How do you make a film? Look around the bookshelves of your local bookshop, or browse the pages here at Amazon, and you will see a wealth of books on the subject, but how many of them really tell you how to make a movie, detailing all the stages from the moment you have finished writing your script all the way through to distribution? Very few of them, in fact.

This is the book that entirely demystifies the film making process. It tells you absolutely everything you need to know, from how and where to get your film insured and financed all the way through to how to create special effects and stunts - everything is covered and no stone is left unturned. Starting out as a film maker myself, this book proved invaluable in helping me figure out the the dos and do nots of an industry that is built on networking, connections and who you know. Knowing practically no one in the industry, The Guerilla Film Maker's Handbook was a huge help in getting me started and I still use it today, as I'm sure I will for many more years to come.

Written by actual successful filmmakers (their latest short film Gone Fishing won awards at over 40 festivals worldwide and was on the top ten Oscar shortlist for best short film) and using interviews with key industry figures to provide answers to the most common problems a filmmaker encounters, it will really help you get your film off the ground and give you a far better idea of where to start.

Filmmaking is a hard, slow and very expensive process - this book doesn't beat around the bush in this regard, but it honestly and realistically breaks down the process, providing you with all the help and advice you need to make your film. From the experienced filmmaker all the way through to the enthusiastic amateur, The Guerilla Filmmaker's Handbook is without a doubt an essential purchase!

I do not usually feel inclined to write a review for something, but when a book has had so much praise heaped upon it, from both readers and critics alike, and I strongly disagree with the general opinion, I feel I must voice my own.

Firstly, The Time Traveler's Wife does have one element that certainly works in it's favour, and is something that has been picked up on by almost everybody - the central idea that drives the narrative is fantastic. Unique and original, and conveyed in a realistic and believable fashion, it grab's your imagination and forces you to keep on reading. The way the book is structured is also very well conceived, it's complexity and detail being the results of what i imagine to be lots of hard work and planning.

However, the element that lets the novel down so badly is the way it is written. The prose is flat and unconvincing, the dialogue frequently cringe worthy. The two characters seem to have almost no personality or unique characteristics, and their separate takes on the story fail to give any real sense of who they are. They simply narrate the events they witness and experience, but any insight given into their feelings is insipid and cliched. As the novel continues, you begin to wonder why on Earth these two are together - take away the central premise of time travel, and the two leads of Clare and Henry would simply not convince.

So, buy all means buy the book and read it - many people have been captivated by the story, so I must be in the minority. But I just feel that this book took a unique and original idea and squandered it by weak, unconvincing characters that are tied together by a bland, flat narrative style that never succeeds in either giving the characters their own unique individual voice or telling the story with any imaginative flair.

First off, let me say that this is an amazing album and proves once again that the Mars Volta are one of the most exciting and innovative bands working today in modern rock music - if what you can call the music on this album 'rock'. As some of the other reviews have mentioned, the album takes in such a plethora of musical genres, and succeedes in them, that to pigeonhole The Mars Volta as a rock band would be doing them a great disservice. I take it back, then. The Mars Volta are one of the most exciting and innovative bands working in music today.
Why? Well the sheer imagination, skill, technique and ambition of the record are jaw dropping, for a start. The fact, however, that the band pull all of these off is enough to send your running off down the road.
Well, thats all very well and good, i hear you say. But what about the things I've heard about this album? 30 minute tracks? 4 minute song intros? A prog rock album? A (whispher it) concept album? Well, so what? I would equally be wary of a prog rock concept album that contained 30 minute songs. But I urge you, beg you, to take a chance on this. The sheer musicanship and prowess on display is breathtaking, and any worries or biases you may have towards the album will simply get washed away as you get drawn into the frantic, visceral and powerful music. If only you would give it a chance.
Of course, not everybody would be put off by what this record offers. If you like the idea of a 74 minute album containing only 5 songs (don't be confused by the tracklisting above - although the tacks appear to have been broken down into smaller segments, they play as continuous songs) then by all means buy this album, you won't regret it.
However, this record isn't flawless. The long sections of ambient noise do seem rather indulgent and reek somewhat of pretentsion. They also serve, rather worringly, to make the album seem even longer than it really is. Also, expect not to be blown away on your first listen. There is so much to take in on an initial listen, the vast majority of it will wash over your head. This is the kind of album that slowly revels its true greatness to you over time. But these really are minior quibbles (in fact the last one isn't really a quibble at all) when compared to what the band have achieved overall with Frances the Mute - they have created a phenomenal album that stands up well against their equally phenomenal debut (still, actually, the better record in my opinion - if you haven't listened to the Mars Vola before, get thier debut, but hell, if you can afford it, get both).
The Mars Volta are making music with not a care to the latest trends or fashions, music that is alive with vitality, soul and passion. They are unique and rare, and have created an album that is to be savoured and loved. Take the journy that the band want you to go on, and, given time, you may never look back.