Spielberg, Truffaut & Me: An Actor's Diary

Rating:
Summary: What a great look at a great movie!
Review: This is a really interesting behind the scenes look at the making of CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND. The perspective is from that of Bob Balaban, the actor who played the Translator/Cartographer teamed with Francois Truffaut. The anecdotes are fun and interesting, a look at what it was like to hang out and work with two of the greatest directors in history, one at the beginning of his career, still young and kind of idealistic, the other being a master at the height of his talents, acting for the first time. If you love CE3K, Speilberg, Truffaut or have a thing about guys who are constantly mistaken for Richard Dreyfuss (some of the funniest stuff in the book, this is a great read) It isn't really a dirt dishing tell all, it is more of sweet memories of the struggles involved in making a groundbreaking piece of cinema.

Rating:
Summary: Great movie book
Review: This is one of the best making-of-a-movie book I've ever read, and I read a lot of them. It's not dishy/gossipy, just really entertaining and funny as hell. You get an idea about the insanity involved in making a movie. In that respect, the book reminded me a lot of Truffaut's movie, Day for Night. It's a great read for anyone interested in movies, or for anyone who wants a good laugh.