Stanley Kubrick: A Biography

DIDN'T REALLY LEARN ANYTHING I ALREADY DIDN'T KNOW.

Amazing Book! Beautiful Biography of one of my Favorite Directors.

If you're interested in genius, you'll love this book

Stanley Kubrick was an enigma of a man. Because of the secrecy that shrouded his life, there is much that fans of his work may never know. John Baxter's work is gives insight mostly into Kubrick's films and their creation.Baxter's first two chapters seem irrelevant and tedious in the scope of the book. They only serve to allow Baxter to praise Kubrick's work. After these chapters, we are introduced to Stanley's growth and development in films. Kubrick's early films which he thought were bad in hindsight, show his growth and experimentation. Going through his other films, I found the chapters which discussed "A Clockwork Orange" and "2001" to be the best presented. This is adventageous because these are his best loved films.I believe that it was merciful for "Eyes Wide Shut" to be given so little coverage since Kubrick never truly was able to put his final stamp on the film. He tinkered with work often up until days before its release. Aside from his horrid choice of actors, his death left this work unfinished.Kubrick's idiosincrisies, including his fear of cars, flying, and distrust for machines, are discussed in the book. While they may seem irrevelant, these discussions help us to know who Kubrick was. The discussions are no more irrelevant than some sections of the book which talk about events regarding his movies that have little to do with the overall picture. Also, I felt it was unnecessary to go into discussion of every script he rejected. Some ideas he rejected to quickly to be important enough to mention.I was grateful that Baxter mentioned "Artificial Intelligence", being developed by Kubrick. Fans are curious as to how his final script may have looked. I am certain that it would have been better than Speilberg's.

"Born in the Bronx in 1928 of Central European stock, Kubrick still lives in moody seclusion in Borehamwood, where he bought a house soon after moving to the UK in 1961."Apparently news of Kubrick's death (in March of 1999) hasn't reached this copywriter.

I found Baxter's book an enjoyable read, lively and somewhat informative, though apparently not the work of awesome scholarship that Lubrutto's book is. I haven't read that tome yet, but will soon, fascinated as I am by all things Kubrick. I didn't have the reaction that others have had concerning Baxter's feelings toward Kubrick. As far as I could tell, he seemed to have an appropriate level of respect. Baxter is obviously not a film scholar or someone too well versed in the technical side of filmmaking, but he keeps the book moving along briskly. This certainly a good start-up for someone new to Kubrick's films.

Not being a Kubrick fundi and not knowing all that much about the man behind the (enormous) myth, I found this book readable and interesting. I have to agree that it does not contain much in the way of analysis of Kubrick's movies, but that is probably not what the author had set out to do. It would have been a colossal and much less accessible work had he dealt at length with each of the movies.What I cannot understand is the reaction of some of the reviewers, saying that the author was intent on crucifying Kubrick. That was certainly not my impression when I read the book, but then I do not regard Kubrick as per se a wonderful person becasue he made acclaimed movies. He comes across as a much warmer and more human person than I expected, give his reclusive lifestyle, but also as someone who had some flaws, like an inability to start and finish projects. And that is also what was said about him after his death, so I think Baxter is maybe not that far off the mark in his portrayal.

Helps you realize why you love Kubrick, if you can read between the lines and if you don't get fixated on the tales of Kubrickophobism. While entertaining, they are not all that the book is about. The author does not present Kubricks work in 5-syllable Aestheto-socio-philosophical terms, nor does he fuss about the geometrical aspects of panning and scanning, yet he encourages you to re-visit Kubrick, and multiply your viewing experince!Not a text book, for sure!

This is a less academic biography than LoBrutto's, but is nevertheless a decent book, well worth a read alongside Herr's book and LoBrutto's book. Baxter is more critical of Kubrick than LoBrutto, much more so, and it often seems that Baxter is keen to convey the impression that Kubrick liked to f**k with people's heads for his own enjoyment. Whether this is true or not is difficult to tell, but many of the incidents in the book seem to bear this out. LoBrutto, Herr and Baxter agree on Kubrick's genius, and nobody would argue with the fact that he is one of the most important directors, but one gets the impression from Baxter that although he was always a genius, he was not always a gentleman.

Kubrick revealed, warts, foibles and all.

Well recieved as a gift

Great book, enjoyed reading it, helped me understand a little more of his astounding work and mind. Worth the buy.

Excellent reading. For all film buffs.