This revised and updated edition of the Wallflower Critical Guide encompasses the careers of up to 600 directors that have worked within the North American film industry, including Canada, since the early 1990s. This edition features new or revised material on 150 directors, and includes coverage of mainstream luminaries such as Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg and Robert Altman, independent mavericks like Hal Hartley and Jim Jarmusch, and innovative emerging talents including Todd Field (In the Bedroom), David Gordon Green (George Washington) and Marc Forster (Monster's Ball). This volume thus continues to be a unique reference to the changing dynamics of the world's most consumed cinema.

Yoram Allon is Editorial Director of Wallflower Press. Del Cullen is Chief Editor of Wallflower Press and a novelist and screenwriter. Hannah Patterson is Associate Editor of Wallflower Press and a freelance film critic.

2002
608 pages
978-1-903364-52-9    £18.99 (pbk)


view contents


chapter samples
Editors' Preface
List of Contributors
Introduction to the First Edition by Nick James (Sight and Sound)
Foreword to the Second Edition by Neil LaBute


reviews
‘MUST BUY. This concise, lively guide to helmers currently plying their trade in the States threatens to become indispensable … particularly pleasing is the way that directors who tend not to get much attention are given long shrift here … it’s also pleasingly up-to-date ... An invaluable reference tool and thoroughly enjoyable read.’
Empire magazine

‘Offers an extremely useful, incisive and lucid account of an extraordinary range of modern American filmmakers.’
Geoff Andrew, Time Out

‘Editors Allon, Cullen and Patterson retain the high quality of the first edition of this work, the inaugural volume in Wallflower Press’s series on contemporary film directors … More than 80 critics contributed to this work … the entries are well written and informative. As with the first edition, the book’s strength is its currency – it includes many first-time directors and the editors pay attention to lowbrow as well as highbrow filmmakers, encompassing both John Waters and Martin Scorsese. Considering the variety of directors included … this guide is essential for all film studies collections.’
Library Journal

‘The writing is lucid and the information is remarkably current; entries often cite upcoming films currently in production … This directory offers unique content … This unparalleled directory should be purchased for film students, researchers, and enthusiasts in academic and public libraries.’
Booklist

‘Wallflower Press is a new UK publisher dedicated to building a popular academic list of new media and film studies books … Contemporary North American Film Directors is an excellent launch and real bargain for the quality … Judgements are informative, perceptive, and on the mark … The strongest point of this volume is its currency, with freshman directors featured throughout. A concluding index to all films listed is a notable bonus … One hopes that this quick guide to current cinema will find a wide audience … Highly recommended for all film studies collections.’
Anthony J. Adam

'Distinguished, if not made indispensable, by its willingness to include as many directors as possible, even if they have made but one film.'
www.cinemonkey.com


Praise for the first edition:

‘This is the first comprehensive critical dictionary of American cinema in quite some time, and although the task it undertakes is immense, it is, on the whole, a remarkably successful effort … It is not too much to say that this volume reconfigures and transforms the landscape of contemporary cinema criticism … All of the essays are meticulously written and edited, and there are, rather amazingly, no real factual errors in this volume, which is impressive, given the fact that it covers the complete careers and filmographies of over 500 filmmakers, is fully indexed, and at 535 tightly packed pages, stunningly comprehensive. At a time when reviews in newspapers and magazines seem designed to promote rather than examine films, this is a book that should be welcomed by academics and laypersons alike.’
Professor Wheeler Winston Dixon, Film Quarterly

‘…registers the profound change in the landscape of American movies since the era of classical cinema with a comprehensive guide to major works and directorial styles of current American and Canadian filmmakers, from big studio star to first-time independent. The entries are up-to-date, lively and informed; the Critical Guide promises to be an indispensable resource for all those who love American cinema.’
Professor Richard Allen, New York University

'The new line of books about film and filmmaking from Wallflower Press in London is a real achievement. Contemporary North American Film Directors, with a whopping 535 beautifully-designed pages, is not just a who’s-who list, it’s a definitive resource in which each director and his or her work is analyzed: a massive exhaustive undertaking that is rewarding and successful.’
Blaine Kyllo, Geist

‘A valuable tool for film students or enthusiasts.’
Variety

‘A handy reference book.’
Hotdog

‘This volume is comprehensive and up-to-date … A handy reference guide
... Put together with intelligence and enthusiasm, each entry provides a meticulous account of its subject’s career … As a one-stop reference stop, this certainly deserves to become a staple.’
Film Review

‘Truly fantastic.’
Peter Curran’s The Big Picture, London Live

‘The entries are concise, pithy and on the nose … There is no quarrelling with the inclusiveness and intelligence that the book has to offer. Put in on your shelf – you’ll be reaching for it very often.’
Starlog 15

‘The first edition of this invaluable guide proved to be an invaluable addition to any cineaste’s shelf, and this expanded second edition is even more useful … You’ll find this one enjoying your frequent attention.’
Barry Forshaw

‘A well thought-out and organised reference book … An impressive feat.’
If magazine

‘General readers, students, and filmmakers will devour the factual information, interpretation, and lively criticism of these concise essays … The informal style takes the insider tone of film aficionados … Highly recommended.’
CHOICE

‘The entries are well written and informative … This guide is essential for all studies collections.’
www.booksmatter.com

‘A work of quality.’
www.cercles.com

‘A very satisfying, informative reference book. The biographical notes are pertinent and can be quite illuminating especially for emerging directors trying to find their own vision.’
www.6degrees.com

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Contemporary British and Irish Film Dirtectors A Wallflower Critical Guide
The Cinema of David Lynch: American Dreams, Nightmare Visions
The Cinema of Terrence Malick: Poetic Visions of America
The Cinema of George A. Romero: Knight of the Living Dead
The Cinema of Todd Haynes: All That Heaven Allows