I'm a huge film buff, and used to watching a lot of films. However, I'm also looking to learn more about them, so I wanted to ask the people on these boards if they have any recommendations for some good reads on topics such as the following:

- Film History (by decades or whatnot)
- Genres
- Directors/Stars (biographies, etc.)
- Film criticism
- Film theory

This is because I'd really like to expand my knowledge on movies beyond just watching them; I looked up books in the library but there were so many I didn't even know where to begin.

I'd really appreciate if anyone can recommend any good titles worth reading... stuff like "Easy Riders, Raging Bulls" or something similar.

Writings from other film critics are also welcome!!

Thanks a lot!!

Paul Verhoevenby Rob Van Scheers and Aletta Stevens is a great book about the director and his films.

Down and Dirty Pictures: Miramax, Sundance, and the Rise of Independent Film by Peter Biskind is a great source for dirt on Miramax, Robert Redford and the struggles of some indy filmmakers.

All I Need to Know about Filmmaking I Learned from the Toxic Avenger by Lloyd Kaufman is an amazing piece on the history of Troma with some good tidbits about filming on a very limited budget. There's even a good recipe to make buckets of fake blood on the cheap.

How I Made A Hundred Movies In Hollywood And Never Lost A Dimeby Roger Corman is another excellent source for the ins and outs of ultra-low budget filmmaking.

Rebel Without A Crew by Robert Rodriguez - the cradle to grave story of how El Mariachi came together

Spielberg, Truffaut & Me: An Actor's Diary by Bob Balaban was an entertaining read and actually contains some useful information as well. It's about the making of Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

I haven't read it yet and don't know the exact title, but there is a book in which Truffaut interviews Hitchcock about his movies and techniques, which is said to be quite good.

http://www.paulschrader.org/writings.html

Happy reading.

Just started reading this one...

Thanks to all for the suggestions; there's plenty to keep me busy now!

If you're a fan of Alfred Hitchcock check out...Hitchcock by Francois Truffaut (I think he once directed something too, no?)

Quickly (and with Amazon links):

Scorsese by Ebert
Shoptalk: Conversations About Theater and Film With Twelve Writers
and, for those wanting something a bit more tabloidy,
Bambi Vs. Godzilla -- this one is from David Mamet and so comes with the threat of maybe having to read about Rebecca Pidgeon. Ha! HA! HHAAHHHAHAHAH!! Seriously though: she's just terrible. The book, however, is amusing and informative even if it does tend toward the bitchy.

Final Cut : Art, Money, and Ego in the Making of Heaven's Gate, the Film That Sank United Artists by Steven Bach. Read this for a MassComm class in college and found it pretty interesting.