Filming a Blockbuster (Behind the Scenes) - Softcover

Peter G. Mellett

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0431021651 ISBN 13: 9780431021652

Publisher: Heinemann Library, 2000

Synopsis

Describes the process of making a blockbuster film from preproduction through the premiere, including the casting, filming on location, soundstage work, special effects, editing, and sound production

About this title

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-7-Mellett's attempt to explain how a big-budget, special-effects film is made, from script idea to star-studded premier, is a big flop. Given the 32-page heavily illustrated format, only the most basic aspects of any topic can be discussed. The text is not so much a fluid narrative, but rather a series of short paragraphs describing the artwork. It is sometimes difficult to determine the order in which they are designed to be read, or whether they are to be read in any order at all. There is also a running ribbonlike loop across each spread that contains brief summaries of the processes described on each page. The design is just too busy and distracting. The author and illustrator try to tie the information together by creating a fictional movie to show the filmmaking process. It is a sci-fi, time-travel thriller about a superhero battling dinosaurs and is, in a word, ludicrous. The pen-and-ink and garish watercolor drawings, such as the portrayal of a man with a lizard head and army fatigue pants, look like a low-budget B movie directed by Roger Corman. Readers would be much better served by Jake Hamilton's Special Effects in Film and Television (DK, 1998).
Tim Wadham, Dallas Public Library, TX
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Heinemann Library
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0431021651
• ISBN 13: 9780431021652
• Binding: Paperback