- Paperback: 568 pages
- Publisher: Vintage Books; 1st Edition Uk Pbk edition (Dec 1997)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0679749918
- ISBN-13: 978-0679749912
- Product Dimensions: 13 x 3.1 x 20.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,993,438 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Amazon.co.uk Review
In 1992, when Unforgiven won director/star Eastwood the critical respect that had eluded him for a quarter-century, film critic Schickel was already a friend of 15 years. Their relationship, and a series of in-depth interviews conducted over five years, gives this biography a pleasing intimacy. Schickel believes Eastwood "has taken the presentation of the heroic male into country he has not previously ridden"; he makes a strong case for that idea in an admiring(but not fawning) book that lays the foundation for more objective works in the future. --Christine Buttery
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Description
"Authoritative . . . highly nuanced . . . gives the reader a palpable sense of Mr. Eastwood's career."
--The New York Times
From the moment The Man With No Name first fixed the screen with his murderous squint, from the first time audiences heard Dirty Harry Callahan growl "Make my day," Clint Eastwood has been an icon of American manhood in all its coolness and ferocity. But that icon is also an actor of surprising subtlety, a filmmaker of vast intelligence and originality--and an intensely private man who eludes the stereotypes with which his fans and critics try to label him.
In this in-depth biography, the distinguished film critic Richard Schickel talks with Eastwood's family, friends, and colleagues--and, above all, with his notoriously reticent subject--to produce a portrait more astute and revealing than any we have ever had.
Following Eastwood from his unstable childhood through his turbulent love affairs, assessing films from A Fistful of Dollars to the Oscar-winning The Unforgiven, and locating the subversive streak of rage and solitude that runs through all his work, Clint Eastwood is candid and endlessly fascinating, an unerring closeup of one of our brightest stars.
"Exhilarating . . . substantial, insightful, and right."
--Newsday
--The New York Times
From the moment The Man With No Name first fixed the screen with his murderous squint, from the first time audiences heard Dirty Harry Callahan growl "Make my day," Clint Eastwood has been an icon of American manhood in all its coolness and ferocity. But that icon is also an actor of surprising subtlety, a filmmaker of vast intelligence and originality--and an intensely private man who eludes the stereotypes with which his fans and critics try to label him.
In this in-depth biography, the distinguished film critic Richard Schickel talks with Eastwood's family, friends, and colleagues--and, above all, with his notoriously reticent subject--to produce a portrait more astute and revealing than any we have ever had.
Following Eastwood from his unstable childhood through his turbulent love affairs, assessing films from A Fistful of Dollars to the Oscar-winning The Unforgiven, and locating the subversive streak of rage and solitude that runs through all his work, Clint Eastwood is candid and endlessly fascinating, an unerring closeup of one of our brightest stars.
"Exhilarating . . . substantial, insightful, and right."
--Newsday
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
What an American was Clint Eastwood," Norman Mailer wrote as he worked his way toward the peroration of a 1983 Sunday supplement article on him-as usual for Mailer on these occasions, a blend of interview and meditation on his own and his subject's celebrity. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
What an American was Clint Eastwood," Norman Mailer wrote as he worked his way toward the peroration of a 1983 Sunday supplement article on him-as usual for Mailer on these occasions, a blend of interview and meditation on his own and his subject's celebrity. Read the first page
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Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Clint Eastwood is one of the most recognisable faces in the past 50 years. His place as a John Wayne-like icon in film is assured for an eternity. The author has known Clint for an number of years and is in total praise of the man and at times satisfyingly contradicts his public persona as a tough guy.
The history of Clint both pre and during his film career is made greatly absorbing by Richard Schickel. Especially his little known earlier career when Clint's determination to better himself was evident, the welfare of his family being the roots of this. Instead of doing the TV show 'Rawhide' for the rest of his career Clint was brave in going to Spain/Italy to work with Sergio Leone and his man with no name trilogy. Luckily they were hits and with a risk Clint left Leone to diversify, perhaps aware of his limitations as an actor and what he saw as the public pigeon holing him.
One of the best and most revealing stories is on the film set of 'Thunderbolt and Lightfoot'; Clint chose the story simply because he loved it. This emphasised with his patience of a nervous and young Jeff Bridges. On an aside it also shows how Michael Cimino could direct with modesty.
Schickel's decision, perhaps because of their friendship, not to attack Clint's more contentious choices such as the sacking the original director of 'The Outlaw Josey Welles' because he was too slow has proved a good one. Clint's determination to succeed and single minded-ness is perceived as a quality rather than sheer arrogance.
Any preconception of Clint as a narrow minded touge guy is shattered by the book. Clint chose his roles both as director and an actor because of the story and the characters, always wanting to branch out and add another string to his bow. He did 'Dirty Harry' but he also did 'The Beguiled' and 'Play Misty For Me'.
The book works best, however, when the author is left to analyse Clint's roles. Clint's political beliefs weren't as defined as those of John Wayne, who chose his roles because they represented the true and hard working American. Schickel puts forward a personal perspective of Clint's roles and in doing so with clarity and conviction he deflects much of the narrow minded criticism aimed at Clint during the years, particularly from Pauline Kael.
Along with more in depth objectionalbe literature of Clint's career such as 'The Life and Times of Clint Eastwood' this would make a terrific companion piece. But it stands on it's own as a loving portrait of a 20th century movie legend.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
21 reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
A serious look at Clint
18 Jun 2002
Format:Paperback
There's plenty of opportunity to gripe about this biography: The writing style is ponderous and sometimes downright clumsy, there's not enough details about Clint's private life, there's too much trivia about incidental movie roles (i.e. Witches.) But that aside it is nice to see a serious examination of Clint the Film Maker, which I might add does offer good critical examination of his movies, pointing out many of the movies' weaknesses as well as their strengths, and offering solid reasons for why the theme or story appealed to Clint. Pigeonholed early by narrowminded critics for his supposedly anti-establishment, brutal movies, he had to wait another twenty years for the critical tide to turn and for there to be a re-evaluation of his contribution to cinema (at least here in the U.S. -- in other parts of the world he'd long been recognized as a great director and actor.) And still some of the best movies he's done (whether he directed them or not) are not given the credit they deserve by self-important critics: Beguiled, Play Misty for Me, Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, The Outlaw Josey Wales, White Hunter Black Heart, Bird all come to mind as well as many others. In forty years of making movies beginning with A Fistful of Dollars, most of the time coming out with a movie a year, he's been involved in less than a handful of mediocre movies, none of them ranking as truly bad. The Rookie and City Heat come to mind as truly mediocre movies, certainly bordering on bad, and there's a couple of others that had good potential but turned out to be bad decisions on his part, but I consider that a fantastic track record. He knows story and he knows how to get the most from out of a movie, and it's the reason he's stayed at the top of the box-office for all these decades despite the fact that he's never done just what "the audience" wants from him.
I recommend the book Interviews, for those interested in Clint the film maker, which is an excellent collection of interviews in which Clint very articulately discusses his ideas of film making.
I can't help but add that I have to wonder about one of the reviewers who wrote that whether Unforgiven was a great movie was "questionable." Then does there exist a unquestionably great movie?
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Too much time spent on critics.
19 July 2008
Format:Paperback
Richard Schickel is a friend of Clint Eastwood. That itself shouldn't disqualify him from writing this book.
The problem with the book is that it is very biased, he spends an absurd portion of the book defending Eastwood from an assortment of negative movie critiques, predominantly those of Pauline Kael.
I am a fan of most of Clint Eastwood's films and movie critics have never been a factor in formulating my opinion of any particular movie. And I don't see why Clint Eastwood's work needs defending!
"Clint Eastwood-a Biography" is otherwise loaded with some fascinating facts about Eastwood's life and career.
Schickel describes how Eastwood obtained various scripts for movies that he was involved in as an actor, director, and sometimes both.
The details include his relationship with other stars, directors, and producers.
Who proposed the forming of Malpaso and how monumental that company became is another topic in the book.
I found it interesting that Clint turned down the part of "Harmonica" in "Once Upon a Time in the West". That's the role that Charles Bronson accepted in a movie that eventually came to be regarded as one of the best westerns of all time and a personal favorite of mine.
The book details Eastwood's inherited musical talent and how deeply jazz has influenced the actor both musically and in film.
Clint solves the mystery of the identity of his character in "High Plains Drifter".
Another aspect of Eastwood as a director is the location of shoots for the "Eiger Sanction" and "Unforgiven". His sense of realism can be extreme, but admirable.
Overall "Clint Eastwood-a Biography" has a lot of trivia-type information and can be entertaining. What downgrades the book considerably is the seemingly endless ranting about the negative reviews from movie critics.
The problem with the book is that it is very biased, he spends an absurd portion of the book defending Eastwood from an assortment of negative movie critiques, predominantly those of Pauline Kael.
I am a fan of most of Clint Eastwood's films and movie critics have never been a factor in formulating my opinion of any particular movie. And I don't see why Clint Eastwood's work needs defending!
"Clint Eastwood-a Biography" is otherwise loaded with some fascinating facts about Eastwood's life and career.
Schickel describes how Eastwood obtained various scripts for movies that he was involved in as an actor, director, and sometimes both.
The details include his relationship with other stars, directors, and producers.
Who proposed the forming of Malpaso and how monumental that company became is another topic in the book.
I found it interesting that Clint turned down the part of "Harmonica" in "Once Upon a Time in the West". That's the role that Charles Bronson accepted in a movie that eventually came to be regarded as one of the best westerns of all time and a personal favorite of mine.
The book details Eastwood's inherited musical talent and how deeply jazz has influenced the actor both musically and in film.
Clint solves the mystery of the identity of his character in "High Plains Drifter".
Another aspect of Eastwood as a director is the location of shoots for the "Eiger Sanction" and "Unforgiven". His sense of realism can be extreme, but admirable.
Overall "Clint Eastwood-a Biography" has a lot of trivia-type information and can be entertaining. What downgrades the book considerably is the seemingly endless ranting about the negative reviews from movie critics.
10 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Padded and Nonobjective...
9 Aug 2004
Format:Paperback
If you are looking for a thick book about actor/director Clint Eastwood's life and career, illustrated with some unusual photos, then this will fill the bill. If you want an objective biography of Eastwood, together with an objective analysis of his film work, this is not the book you want. Schickel was basically an employee and friend of Eastwood during the researching and writing of the book, and he tends to ignore or downplay the dark side of Eastwood's activities, particularly his alleged "women are like kleenex" philosophy, and his alleged cruelty toward former collaborators.
The long book is made longer by merciless padding, including detailed and completely unnecessary plot summaries of the films.
Viewed from 2004, Clint Eastwood is an important actor--- as good an actor as Jimmy Stewart and as iconic an actor as John Wayne. He is also an important and stylish director, and justifiably famous for his gentle ways with cast and crew, as well as his efficiency in coming in under budget. One of the author's continuing themes, brought up on nearly every page, turns upon the consistent misunderstanding of Eastwood, both as actor and director, by two generations of famous mainstream film critics. This theme wears thin quickly when one realizes that there is probably not a single case in which famous mainstream film critics have had the slightest clue as to the value, importance and significance of any new film or film star.
Eastwood is an important figure in 20th Century cinema, and he deserves an objective, scholarly, independently-researched analysis of all aspects of his life and career. I don't know of one... we'll keep looking.
The long book is made longer by merciless padding, including detailed and completely unnecessary plot summaries of the films.
Viewed from 2004, Clint Eastwood is an important actor--- as good an actor as Jimmy Stewart and as iconic an actor as John Wayne. He is also an important and stylish director, and justifiably famous for his gentle ways with cast and crew, as well as his efficiency in coming in under budget. One of the author's continuing themes, brought up on nearly every page, turns upon the consistent misunderstanding of Eastwood, both as actor and director, by two generations of famous mainstream film critics. This theme wears thin quickly when one realizes that there is probably not a single case in which famous mainstream film critics have had the slightest clue as to the value, importance and significance of any new film or film star.
Eastwood is an important figure in 20th Century cinema, and he deserves an objective, scholarly, independently-researched analysis of all aspects of his life and career. I don't know of one... we'll keep looking.
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