron Crowe, Brad Bird, Michael Moore, Neil Jordan, Don Coscarelli, Ralph Bakshi, Peter Jackson and director's making note since publication like Jonathan Mostow, Christopher Nolan, Guy Ritchie, Ang Lee and Bryan Singer and many more, making "Another 250" an easy task I'm sure.

Rating: 4
Summary: Fine overview and introduction
Comment: Although I agree with some of the criticisms raised about this book (no mention of cinematographers; a few bad spoilers--don't read about Nicholas Roeg if you haven't seen Don't Look Now-- excluded directors (No Soderbergh? No Ang Lee??)), some other complaints are unwarranted (any decent film writer is going to be opinionated). It's also one book which manages to blend image and word extremely well; so many film books only contain words, and film is an incredibly visual medium.
The best thing about the volume is being introduced to new filmmakers one might not have heard of--Alexander Dovzhenko ("Earth"), Youssef Chahine, Len Lye, Hans-Jurgen Syberberg... which is not to say that the book is obscure--classic directors like Griffith, Welles, Godard and Truffaut.
It's also fun reading about one's favorite directors and seeing what Andrew has to say about them--Gilliam, Jarmusch, Jeunet & Caro, Antonioni, Kiarostami.
All in all, a fine addition to one's film library.

Rating: 4
Summary: Original premise with excellent observations
Comment: This book would be ideal for a college film class, as it discusses the merits of many famous directors as well as some you may not have known were so significant. The brief, one-page descriptions get to the heart of each director's significance. One still from each director's work exemplifies the point the author is making.

These descriptions made me want to seek out films by the directors. I am very interested in researching some of the lesser known ones in the book, based on the author's observations. This book looks at film as an art form and gives a glimpse at each director's personal style and contribution to the art form.

However, if you are looking for an in-depth study or a pop-culture overview, the brevity may leave you wanting. What you won't get is a complete survey of their careers, or lots of sensational stories. Those are best left to tell-tale bios and tabloids. This book is strictly about the art and artists. Highly recommended.

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