Beginning with the first "talkie", "The Jazz Singer" (1927), this book covers the 1000 best movies of this century. Each film is defined by a series of quick reference icons, with star profiles for each year featuring best actor and actress, birth and, where appropriate, death dates; brief filmography, scandal and gossip, and photography. "Guinness Choice" defines the best movie for each year, with a feature-length review. A window-on-the-world image defines the global event of the year, including political, sports, science and popular culture events together with the main Oscar awards. A guide to films on television and video is also included.
Guinness breaks into the film reference market with the launch of its
Book of Film, which promises to be both an informative and entertaining guide to the world of film. Without the established authority of
Halliwell's Film and Video Guide or the
Macmillan International Film Encyclopedia, but with classier presentation and more extensive information on a lesser number of films, the
Guinness Book of Film succeeds because of its intended general audience. This ensures it is an engaging read that is user-friendly with a simple format, quick reference icons, and a colour-coded layout.
Uniquely structured in chronological order and beginning in 1927 with the first "talkie" (The Jazz Singer) the book journeys through each year of cinema to the end of 1998 and The Truman Show describing and reviewing what it considers to be the 1,000 greatest films, the criteria for which are popularity, critical acclaim, degree of influence, and whether the film broke any new ground. Glossily packaged with full colour photographs, including promotional posters and stills for many of the films, the book captures the eye as much as the mind and a surprising number of hours can be lost engrossed within its pages. Also featured are actor and actress profiles and an annual summary of Hollywood gossip and scandal, Oscar winners, and world news.
Any "greatest" book is ultimately subjective but providing it is intelligently argued with some objectivity, as this is, then most judgements will be sound. Therefore the majority of films featured will not be disputed. However, the book could benefit from more contrary opinion and a greater recognition of World cinema. There are also some notable flaws, for example, Godzilla, a box office and critical failure, is bizarrely listed as the 1998 "Guinness Choice of the Year", leading one to wonder if perhaps the entry was written before the film's release.
By concentrating on the films themselves as examples the book illustrates the history of modern cinema (post-1927) in a fascinating way. Whether for a nostalgic trip or as an enlightening experience, the Guinness Book of Film is highly enjoyable and thoroughly recommended. For film fans of any age. --Robert Brookes
