Film

100 Silent Films provides an authoritative and accessible history of silent cinema through one hundred of its most interesting and significant films. As Bryony Dixon contends, silent cinema is not a genre; it is the first 35 years of film history, a complex negotiation between art and commerce and a union of creativity and technology. At its most grand - on the big screen with a full orchestral accompaniment - it is magnificent, permitting a depth of emotional engagement rarely found in other fields of cinema. Silent film was hugely popular in its day, and its success enabled the development of large-scale film production in the United States and Europe. It was the start of our fascination with the moving image as a disseminator of information and as mass entertainment with its consequent celebrity culture.

The digital revolution in the last few years and the restoration and reissue of archival treasures have contributed to a huge resurgence of interest in silent cinema. Bryony Dixon's illuminating guide introduces a wide range of films of the silent period (1895-1930), including classics such as The Birth of a Nation (1915), The General (1926), Metropolis (1927), Sunrise (1927) and Pandora's Box (1928), alongside more unexpected choices, and represents major genres and directors of the period - Griffith, Keaton, Chaplin, Murnau, Sjöström, Dovzhenko and Eisenstein - together with an introductory overview and useful filmographic and bibliographic information.

Chronicling the complete history of filmmaking, this important survey dates back to silent-era sensations such as D. W. Griffith's controversial The Birth of a Nation and the immortal Little Tramp movies of Charlie Chaplin. It then covers blockbusters of the more recent past like Gone with the Wind, A Clockwork Orange, Avatar, and The Black Swan. Also described are Hollywood's most memorable musicals, great dramas, screwball comedies, experimental "New Wave" films from 1950s and '60s Europe, major films noir, classic westerns, action and adventure films, and outstanding documentaries.

This all-new edition has been updated with:

These basic questions and much more are all covered in this exquisite packaged book on the film industry and making movies as a profession. Written by Neil Landau, an experienced screenwriter and script consultant to the major movie studios, this is the perfect book for anyone who wants to know about the inner-workings of this industry. Whether it's someone who wants to make movies as a full-timecareer, or just someone who is interested in film, this book covers it all.

Intrigued by the idea of frontier wilderness, of law and order versus lawlessness, and a firm belief that 'the better the bad guy, the better the film, ' he goes beyond the American Southwest to pay homage to the Italian and even Australian western -- and, after much deliberation, he ranks them in order.

Updated to include the 2014 Academy Awards, this is the definitive guide to 86 years of the Oscars, including every nominee and winner in every category, plus red carpet highlights, unforgettable photographs, and insider information from onstage and behind the scenes.

The Academy Awards invites us to share in the celebration of 86 years of best actors, actresses, directors, cinematographers, costume designers, and more, plus the greatest films in movie-making history. All of the winners and the losers of Hollywood's prestigious award ceremony are covered here in detail, together with all of the glamour and gossip that is the Oscars(R).

Written by film experts Jim Piazza and Gail Kinn, who are sought out by the media every year for their insider knowledge of movies and Hollywood, The Academy Awards is both a handy reference and a detailed history of the annual event. Organized by year, beginning with the very first awards given in 1927, The Academy Awards presents in each chapter a complete and fun-to-read overview of the ceremony, including highlights of the most memorable moments (and outfits!) of the evening. Piazza and Kinn also provide details and little-known facts about award winners for best picture, best actor and actress, best supporting actor and actress, and honorary awards, plus a complete list of nominees in every category.

Packed with more than 500 photographs from the ceremonies and red carpet, as well as stills from the movies themselves, this unauthorized book delivers what fans want most: all the facts, enhanced by juicy commentary and pictures galore.