1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die

[back cover]

What the critics are saying...

“1001 MOVIES You Must See Before You Die ... a great motivating guide to cinema. After reading one of its engaging, often profound entries on a missed film, you want to run out and rent it.”

Dallas Morning News

“If you’re constantly wondering what to pop into the VCR or DVD player, get this book!”

The Star

“An excellent new film anthology...1001 Movies will serve as one of your ultimate movie guides. It presents everything you need to know about the must-see films...”

The Wave Channel Guide

“Instead of simply summarizing the plot, Schneider and his team of experts briefly explain why each film is a must see.... Schneider’s choices are irrefutable. Highly recommended...”

Library Journal

“... a browser’s delight as well as a useful guide for casual viewers and film buffs alike”

Booklist

“...Schneider’s sources are solid...”

Buffalo News

[front flap]

Here is everything you need to know about the movies you simply must see—all 1001 of them! Whether you want to look up details about a film you thought you knew by heart, or if you’re simply trying to decide what to watch tonight, 1001 Movies will serve as your ultimate movie guide. It presents everything you need to know about those magnificent, must-see films—not only the ones you shouldn’t have missed the first time around, but also the classics that are worth seeing again and again.

Open this book to any page and you’ll find a major film’s vital statistics, plus a few facts about it that might surprise you. If you collect DVDs and VCRs, you’ll find this volume a must for your bookshelf. But even if you’re simply a casual moviegoer, you’re sure to enjoy browsing through this big, entertaining volume.

For students of cinema, for discerning film buffs, for enthusiastic fans, and for readers who enjoy thumbing through and reminiscing over unforgettable screen memories, here’s the place to start reading. You’ll find information and reviews covering nearly a century of memorable movies.

So read, enjoy, and relish!

[back flap]

Steven Jay Schneider is a Ph.D. candidate in Philosophy at Harvard University, and in Cinema Studies at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. He is the author of Designing Fear: An Aesthetics of Cinematic Horror (Routledge); editor of The Horror Film and Psychoanalysis: Freud’s Worst Nightmares (Cambridge University Press), and Fear Without Frontiers: Horror Cinema Across the Globe (FAB Press); and co-editor of Understanding Film Genres (McGraw-Hill), Horror International (Wayne State University Press), and Underground U.S.A.: Filmmaking Beyond the Hollywood Canon (Wallflower Press).

Updated with brand-new entries to describe the most recent major motion pictures, this critically acclaimed volume spans more than a century of moviemaking, concisely describing 1,001 of the best films from around the world. Includes hundreds of movie still shots in color and black and white.

This special Fifth Anniversary Edition of the acclaimed film reference guide is packed with virtually everything movie lovers need to know about the films they simply must see. Stephen Jay Schneider and his team of writers have brought the book up to date by including the most memorable movies released during the past five years. Among their new additions are The Queen, The Lives of Others, Brokeback Mountain, and several more recent movies that have attracted worldwide attention. Covering more than a century of filmmaking and dating back to silent-era sensations such as Edwin S. Porter's The Great Train Robbery and Chaplin's The Gold Rush, this book describes musicals, dramas, screwball comedies, experimental "New Wave" films from 1950s and '60s Italy and France, major films noir, classic westerns, action and adventure films, and even memorable documentaries. It lists each film's director and cast, presents a plot summary and production notes, and cites interesting, often little-known facts relating to the film's cast, storyline, and production. For students of cinema, discerning film buffs, DVD collectors, and readers who enjoy thumbing through and reminiscing over cherished screen moments, 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die is the place to start reading. Filled with 800 movie still shots and actors' photos.

(back cover)

5TH

ANNIVERSARY

EDITION

"I have, by the way, seen 943 of the 1001 movies, and am carefully rationing the remaining titles to prolong my life."

--Roger Ebert

". . . a great motivating guide to cinema. After reading one of its engaging, often profound entries on a missed film, you want to run out and rent it."

--Dallas Morning News

"Both a fun stroll through some all-time favourites, and a guilty reminder of just how many great movies I haven't seen yet...."

--Aubrey Day, Total Film (U.K.)

"As edited by Steven Jay Schneider, it makes for addictive browsing, and likewise features top quality stills."

--Film Review (U.K.)

"One of the best desert island books about art house film in print."

--The Times (London)

(front flap)

With over 750,000 copies sold worldwide in twenty-four languages, the newly revised and updated 5th Anniversary edition of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die celebrates the great and groundbreaking, classic and cult must-see movies of all time and offers a treasure trove of incisive, witty, and revealing insights into the world of film. Illustrated with hundreds of stunning film stills, portraits, and poster art, 1001 Movies brings together the most significant movies from all genres, from action to western, through animation, comedy, documentary, musical, noir, romance, thriller, short, and sci-fi. The selection includes movies from over 30 countries and spans more than a century of extraordinary cinematography. Whether your passion is romantic comedy or art house, The Blue Angel or Blue Velvet, 1001 Movies is the book for you.

(back flap)

Steven Jay Schneider, one of the true connoisseurs of movie horror, has written, talked, taught, and published extensively on all aspects of film, from aesthetics and psychoanalysis to the joys of the slasher flick. Here he has brought together over 50 of the finest writers, reviewers, critics, professors, aficionados, and filmmakers from across the globe.

From Le Monde's Jean-Michel Frodon in Paris to Undercurrent's Chris Fujiwara in Tokyo, the team comprises the best that film writing has to offer and includes contributors to Empire, Sight and Sound, Time Out, Rolling Stone, the New York Times, Total Film, International Film Guide, LA Weekly, CineAction, Film Quarterly, NME, the Washington Post, Filmmaker, Moviemaker, and many more.

Stephen Jay Schneider is a film critic, scholar, and an author and editor of several books on films and filmmaking. Among his recent titles are 501 Movie Stars and 501 Movie Directors, both available in North America from Barron's.