Faces

by John Cassavetes, Al Ruban (Editor)

In 1965, Faces existed only as an idea in the mind of a director. In the years that followed, it evolved into a stage play, then a monumental film treatment 215 pages long, and finally, into a breakthrough American film. From inception to completion, the making of Faces is described in detail by writer-director John Cassavetes and his director of photography Al Ruban: how locations were selected, the type of film and lighting used in each sequence, the money problems, the sound problems, and the grueling months of editing and re-editing that took place behind the closed doors of the cutting room. Especially illuminating to every student of film is the parallel-page comparison of the original treatment which details every shot, camera angle, zoom and pan, and the final script as taken directly from the soundtrack. What occurred between idea and execution represents nothing short of the creative process itself-- the molding of a sprawling idea into a tight-knit work of art.

Genres: Film

319 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1970

About the author

John Nicholas Cassavetes was an American actor, screenwriter, and director. He is considered a pioneer of American independent film.

Reviews

[Jeremy Moran · Rating 5 out of 5]

This publication of John Cassavetes’ Faces screenplay is wildly informative. This book boasts an introduction by Cassavetes on what led him to making this picture—as well as what he was attempting to reflect on through this screenplay—an essay by Al Ruban on the making of Faces, Al Ruban’s specifications on what cameras and lighting were used for each scene, and a side-by-side comparison of the original screen adaptation of Cassavetes’ play by the same name next to the final shooting script, which was taken by watching the final cut.

The best part about this book is how much the side-by-side comparison offers to its readers. So much dialogue was cut from the final version, but it is extremely insightful to be able to see how much writing was necessary to cement the feelings of the characters, explain how they got to where they got to, as well as dive even deeper to fragments mentioned in the final product. I really appreciated seeing how much material Cassavetes originally had to work with, because this full life, for all these characters, is very well reflected in the film—which I saw last summer.

Reading this book not only helped solidify the tremendous amount of respect I have for Cassavetes as an artist, but helped me understand that it is far better to have a lot of material to work with and see where the story goes from there than to under-develop the story to the point where you don’t have many places to go. It’s more interesting to let the characters speak their minds and see where they go, and go back and trim what you already have to shape and mold the story they are trying to tell.

Extremely valuable book.