Adventures in the Screen Trade - William Goldman

The only text book in my three years of university that engaged me, taught me and made sense! Goldman is dry, down to earth and at times quite disdainful about the industry he clearly adores. His talent for writing shines through, you'll find yourself laughing and agreeing. A must for anybody interested in working or learning about the film industry as it's a honest review of Hollywood, it's workings and all the players involved. Plus it's full of handy tips beyond "kill your darlings" for writers, my favourite being "silence is the best response" a very powerful rule I now use at least once in each script that I ...  Read the complete review

If your interested in the film industry read this book. If you are interested in becoming a writer read this book. If your the type of person who prefers books that are "easy to read" read this book. Just read the book. William goldman has written some good films- Butch Cassidy and the sundance kids won the man an Oscar, admitedly nowadays (the book was written 20 years ago) he's a bit of a "Hack" when it comes to films (Ghost and the darkness absolute power). In adventures Goldman recalls all of his experiences in scriptwriting in a highly entertaining and readable fashion- he pulls down the curtain on ...  Read the complete review

William Goldman has been writing scripts for Hollywood since the sixties; even now, he's still one of the most respected screenwriters working. He switches between big prestige projects (All the President's Men, Chaplin) to big commercial movies (Maverick, the upcoming Jurassic Park sequel). All of his movies are well constructed, with superb, cutting dialogue, but he's almost eclipsed his own screen work with this book, the best, and most intelligent ever written about Hollywood. 'Nobody knows anything' is his mantra, and this book shows how accidents and impulse turn duds into classics, and classics into duds. Given his long perspective, ...  Read the complete review