PDF The Wild Bunch Sam Peckinpah a Revolution in Hollywood and the Making of a Legendary Film W K Stratton 9781632862129 Books

Download As PDF : The Wild Bunch Sam Peckinpah a Revolution in Hollywood and the Making of a Legendary Film W K Stratton 9781632862129 Books

For the fiftieth anniversary of the film, W.K. Stratton’s definitive history of the making of The Wild Bunch, named one of the greatest Westerns of all time by the American Film Institute.

Sam Peckinpah’s film The Wild Bunch is the story of a gang of outlaws who are one big steal from retirement. When their attempted train robbery goes awry, the gang flees to Mexico and falls in with a brutal general of the Mexican Revolution, who offers them the job of a lifetime. Conceived by a stuntman, directed by a blacklisted director, and shot in the sand and heat of the Mexican desert, the movie seemed doomed. Instead, it became an instant classic with a dark, violent take on the Western movie tradition.

In The Wild Bunch, W.K. Stratton tells the fascinating history of the making of the movie and documents for the first time the extraordinary contribution of Mexican and Mexican-American actors and crew members to the movie’s success. Shaped by infamous director Sam Peckinpah, and starring such visionary actors as William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Edmond O’Brien, and Robert Ryan, the movie was also the product of an industry and a nation in transition. By 1968, when the movie was filmed, the studio system that had perpetuated the myth of the valiant cowboy in movies like The Searchers had collapsed, and America was riled by Vietnam, race riots, and assassinations. The Wild Bunch spoke to America in its moment, when war and senseless violence seemed to define both domestic and international life.

The Wild Bunch is an authoritative history of the making of a movie and the era behind it.

PDF The Wild Bunch Sam Peckinpah a Revolution in Hollywood and the Making of a Legendary Film W K Stratton 9781632862129 Books

"The book is padded with biographical CHAPTERS on multiple cast members -- material that has been already been covered in other books, often at greater length & depth. One hopes (in fact, demands) that when the topic is something that has received a lot of attention in a lot of books, that the new entry brings a fresh mind to the table with, at minimum, a new spin. Alas, not here. The above-referenced padding is a dead giveaway that this author has NOTHING new to say. In fact, he has nothing to to say. And, he does it poorly to boot. He thinks Dutch betrayed Angel. Anyone knows that the mother of the girl he killed ratted him out to Mapache. Dutch merely had to go along with it, having been been put on the spot. this is hardly the same as "betraying" Angel. (However, no doubt that some bookhouse lawyer will enthusiastically split hairs like any dumb damn fan boy.) On page 126 there is an indisputable factual error. The author says that Holden and Hepburn fell in love making SABRINA when both were already married. SABRINA was filmed in 1953. She married M. Ferrer in September 1954, just as the film was released. When I read that, I wanted to throw the book in the trash. I still might."

Product details Hardcover 352 pages Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing (February 12, 2019) Language English ISBN-10 1632862123

Tags : The Wild Bunch Sam Peckinpah, a Revolution in Hollywood, and the Making of a Legendary Film [W. K. Stratton] on . <b>For the fiftieth anniversary of the film, W.K. Stratton’s definitive history of the making of The Wild Bunch</i>,W. K. Stratton,The Wild Bunch Sam Peckinpah, a Revolution in Hollywood, and the Making of a Legendary Film,Bloomsbury Publishing,1632862123,Western films - United States - History and criticism,Western films;History and criticism.,Western films;United States;History and criticism.,100301 Bloomsbury US Adult HC,Cinema-Film,FILM CRITICISM,GENERAL,General Adult,Hispanic/Latino American,History,Non-Fiction,PERFORMING ARTS / Film / Genres / Westerns,PERFORMING ARTS / Film / History Criticism,United States,WESTERN FILMS,peckinpa; Mexico; William Holden; studio system; Stratton; Ernest Borgnine; old Hollywood; Hollywood blacklist; cowboy movie; the making of; directing; Major Dundee; Straw Dogs; Movie history; Texas movie industry; classic film books; Vietnam war; American film history; history of cinema; golden era of hollywood; Hollywood golden age; director biographies; history of filmmaking; Western epics; outlaws; violence,Movie history; Peckinpa; Texas movie industry; Mexico; classic film books; William Holden; Ernest Borgnine; Vietnam war; studio system; Stratton; American film history; history of cinema; old Hollywood; Western epics; Hollywood blacklist; cowboy movie; the making of; golden era of hollywood; Hollywood golden age; director biographies; history of filmmaking; Peckinpa; outlaws; William Holden; Ernest Borgnine; old Hollywood; Hollywood blacklist; cowboy movie; directing; Major Dundee; Straw Dogs; violence

The Wild Bunch Sam Peckinpah a Revolution in Hollywood and the Making of a Legendary Film W K Stratton 9781632862129 Books Reviews :

The Wild Bunch Sam Peckinpah a Revolution in Hollywood and the Making of a Legendary Film W K Stratton 9781632862129 Books Reviews

• The book is padded with biographical CHAPTERS on multiple cast members -- material that has been already been covered in other books, often at greater length & depth. One hopes (in fact, demands) that when the topic is something that has received a lot of attention in a lot of books, that the new entry brings a fresh mind to the table with, at minimum, a new spin. Alas, not here. The above-referenced padding is a dead giveaway that this author has NOTHING new to say. In fact, he has nothing to to say. And, he does it poorly to boot. He thinks Dutch betrayed Angel. Anyone knows that the mother of the girl he killed ratted him out to Mapache. Dutch merely had to go along with it, having been been put on the spot. this is hardly the same as "betraying" Angel. (However, no doubt that some bookhouse lawyer will enthusiastically split hairs like any dumb damn fan boy.) On page 126 there is an indisputable factual error. The author says that Holden and Hepburn fell in love making SABRINA when both were already married. SABRINA was filmed in 1953. She married M. Ferrer in September 1954, just as the film was released. When I read that, I wanted to throw the book in the trash. I still might.
• I had great hopes for this book, but it covers no new territory or has anything really insightful to say about Peckinpah's
  masterwork. Really it is just a fan boy's love letter to the film. The author often knocks other films to enhance The Wild Bunch's reputation, which is unnecessary and often questionable. The author goes out of his way to dismiss the Western scores of Elmer Bernstein, especially for The Magnificent Seven but Jerry Fielding's excellent score for The Wild Bunch often uses the same orchestral tropes Bernstein does, and is in no way innovative or unusual.
  I was also troubled by his reference to Eli Wallach as a "Jew." Which I guess he means Wallach should not play a Mexican
  like his role in Leone's The Good, The Bad And The Ugly. I love The Wild Bunch and it is ill served by this stupid fawning
  book.
• Stratton's book is a non stop fest of anecdotes about everyone who slowly, unevenly, tumultuously guided this brilliant work to the screen and into legend. Stratton makes clear that truly this film was a collective effort, the best work of many people. Altogether fitting that the film should first be a gleam in the eye of a legendary stuntman, and that Peckinpah would not allow himself to drink while he was actual at work on it. (Evenings, he confined himself to beer. He was even then such a confirmed alcoholic he could not stop drinking altogether.) Not least of Peckilnpah's genius in the making was to keep the studio's paws off the prints and the editing when they were filming down in Parras Mexico. Stratton makes clear too the chaos and camaraderie of the set and the shoot in 1968. He offers enough backgrounds on the Mexican revolution to inform the reader. (But fails to note that Parras Mexico is where Pancho Villa "retired" and where in 1924 he was assassinated.) Enough wonderful bits here to make readers the hit of any cocktail party with trivial. Such as, Ernest Borgnine, the only combat veteran among the cast jumped when he heard some rounds going off; he knew the difference between live ammo and blanks. And sure enough, the ammo that the "Federales" carried were the real thing. Quickly changed. Stratton has a crowded canvas to explore and he does well and vividly. However, towards the end, once the post production stuff starts, the book is not as compelling. Except for this one fact If you ever wondered why "Cabal Hogue" was such a weirdo western (not a weird as Paint Your Wagon, also starring Lee Marvin, but weird) look no further than these pages. Peckinpah was directing Cabal Hogue by day and editing THE WILD BUNCH at night out there in the middle of the desert, and I feel certain he reversed his drinking vows, and stayed sober at night so he could create this masterpiece.
• This is a well written and thoroughly researched book. It goes far beyond merely analyzing the film The Wild Bunch and the career of its director, Sam Peckinpah. It also offers a partial biography of Peckinpah, biographical sketches of several of the other key people involved in the making of the movie, chunks of history about Hollywood and western films, contextual historical information about U.S.-Mexico border relations that influenced the plot of the film, etc. Reading the book is an educational experience. The only qualifier I will put on this positive review is that some might find the book too exhaustive. You have to care an awful lot about The Wild Bunch, Peckinpah, and the film industry from the era, to want to take in all of this information. The content could have been cut by a third or more, and the reader would still have come away with a deeper understanding of the topics mentioned in the subtitle. So it's just a matter of how much information you'd want from a book like this. But in any case, it's written very well and is highly informative.
• I've loved The Wild Bunch since it first knocked my socks off on opening day in 1969, and I lost count of how many times since. If I find it on cable, I watch it. And it works every time, just like the first time.
  
  This book is totally worthy of this movie. What a helluva story!
• On the 50th anniversary of the movies release, the book underscores its importance in America's cinematic pantheon. If violence is the first word that comes to mind, make sure you read and understand how our world was shaped by forces beyond our control. From no more cavalry charges to the automobile age and the people left behind, much like today. Even more so with the introduction of modern weapons of war. The book covers every aspect of film making including remarkable stories about the many actors. Of course, Sam Peckinpah hovers over all. One precious detail in the book, at least for me. The full and complete film score is now available with only 2,000 made. Earlier versions may not have had a signature moment when the Mexican farewell song comes into the plot, "La Golondrina" This book is a genuine treasure chest of information about as the author says "a legendary film" Superb writing. Enjoyable to the max!