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Product Description
The Dark Side (November 2004, reviewer James Whittington)
...a necessary purchase...an outstanding job...never wearing or padded out...an excellent, well researched volume...gets into its subject
Sight and Sound, November 2002 (Philip Kemp)
Widely mourned as the great lost genius of British cinema... Murray here gives us the first biography of the tragically short-lived director.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A friend gave me this book to read. I had never heard of Michael Reeves. It is one of the most moving books I have ever read. The waste of this fragile, brilliant young man is a very moving story, beautifully told.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Review by D.M. Warner from Amazon.com, 11 September 2008 (copied with Mr. Warner's permission)
13 Sep 2008
Format:Paperback
Taking a quote from one of the principal actors, Ian Ogilvy, in the cinematic classic, Witchfinder General, "We've got a job to do and we'll go on until we've done it", the author of this book, John B. Murray, has done just that. This is the story of the brief, remarkable, but tragic life of British Director Michael Reeves, Horror's James Dean. Like Dean, Reeves was to spearhead the new crop of the modern director as Dean would do similarly on the acting side. Both left behind a small but impressive resume of work, but unfortunately, unlike Dean, Reeves left behind no apparent proteges, although some film scholars would argue the point. Both died tragically at a young age, but both accomplished in their brief existence, much more than what any one person would or could hope to accomplish in an otherwise extended lifetime, assuring both a cult status. This book serves as an unauthorized biography of sorts, but were Mr. Reeves alive today, I am sure it would receive his stamp of approval. Through obvious exhaustive research, involving as many of the main players in Michael's life as possible, especially his boyhood friend and lead actor in all 3 of his movies, Ian Ogilvy, Murray has constructed a literary masterpiece. From the opening page to the close, you will be hard pressed to put down this book. Rather than imbue his own personal feelings on the subject matter, Murray, the author instead relies upon the interviews and factual information at his disposal to paint an extroardinary canvas of the Director's life and accomplishments, distancing hisself from a critical but rather instead a casual and informative approach. In closing, Mr. Murray has achieved what many others have strived for but failed in their attempts to achieve. He has successfully documented the life of a great, compelling and visionary genius. In short, this is nothing more than a literary love letter to an immense talent that was taken from the world much too soon. I loved this book, and should you purchase and read it, you will as well. Thank You Mr. Murray.
Format:Paperback
I first became familiar with the work of Michael Reeves care of a late-night TV screening of the brilliant movie 'Witchfinder General'. As a child, I can vaguely recall the controversy caused by the film, and one of my brothers seeing it at the cinema and raving about it. It's very rarely shown on TV these days, although easily obtainable on DVD, and it is still a vivid and startling piece of film, even if somewhat bleak in its worldview. All the more remarkable in that it stars Vincent Price, who, for the most part, resists his usual tendency to lapse into rank ham acting. This overdue biography of Michael Reeves, 'Witchfinder's' director, is a very illuminating and useful exploration of his tragically brief life, but it is not without its faults. Principally, it is the author John B Murray's tautological lapses that can sometimes lead to the writing getting occasionally bogged down. At times he rather monotonously bangs on about how much Michael Reeves was totally immersed in all aspects of film, how he could reel off lists of the personnel on any given movie, and how Reeves would show a 16mm print of Don Siegel's 'The Killers' at his house when people paid a visit. He restates these facts over and over again, and although this serves to ram home the point of Reeves' utter dedication to his craft, it just makes for a frustrating read. Also, and the author is honest about this from the outset, he makes little or no attempt to apply any critical analysis to Reeves' three movies ('Revenge of the Blood Beast' (renamed 'She Beast in the USA, and available under that title on DVD through Amazon), She Beast [DVD] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC] 'The Sorcerers'The Sorcerers [DVD], 'Witchfinder General' Witchfinder General [Blu-Ray] [1968]), preferring to write a basic linear biography of Reeves' life and times. As such it is an excellent work, even if could've used a good editor, and is very welcome.
As the years go by, and those that knew Reeves reasonably well, both personally and professionally pass on or simply forget details of events, the importance in a book such as this grows. Like the occasional revivals in interest in forgotten authors or musicians, successive generations of cineastes will no doubt turn on to Reeves work, and Murray's book will be a fine primer for those who want to get under Reeves' skin, as it were. Despite my (slight) critique of his prose style, I still heartily recommend this title for anyone who wants to know more about the wayward genius behind 'Witchfinder General'.
As the years go by, and those that knew Reeves reasonably well, both personally and professionally pass on or simply forget details of events, the importance in a book such as this grows. Like the occasional revivals in interest in forgotten authors or musicians, successive generations of cineastes will no doubt turn on to Reeves work, and Murray's book will be a fine primer for those who want to get under Reeves' skin, as it were. Despite my (slight) critique of his prose style, I still heartily recommend this title for anyone who wants to know more about the wayward genius behind 'Witchfinder General'.
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