Roman

by Roman Polański

Book Overview

Finally back in print, this is the long-forgotten and long out-of-print memoir of a genius storyteller--as great as his greatest movie. The engrossing autobiography is released on the 20th anniversary of the original publication.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0688026214
• ISBN13: 9780688026219
• Release Date: January 1984
• Publisher: William Morrow & Company
• Length: 461 Pages
• Weight: 1.75 lbs.

Customer Reviews

It's All Here

Covers his childhood memories of war-torn Poland, reminiscent of "Schindler's List". His struggles as a young director and the heartache of the tragic murder of his wife Sharon Tate and their unborn child. And he even discusses his envolvement with the underaged girl at Jack Nicholson's place, that caused his exhile from the U.S. to this very day. You be the judge. An all-around well written autobiography.

a sinner and a genius ...

Roman Polanski, born on august 18, 1933, has written a fascinating autobiography. He is a sinner and a genius, a chaotic man and a passionate, he is a machismo and a vulnerable human being, he overcame the WWII, the Polish ghettos and the Holocaust as a resilient child and he lost his wife Sharon Tate and an unborn child in 1969 by the Manson Group massacre, and on the other hand he overcame (as an adult) a special pattern of machismo-self-destruction (with 13 year old girl accusing him of sexual contact). He had lived a lousy life in Nazi-surpressed Polish ghettos and he had lived with too much pride and arrogance in Hollywood, he was arrested in the United States and nevertheless now he releases movies in Paris (presently married with French actress Emmanuelle Seigner). He is a gifted filmmaker and indeed: a writer, better than any crime-author I know; his book, published in 1984, is not a larmoyant, self-pitiful autobiography alike 1001 others - it is an absorbing story about a personality-mixture-hybrid of a Robin Hood mixed with Mac Beth, an Idi Amin mixed with a Mother Theresa, it is the story of "Roman" P., who started his life 1933 in Paris as "Raymond" P.; the first sentence of his autobiography: "For as far back as I can remember, the line between fantasy and reality has been hopelessly blurred." That became his helping trick to survive some struggles and tragedies, downfalls and comebacks ...

One of the most impressive books ever read

I lost my copy of this book years ago and am so glad to have it back. Anyone who admires Polanski's work will love this book. Anyone who questions Polanski's love of life, Sharon, and the World he lives in should read this book. You will understand him in a whole new light. He's amazing. Read this before any other about him. Please!!!!!!

From the heart

I have always admired Roman Polanski. He strikes me as a person with a very powerful presence and state of mind and that impression certainly comes through in his films. Although published 20 years ago, Roman bared his soul to the world, telling his story in a way that you felt you lived his life right there beside him. People who believe that those who have had lousy lives should be excused from taking responsibility for their crimes should read Roman's book. After all he's been through, he had every excuse in the world to be a lowlife, drunken, drug addict, thief, murderer, scumbag. Instead, this man took all the bad things that have happened to him in his life and turned it into something positive. And even though he has expressed his emotions through his movies, he is still a very mysterious man whose depths no one will ever know. That's what makes Roman so damn intriguing.

Polanski is a genius.

Polanski has led one of the most interesting lives of anyone in the film industry, and it was great to read about his many misadventures, misfortunes, and mistakes, as viewed from the director's perspective. I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes the Polanski's films or has been intrigued by his sensationalized history.