Kubrick

Rating:
Summary: Two Fascinating Men - One Book
Review: I have loved Michael Herr's DISPATCHES since I first read it several years ago. I was very excited when I saw Herr's name under the title of this biography. Kubrick is one of my favorite filmmakers and Herr is one of my favorite writers. I bought this book immediately after I saw it and I am very pleased with the purchase. There is something about Herr's writing style that is just beautiful. His words seem to have a wonderful flow to them. This book is rather short, I read it in one evening. If you love either Michael Herr or Stanley Kubrick you should buy it. If you love the work of both of them, you will enjoy it as much as I did. For me, reading this book was like spending time for several hours with two fascinating talents.

Rating:
Summary: Works Well As A Personal Memoir
Review: If you're a Kubrick fan (as I am) and are interested in the man behind the greatest body of work in modern cinema, Michael Herr's brisk but detailed semi-bio of the man is a fascinating glimpse into his world. While the author attempts to dispel the myths and misconceptions surrounding the man and his life, not neccessarily his work, he paints him as something of an over-eager, talkative bookworm and lets the reader decide for himself whether Kubrick was indeed an obsessive pefectionist or just a kid from Brooklyn who was still trying to get it right, the result of a strict Jewish Upbringing. The final third of the book is also a fascinating glimpse into the work and inspiration that shaped his final film, "Eyes Wide Shut". A telling book about an enigmatic and often misunderstood genius of a man.

Rating:
Summary: A glimpse of genius
Review: Michael Herr wrote this book to restore some balance to the discussions of Stanley Kubrick after his death -- as Herr notes, "The strangely contentious and extremely disrespectful tone that lurked inside so many of the obituaries and tributes was unpleasant to the many people who loved Stanley, but not surprising." The reviews of Kubrick's final, and probably unfinished, film Eyes Wide Shut didn't help -- with a few exceptions, the critics seemed happy to use the film to confirm all of their preconceived notions of Kubrick's life and art.

Herr's book offers a pleasant defense of his friend, as well as some interesting and amusing anecdotes, but little more than that. Personally, I'd hoped he would reveal more about how he and Kubrick worked on Full Metal Jacket, but the film is seldom talked about directly, though it is often mentioned, tantalizingly, in passing. Ultimately, the book is little more than a long magazine article put into hardcover; it's nice to have, and would make a fine gift for a Kubrick fan, but it's definitely not a "must-have" book.

Rating:
Summary: moving and heartfelt
Review: Much better than Raphael's memoir but still quite a disappointment. Merely a hundred pages of impressions, analyses and recallections. And all this for a hefty price. Be warned!

Rating:
Summary: A nice companion to the life of Kubrick
Review: This book should be used as a companion while studying Kubrick, as Herr discusses Kubrick as a man and a friend rather than going into Stanley's films in depth. The book is well written, flows easily, and brings the legendary director to life.

Rating:
Summary: Honorable Tribute
Review: This is not just a reprint of Herr's "Vanity Fair" piece about Kubrick (although there's nothing wrong with republishing articles in book form--remeber Tom Wolfe's "Radical Chic"?) The final section of this small book is a brand new hell-raising defence of "Eyes Wide Shut" as a modern masterpiece: Herr also assails those critics who he believes did dirt to the memory of Kubrick.. Herr is a very seductive, stylish writer, and this memoir of the late, great director is loving, but clear-eyed and a good antidote to Fredric Raphael's vitriolic "Eyes Wide Open."

Rating:
Summary: moving and heartfelt
Review: Yes, this is a slim volume, and yes, a third of it comes from a Vanity Fair article, but it is also a tender and affectionate portrait of Stanley Kubrick well worth owning if you are an admirer of the filmmaker or a movie buff in general. Herr not only fills his books with amusing anecdotes about the famously reclusive director but also writes eloquently about the state of art and cinema in America. Although a bit defensive at times (particularly in assessing the merits of "Eyes Wide Shut"), this book is a welcome departure from all the anti-Kubrick blather prevalent in the news media, which focus on his eccentric and paranoid side (much of which is untrue).