Roger Ebert's Video Companion

by Roger Ebert

Fully indexed by title, stars, and director and thoroughly cross-referenced, this guide to movies on video also features lists of outstanding movies, new interviews, and full-length reviews. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0836236882
• ISBN13: 9780836236880
• Release Date: January 1997
• Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
• Length: 987 Pages
• Weight: 2.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 2.0" x 7.5" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

A nightly read for me

I once saw Siskel and Ebert speak in Cleveland, Ohio. After they tossed opinions back and forth about the great and not-so-great films of that year, a person in the audience asked them how they differed as critics. Without hesitation, Gene said he was repeatedly outdone by Roger's ability to write beautiful essays. Beautiful, he said. And in this book, you are continuously hit with just that. Roger Ebert has the ability to distill the essence of a film in words that often leave me amazed. He is able to pinpoint the exact moment in a film that doesn't leave you, the moment that stays with you for days, and is able to describe the human dimensions beneath that moment with insightful detail and accuracy. As an avid fan of film, I repeatedly turn to Roger Ebert's Video Companion, not because I want to know whether or not I should watch a movie. But because I learn a little bit more about life from his reviews.

Informative

Roger Ebert, by my opinion, is the greatest living film critic out there writing today. He brings a touch of intellectuality to his reviews. They are really informative and interesting. Those who say they are too long must not enjoy reading or being well-informed on a film's intellectual issues. Of course, like a good film critic, I don't always agree with his ratings (I totally disagree with his arguement on giving four stars to "The Last Temptation Of Christ"). But mostly I do, and his video guide is the best out there. I also enjoyed the fact that he keeps old reviews in print. It's interesting to read his comments on films such as "Scarface," "JFK," "Natural Born Killers," and "Apollo 13." Ebert embodies in his books how film criticsm should be approached. He makes Leonard Maltin look like a momma's boy or boy scout (he obviously didn't understand the message in "Natural Born Killers" and obviously coulden't reach the peak of intelligence Ebert shows here). In the area of video guides, Ebert's continues to be the best. I hope he keeps them coming!

More essay collection than standard review book...

This is a great book. Ebert's writing style is solid and his reviews are in depth and on the mark. The only slight problem, or maybe misconception, I had with the book was that it isn't the review book you've come to expect. Instead of a quick blurb on if the film is good and worth watching,this book contains full length reviews which are a lot more comphrehensive than most review books (sometimes a little too much info is given,spoiling things if you haven't seen the film).If you're in the market for a book to give you brief good/bad reviews of films, try the Leonard Maltin book, but if you want more essay-like reviews this is for you. It does come with a small booklet with star ratings only for most films.

Very Handy

I use this book like a Bible. I love the in-depth reviews that cover everything Mr. Ebert needs to say. Plus it's handy because we agree on films almost always.