Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Amazon.co.uk Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
Product Description
John Beifuss, American syndicated columnist
Director Magazine
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organise and find favourite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Lively autobiography of important British film director,
By
This review is from: So You Wanna be a Director?: 1 (Paperback)
Ken Annakin's career in film spans nearly sixty years and he has directed over 50 feature films. In this absorbing and informative autobiography, written by the author himself in an unpretentious and engaging manner, Annakin provides many insights into the important films which he directed. There is a particularly fascinating section on his origins in British wartime documentary (his first foray into directing was a short film to encourage breast feeding) and his first feature, Holiday Camp (1946) which celebrated in an entertaining way the return to normality of British society after the strains of war. Holiday Camp introduced to the screen the Huggett family, led by Jack Warner (later Dixon of Dock Green)and Kathleen Harrison who became firm favourites with the British public for many years. Holiday Camp is quintessential Annakin: an entertaining family film that provides what the author considers to be the function of cinema, to make audiences feel good about themselves and their lives. The book tells how his opportunity to be an international director came when he was approached by Walt Disney himself to direct action adventure films made in Britain: including The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men (1952)and Swiss Family Robinson (1962). The book reveals Annakin to have been an indefatigable location director, mollifying irascible stars, coping with numerous misadventures. His accounts of his various productions are laced with funny and good humoured stories about their stars and all the problems of film making on a grand scale. For example, he recalls his brilliant inspiration to relocate The Long Duel (1966) to Spain when it proved impossible to film this Empire tale in India. Annakin is justly proud of his abilities to juggle all the complexities of staging epic cinema: from the gritty war drama The Longest Day (1962) to the humorous pyrotechnics of Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1964). Despite his reputation as a master of family entertainment, Annakin reserves pride of place in his book for Across The Bridge (1957) a challenging and underated adaptation of a Graham Greene story starring Rod Steiger. Film buffs and general readers alike will enjoy this book and find Ken Annakin a witty and warm guide to the strange and fascinating world of feature film making from the 1940s to the present.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant from the first page,
By
This review is from: So You Wanna be a Director?: 1 (Paperback)
I didn't buy this from Amazon as I brought it direct from the publishers, whom also delivered in 'Amazon' speed and style as well!, but none the less it's a wonderful read and an insight into the film industry, warts and all. Ken writes in a way that you feel compelled to just carry on to read 'what happeneded next?' so to speak and I found it quite absorbing and having got a few of his films on the shelf, I duly got them out again and looked for the 'bits' he has quoted about to look out for and yes, there they are!. Anybody who is interested in films, REAL films, you won't go wrong with this book and my only complaint(!) is that it's quite an heavy book and I kept dropping it while reading it in bed (old age creeping on I suppose..) and before you ask, I read it in four, happy nights, ta!
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Fascinating Account from one of the Cinema's Giants,
By
This review is from: So You Wanna be a Director?: 1 (Paperback)
Ken Annakin is a film legend in his own time, a dynamic director with a knowledge of all aspects of filmmaking. A protege of Sir Carol Reed, Annakin hit his stride after World War Two with the astoundingly successful Huggett series. The Yorkshire native began by directing successful films in England, then branched out to become one of the industry's busiest international directors.Annakin's talent was recognized and put to extensive use by two of the major forces of cinema history, Walt Disney and Darryl F. Zanuck. "Third Man on the Mountain," an Annakin blockbuster starring James MacArthur and Janet Munro, was Disney's favorite film. "The Swiss Family Robinson" starring John Mills, Dorothy McGuire, MacArthur and Munro, also done for Disney, was one of the highest grossing blockbusters in movie history. In the case of "The Longest Day," Zanuck's legendary epic of the D-Day Invasion, Annakin was tapped to handle the difficult and challenging Normandy Beach scenes, the most pivotal of that gigantic spectacle. As anyone who has seen the film can attest, he handled his responsibility with consummate skill. Annakin's engrossing first person account takes us all around the world, from Britain to Australia, from Tobago to South Africa, from the French Riviera to Hollywood. He provides a candid as well as intimate look into the world of film, furnishing his first hand impressions of industry giants such as Disney and Zanuck as well as performers such as John Mills, Raquel Welch, Robert Mitchum, Jack Warner, Glynis Johns and many more. If you truly love film, you cannot help enjoying this book and the insights a man of experience and vision provides.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
|
|
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
