“It was like discovering a few years earlier how much I loved punk bands that couldn’t play. The real excitement lay in their fresh acquaintance with the instruments they were holding in their hands, and their inability to really do anything sophisticated with them. They still manage to unleash a power that astonished them and mesmerized their fans. I saw a quick analogy there with basement bands and L’ âge d’or. “
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"If you love films and care about filmmakers, you'll have a hard time putting this book down. These lively conversations reveal just how much one generation of filmmakers influences the next - and how a single movie can change the course of a young person's life and career."
-Leonard Maltin, author of Leanord Martin's Movie Guide -
"A great and provocative read. Elder begins with a simple question and leads a wide variety of filmmakers down all sorts of unexpected paths. Why do we respond so passionately, even irrationally, to the movies that change our lives? The wonderful thing about being a critic or a lifelong movie lover is that life changes all the time in relation to the spells being cast on the screen. Elder's book honors that alchemic relationship many times over. It's addictive."
-Michael Phillips, film critic, Chicago Tribune