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Heaven and Mel
Joe Eszterhas and Mel Gibson had a global confrontation in April of this year over their movie "The Maccabees". "Heaven and Mel" is Eszterhas's explosive, unabridged, no-holds-barred account. It is a Hollywood story but it's not. It is the story of love and hatred, of anti-Semitism and fathers and sons, and of a movie star's tragic sexual obsession. It is the story of God and the Devil, devastating but often hilarious. It is Joe Eszterhas at his best: two-fisted, movingly sensitive, always outrageous.
136 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 2, 2012
11 people are currently reading
82 people want to read
About the author
Joe Eszterhas
21 books25 followersJoe Eszterhas is a Hungarian-American screenwriter, known for films such as Jagged Edge, Music Box, Basic Instinct and Showgirls. Before becoming a screenwriter he was a journalist and has also written non-fiction books and memoirs.
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October 23, 2025
Joe Eszterhas is hired to write a script for a "Jewish Braveheart" movie which Mel Gibson will direct called "The Maccabees" - except when the script was written, the studio Warner Bros. didn't want to make the picture and Mel didn't respond to Joe at all. The picture was dead in the water and Joe felt Mel had led him on, that Mel never intended to make the movie at all, it was all just PR to help his image. So Joe got his own back on Mel, writing this tell-all book about his time with Mel Gibson and it's pretty revealing.
The book is great fun to read, confirming what most people already think about Mel Gibson - that he is losing his mind. There are moments in the book where he flat out starts screaming and raging for no real reason, one time flying off the handle because he sees a picture of himself looking old and balding! We get to peek behind the curtain at the privileged life of Mel's, his luxury Malibu home, his church, his mansion in the Costa Rican mountainside - it's really an amazing life which makes his unhappiness all the more palpable.
As for the content about Mel, the crazy stuff was already written about in the 9 page letter from Joe which preceded this book, though there are some other revelations about Mel such as his hair implants and the nickname for his penis - "Benny the Rat". The book sets the scene for the crazed rants well and shows a man who has it all behaving like a spoilt brat. It's a refreshing look at a movie star from the kind of softball interviews we tend to see on TV and junkets.
While Mel comes across as a sociopath and a man on his way to a breakdown or heart attack, Joe comes across as a bit sanctimonious and above it all, like a lot of fervent religious people. To Joe, God is always giving him signs to guide him in his life, at times literally speaking to Joe, who wears Christian medallions to protect himself from the demons assaulting him as he writes about the Maccabees. He even goes so far as to burn a painting his teenage son did of Mephistopheles (with his son's consent but still). And while he is highly principled, the heart he writes about as guiding him through his life seems to be missing when it's revealed to him that his father participated in pro-Nazi literature in the 30s and 40s, something he never forgave his father for, cutting him out of his life entirely, even forsaking him on his deathbed.
So this is a book about two odd men though Mel comes across far the worse and yes I do believe it to be an accurate depiction of the actor. There's too much evidence to believe otherwise, and if you want to hear the tape Joe's son Nick made of Mel blowing up in Costa Rica during dinner, it's on Youtube, have a listen.
It's a compelling read and a sad portrait of a man once admired by many who clearly has some deep personality problems that have starting coming out more and more in the last 8 years. Joe intimates that there are stories of Mel's behaviour going back to the 80s so Mel's lucky he got away with it for so long before others found out he was a disturbed and disturbing individual.
Joe says he wrote this mostly because he wanted to protect himself and Mel's former wife, Oksana, whom Mel makes several threatening remarks about in Joe's presence, along the lines that he's going to have her killed. If he puts this out there, anything that happens to him or Oksana is likely to lead back to Mel and so put him off from following through with his threats. Mostly, I think it's good that a bully like Mel is being exposed for who he really is and that he's finally being punished for his shocking behaviour.
For less than the price of a Starbucks coffee, "Heaven and Mel" is a delicious piece of Hollywood gossip from a gifted writer about one of the (former) biggest stars in the world. Anyone interested in the Mel Gibson downfall will find plenty here to enjoy.
The book is great fun to read, confirming what most people already think about Mel Gibson - that he is losing his mind. There are moments in the book where he flat out starts screaming and raging for no real reason, one time flying off the handle because he sees a picture of himself looking old and balding! We get to peek behind the curtain at the privileged life of Mel's, his luxury Malibu home, his church, his mansion in the Costa Rican mountainside - it's really an amazing life which makes his unhappiness all the more palpable.
As for the content about Mel, the crazy stuff was already written about in the 9 page letter from Joe which preceded this book, though there are some other revelations about Mel such as his hair implants and the nickname for his penis - "Benny the Rat". The book sets the scene for the crazed rants well and shows a man who has it all behaving like a spoilt brat. It's a refreshing look at a movie star from the kind of softball interviews we tend to see on TV and junkets.
While Mel comes across as a sociopath and a man on his way to a breakdown or heart attack, Joe comes across as a bit sanctimonious and above it all, like a lot of fervent religious people. To Joe, God is always giving him signs to guide him in his life, at times literally speaking to Joe, who wears Christian medallions to protect himself from the demons assaulting him as he writes about the Maccabees. He even goes so far as to burn a painting his teenage son did of Mephistopheles (with his son's consent but still). And while he is highly principled, the heart he writes about as guiding him through his life seems to be missing when it's revealed to him that his father participated in pro-Nazi literature in the 30s and 40s, something he never forgave his father for, cutting him out of his life entirely, even forsaking him on his deathbed.
So this is a book about two odd men though Mel comes across far the worse and yes I do believe it to be an accurate depiction of the actor. There's too much evidence to believe otherwise, and if you want to hear the tape Joe's son Nick made of Mel blowing up in Costa Rica during dinner, it's on Youtube, have a listen.
It's a compelling read and a sad portrait of a man once admired by many who clearly has some deep personality problems that have starting coming out more and more in the last 8 years. Joe intimates that there are stories of Mel's behaviour going back to the 80s so Mel's lucky he got away with it for so long before others found out he was a disturbed and disturbing individual.
Joe says he wrote this mostly because he wanted to protect himself and Mel's former wife, Oksana, whom Mel makes several threatening remarks about in Joe's presence, along the lines that he's going to have her killed. If he puts this out there, anything that happens to him or Oksana is likely to lead back to Mel and so put him off from following through with his threats. Mostly, I think it's good that a bully like Mel is being exposed for who he really is and that he's finally being punished for his shocking behaviour.
For less than the price of a Starbucks coffee, "Heaven and Mel" is a delicious piece of Hollywood gossip from a gifted writer about one of the (former) biggest stars in the world. Anyone interested in the Mel Gibson downfall will find plenty here to enjoy.
May 14, 2014
When I picked this to read I wasn't already aware of the story behind it. I knew that Mel Gibson had said some nasty things when arrested for drunk-driving a few years ago. I didn't know about the other events, the ones that are in this book and are apparently public.
It's a fascinating read. You can tell Eszterhas is a writer used to creating tension and focussing a narrative. So I was gripped and read it in a day, which is fast for me (it's almost 40,000 words). Gibson comes across as a man who has his demons as well as a demonic temper. There's also a sense of just how rich he was that I guess I don't normally think about. Seen from a safe distance it was a wild ride.
The question has been raised of Eszterhas' role in events - I can't speak to the truth of his version of events. There are some things that occur that raised my eyebrows. He starts the story with his own religious conversion and openly states that a genuine miracle was involved in him choosing to write the script for Gibson's film. So when he describes Gibson as a religious nut you wonder at his objectivity but it does go to highlight just how far off the reservation Mel is (which is perhaps the point). Perhaps it's also a way of dodging cricitism about why he got involved (he signed after both Mel's initial anti-semitic comments and after his own personal experience of a Gibson rant).
But I've no reason to want to try to separate the inter-personal feuding from the truth here - I just enjoyed the ride while it lasted.
It's a fascinating read. You can tell Eszterhas is a writer used to creating tension and focussing a narrative. So I was gripped and read it in a day, which is fast for me (it's almost 40,000 words). Gibson comes across as a man who has his demons as well as a demonic temper. There's also a sense of just how rich he was that I guess I don't normally think about. Seen from a safe distance it was a wild ride.
The question has been raised of Eszterhas' role in events - I can't speak to the truth of his version of events. There are some things that occur that raised my eyebrows. He starts the story with his own religious conversion and openly states that a genuine miracle was involved in him choosing to write the script for Gibson's film. So when he describes Gibson as a religious nut you wonder at his objectivity but it does go to highlight just how far off the reservation Mel is (which is perhaps the point). Perhaps it's also a way of dodging cricitism about why he got involved (he signed after both Mel's initial anti-semitic comments and after his own personal experience of a Gibson rant).
But I've no reason to want to try to separate the inter-personal feuding from the truth here - I just enjoyed the ride while it lasted.
August 9, 2012
Born again Christianity Hollywood style. Egos so big, God and saints speak to them person to person; sorry, divinity to divinity. In the end nobody looks good after all is said and read. I went and washed my hands after finishing the book. Now, to disinfect my Kindle ....
December 2, 2012
Let's put it this way: I could have lived six lifetimes without ever needing to read about Mel Gibson's enemas and butt sludge.
Eszterhas keeps trying to reach for some kind of moral high ground, but he never makes it. He is as superstitious and blind as he paints Gibson to be, and his outrage is almost laughable, considering he really did seem to use Gibson to get what he wanted.
This book would have been far more compelling if it had been honest on both sides. Eszterhas is so busy as painting himself not-Mel and by comparison, flawless, that we can't trust his account of what Mel Gibson really is like.
Don't get me wrong: there's enough evidence out there without Eszterhas's account to have me believe Gibson is as racist, vain, spoiled, childish and violent as he appears to be here. To paint him as such is shooting the proverbial fish in the barrel. What was needed was a true honesty and admission of humanity from Eszterhas, an identification WITH the monster, and a journey of self-awareness that led him to a better place.
Obviously no such journey took place, so this book is merely a series of stabs at a powerful but spoiled brat who is already bleeding from dozens of self-inflicted wounds.
No benefit was had except money in Eszterhas's pocket from the sale of the book, and some flimsy attempt at the protection of his own reputation.
Eszterhas keeps trying to reach for some kind of moral high ground, but he never makes it. He is as superstitious and blind as he paints Gibson to be, and his outrage is almost laughable, considering he really did seem to use Gibson to get what he wanted.
This book would have been far more compelling if it had been honest on both sides. Eszterhas is so busy as painting himself not-Mel and by comparison, flawless, that we can't trust his account of what Mel Gibson really is like.
Don't get me wrong: there's enough evidence out there without Eszterhas's account to have me believe Gibson is as racist, vain, spoiled, childish and violent as he appears to be here. To paint him as such is shooting the proverbial fish in the barrel. What was needed was a true honesty and admission of humanity from Eszterhas, an identification WITH the monster, and a journey of self-awareness that led him to a better place.
Obviously no such journey took place, so this book is merely a series of stabs at a powerful but spoiled brat who is already bleeding from dozens of self-inflicted wounds.
No benefit was had except money in Eszterhas's pocket from the sale of the book, and some flimsy attempt at the protection of his own reputation.
June 23, 2023
The rating is for the story and writing ability, but there is no chance I'd ever listen to or read this again. It's just a really unfun listen. I had somehow missed most of the blow-by-blow as the events retold here were going on and while I knew Mel Gibson was an unpleasant person, I had no idea just how much of a monster he is.
That said, I'm astonished by how insecure both of these guys are. Assuming Eszterhas is honest about the way he works, and his approach to life, there is just no reason for the crippling need to be liked that comes screaming out of every sentence. That is, of course, nothing compared to Mel's pathetic narcissism.
There's no nice way to posit this, but I'd be amazed if there wasn't awful abuse in the Gibson household when Mel was growing up. Allegories with (ostensibly, deeply) religious families ruled by paternal iron fists, using demonic metaphors to describe kids' titanic rages is a trope for a reason.
That said, I'm astonished by how insecure both of these guys are. Assuming Eszterhas is honest about the way he works, and his approach to life, there is just no reason for the crippling need to be liked that comes screaming out of every sentence. That is, of course, nothing compared to Mel's pathetic narcissism.
There's no nice way to posit this, but I'd be amazed if there wasn't awful abuse in the Gibson household when Mel was growing up. Allegories with (ostensibly, deeply) religious families ruled by paternal iron fists, using demonic metaphors to describe kids' titanic rages is a trope for a reason.
July 9, 2012
Ask a work of possible truth possible fiction. This one is something else. I'll be honest, hard to put down. It's a bit trashy, no doubt. And at times a little heavy handed, but what can I say, I enjoyed it. If it's truth, what a scary truth. If it's fiction, well it's still pretty readable.
October 15, 2012
I've been following Mel Gibson's descent into the darkness since the Oksana tapes broke in 2010, so, although I felt a little dirty about it, I bought and read this trashy but entertaining screed about Mel's latest outrage. I think there's simply too much evidence of Mel's psychosis to claim that this book isn't true, and in any event Eszterhas has the tape to back it up.
This is a very entertaining read. I'm not sure why we're so drawn to stories of Hollywood royalty falling from grace, but I guarantee you the reason you love the movie "Sunset Boulevard" is the same reason you might enjoy this book. Don't get me wrong, this book is very far from a masterpiece. It's hastily written, pretty self-centered, and dishes the dirt with such gusto that you feel guilty enjoying it. But it IS interesting.
Mel Gibson is a dangerous, misguided, hate-filled man. Anyone who's listened to those tapes knows that. I'm not sure whether Joe Eszterhas is the saint he portrays himself as, but I do think his motives in writing this book were generally noble, despite what others have said. But you have to take it with a grain of salt. After all, this guy wrote "Showgirls"!
This is a very entertaining read. I'm not sure why we're so drawn to stories of Hollywood royalty falling from grace, but I guarantee you the reason you love the movie "Sunset Boulevard" is the same reason you might enjoy this book. Don't get me wrong, this book is very far from a masterpiece. It's hastily written, pretty self-centered, and dishes the dirt with such gusto that you feel guilty enjoying it. But it IS interesting.
Mel Gibson is a dangerous, misguided, hate-filled man. Anyone who's listened to those tapes knows that. I'm not sure whether Joe Eszterhas is the saint he portrays himself as, but I do think his motives in writing this book were generally noble, despite what others have said. But you have to take it with a grain of salt. After all, this guy wrote "Showgirls"!
June 15, 2012
This book is a holier-than-thou hatchet job.
It gives chapter and verse on how insane and hateful Mel Gibson can be, with long pages of dialog, times and dates and places and unnecessary characters. It reads like a legal deposition until late in the book, when Eszterhas shovels in a bizarre description of how he imagined the Maccabees(a heroic Jewish family from 200 BC) moving into his study, invading his dreams, and speaking to him at odd moments. I began to wonder which of these men was more unhinged.
We all know Mel Gibson is a hater and a loon. This book is repetitive, lurid, and pointless. I hope Mr. Eszterhas gets his creativity back soon, and stops wasting his great talent on tacky Hollywood tell-alls.
It gives chapter and verse on how insane and hateful Mel Gibson can be, with long pages of dialog, times and dates and places and unnecessary characters. It reads like a legal deposition until late in the book, when Eszterhas shovels in a bizarre description of how he imagined the Maccabees(a heroic Jewish family from 200 BC) moving into his study, invading his dreams, and speaking to him at odd moments. I began to wonder which of these men was more unhinged.
We all know Mel Gibson is a hater and a loon. This book is repetitive, lurid, and pointless. I hope Mr. Eszterhas gets his creativity back soon, and stops wasting his great talent on tacky Hollywood tell-alls.
July 7, 2012
Insane. This book is both an intriguing look into the mind of a working screenwriter and a testament of the worst excesses of 'stardom' and misunderstood religion. A tragic tale of a once luminescent talent.
January 1, 2015
Tripe. Religious egomaniacal tripe.
November 11, 2020
Jealousy and envy at its worst.
June 12, 2022
HEAVEN AND MEL je Kindle Single Joea Eszterhasa napisan kao cash in u formi knjige posle njegovog razlaza sa Melom Gibsonom tokom rada na scenariju za film MACCABEES. Mel je upao u privatne probleme 2006.. koji su se dodatno iskomplikovali 2010. i 2011. a Joe je u kreativnom sunovratu još od sredine devedesetih i od 1997. praktično nije ništa ni realizovao tamo, samo jedan trashy nacionalni spektakl u Mađarskoj i to je to.
Informacija da se Gibson obratio Eszterhasu da mu piše scenario o Judi Makabejskom, i to za Warner Brothers, studio u kome Mel ima enorman legacy je delovao čudnovato anahrono jer Eszterhas odavno nije bio u nekom ozbiljnom opticaju kao autor, a od slavnih dana kada je obarao rekorde sa honorarima za scenarije i pisao blokbastere prošlo je petnaestak i više godina, skoro dvadeset, i Joe se u međuvremeno razboleo, postao hrišćanin i krenuo da piše Tell All knjige u kojima demistifikuje Holivud i koje važe za posao onih koji se ne mogu vratiti u industriju.
Otud mene ne iznenađuje da je došlo do razlaza među njima i da Mel nije bio zadovoljan skriptom koji je Joe napisao. Ali, knjiga koju je Joe napisao o tom iskustvu je dosta neočekivana reakcija.
Knjiga ima dramaturgiju scenarija, brzo se čita i lako bi se mogla adaptirati u skript. Motivacije likova su pojednostavljene, Joe je mučen grizodušjem za oca koji ga je učio liberalizmu i toleranciji a na kraju se ispostavilo da je bio hortijevski propagandista a Mel previše voli svog oca teoretičara zavere i negatora Holokausta da bi se izvukao iz njegove senke.
Joe Eszterhas svemu prilazi sa dozom nadnaravnosti i mističnosti. On je otkrio hrišćanstvo pod stare dane i stvari tumači kao signale sa nebesa. Kada priča sa producentom o projektu o Bogorodici sa Gvadalupe, ovaj mu se javlja iz Međugorja gde je doživeo neke jasne signale da nebesa žele da se taj film desi.
Tako Joe operiše tezom da je film o Isusu Hristu, kom se on divi, zapravo bio događaj tokom kog je đavo obuzeo Mela, i pošto ga nije sprečio da snimi jevanđelistički film, krenuo je da ga uništava u privatnom životu.
U tom smislu, ni Joe ne dolazi sa nekom tipičnom percepcijom stvarnosti. Čak naprotiv. Elem, u nekoliko navrata sugeriše da Mel ima psihičke probleme, ali ne beži ni od mogućnosti da se đavo umešao.
Sama dešavanja deluju kao kompilacija dobro poznatih Melovih ispada, sa zanimljivim opisima Melove svakodnevice i ljudima koji ga okružuju, što je možda i najvredniji deo ove knjge.
Celo iznošenje intime jednog čoveka da bi se sproveo lični obračun je prilično jezivo jer Eszterhas prenosi i niz njihovih privatnih razgovora koji su potpuno nevezani za osnovnu temu knjige, i kao i svaki privatni razgovor izvučen van konteksta deluju prosto bezveze.
U svakom slučaju, Joe Esztehas je možda našao način da mu se javljaju signali s one strane ali je i dalje senzacionalista. Ovo je verovatno najniže što je otišao ali to je cena koju Mel mora da plati za pogrešan izbor saradnika. Sama knjiga je pitka, veoma scenaristički postavljena i nudi niz zanimljivih detalja iz Melove svakodnevice za ljubitelje i poznavaoce. Sve ono što je temeljna ideja - a to su skandali kojima su svedočili Eszterhas i njegovi su manje-više poznate iz jmedija, tako da je paradoksalno ova knjiga vrednija Melovim hardkor fanovima.
Informacija da se Gibson obratio Eszterhasu da mu piše scenario o Judi Makabejskom, i to za Warner Brothers, studio u kome Mel ima enorman legacy je delovao čudnovato anahrono jer Eszterhas odavno nije bio u nekom ozbiljnom opticaju kao autor, a od slavnih dana kada je obarao rekorde sa honorarima za scenarije i pisao blokbastere prošlo je petnaestak i više godina, skoro dvadeset, i Joe se u međuvremeno razboleo, postao hrišćanin i krenuo da piše Tell All knjige u kojima demistifikuje Holivud i koje važe za posao onih koji se ne mogu vratiti u industriju.
Otud mene ne iznenađuje da je došlo do razlaza među njima i da Mel nije bio zadovoljan skriptom koji je Joe napisao. Ali, knjiga koju je Joe napisao o tom iskustvu je dosta neočekivana reakcija.
Knjiga ima dramaturgiju scenarija, brzo se čita i lako bi se mogla adaptirati u skript. Motivacije likova su pojednostavljene, Joe je mučen grizodušjem za oca koji ga je učio liberalizmu i toleranciji a na kraju se ispostavilo da je bio hortijevski propagandista a Mel previše voli svog oca teoretičara zavere i negatora Holokausta da bi se izvukao iz njegove senke.
Joe Eszterhas svemu prilazi sa dozom nadnaravnosti i mističnosti. On je otkrio hrišćanstvo pod stare dane i stvari tumači kao signale sa nebesa. Kada priča sa producentom o projektu o Bogorodici sa Gvadalupe, ovaj mu se javlja iz Međugorja gde je doživeo neke jasne signale da nebesa žele da se taj film desi.
Tako Joe operiše tezom da je film o Isusu Hristu, kom se on divi, zapravo bio događaj tokom kog je đavo obuzeo Mela, i pošto ga nije sprečio da snimi jevanđelistički film, krenuo je da ga uništava u privatnom životu.
U tom smislu, ni Joe ne dolazi sa nekom tipičnom percepcijom stvarnosti. Čak naprotiv. Elem, u nekoliko navrata sugeriše da Mel ima psihičke probleme, ali ne beži ni od mogućnosti da se đavo umešao.
Sama dešavanja deluju kao kompilacija dobro poznatih Melovih ispada, sa zanimljivim opisima Melove svakodnevice i ljudima koji ga okružuju, što je možda i najvredniji deo ove knjge.
Celo iznošenje intime jednog čoveka da bi se sproveo lični obračun je prilično jezivo jer Eszterhas prenosi i niz njihovih privatnih razgovora koji su potpuno nevezani za osnovnu temu knjige, i kao i svaki privatni razgovor izvučen van konteksta deluju prosto bezveze.
U svakom slučaju, Joe Esztehas je možda našao način da mu se javljaju signali s one strane ali je i dalje senzacionalista. Ovo je verovatno najniže što je otišao ali to je cena koju Mel mora da plati za pogrešan izbor saradnika. Sama knjiga je pitka, veoma scenaristički postavljena i nudi niz zanimljivih detalja iz Melove svakodnevice za ljubitelje i poznavaoce. Sve ono što je temeljna ideja - a to su skandali kojima su svedočili Eszterhas i njegovi su manje-više poznate iz jmedija, tako da je paradoksalno ova knjiga vrednija Melovim hardkor fanovima.
September 7, 2017
I decided to read this book after watching the movie "Hacksaw Ridge" which I thought was a brilliant movie in spite of the fact that I was aware that Mel Gibson has been much accused of being a tyrant and an anti-semite. This book certainly confirms those two aspects of his personality but does not diminish the brilliance of the movie. I did not in any way feel sympathetic to the author as he seemed to be a nut job born again Catholic Christian and seemed to revel in the abuse that Mel dished out. The fact that he subjected his wife, who seemed to also accept Mel's abusive and oddly generous hospitality, and his teenage son seemed bizarre to me. He kept going back for more and some how justifying it. This may be a true account of Mel and the man may well be in need of medical help. I will never admire anyone who is an anti semite but I also do not admire anyone who thinks that he is given his inspiration for writing a Jewish Braveheart can be given God given inspiration.
May 7, 2023
Somehow I missed this chapter of Mel Gibson is a walking pile of excrement. Eszterhas details working with Gibson on a script for a film about the Maccabees. At one point, Eszterhas' son records Gibson having a screaming fit. My cursory search found a bit from a gossip show which downplayed the incident blaming it on the script being late (Eszterhas says it wasn't). The cause doesn't matter. Mel's tone is one you would maybe employee when addressing a murderer or rapist. It is not a tone one should ever use except in an extreme situation (a late assignment is not such a time).
Some might be turned off by Eszterhas' repeated talk of his own faith. Hie belief seems sincere, and it doesn't use it to condemn those who don't share his views. My only problem with the book was his decision to work with Gibson at all because he felt God had called him to write the script. They collaborated after Gibson's drunk driving incident, the release of tapes where he was abusive to his girlfriend, and repeated statements of bigotry and antisemitism. He kept interacting with Gibson after Gibson made more antisemitic remarks and talked about murdering his ex-girlfriend. I don't care how much money Gibson made for Hollywood in the past, his unrepentant awful behavior should dissuade anyone from working with him. Believe them when they show you who they are.
Some might be turned off by Eszterhas' repeated talk of his own faith. Hie belief seems sincere, and it doesn't use it to condemn those who don't share his views. My only problem with the book was his decision to work with Gibson at all because he felt God had called him to write the script. They collaborated after Gibson's drunk driving incident, the release of tapes where he was abusive to his girlfriend, and repeated statements of bigotry and antisemitism. He kept interacting with Gibson after Gibson made more antisemitic remarks and talked about murdering his ex-girlfriend. I don't care how much money Gibson made for Hollywood in the past, his unrepentant awful behavior should dissuade anyone from working with him. Believe them when they show you who they are.
May 6, 2017
Mel Gibson is an enigma. I have enjoyed many of his movies including "The Passion." But a few years ago I heard that he had a movie in development about the Maccabees. I saw this book advertized in audible and thought: "Whatever happened to that movie?" Well this book tells the bizarre story (at least from one perspective). The author, Joe Eszterhas, made some infamously sex focused films before supposedly becoming a devout Catholic. So one level they seemed to be compatible to make the Maccabees movie. But this book seems to be about revenge. Eszterhas worked for a year writing a script for Gibson and never got paid. But according to him he did witness all sorts of crazy behavior by Gibson. Both of them come off very badly in this book.
June 9, 2021
Eszterhas has an hypocrisy that pushes Mels vileness into the runner up spot as biggest arsehole in this book. The writers brave stance seems to be run , hide, confront from a distance and through others. The book is interesting when Mel is center stage. It suffers through the long bouts of self justification by JE. He worries about his teen son long after having put him in a bad spot when it might have had benefit. Joe seems to have gotten morals only when there was no chance of a Gibson Greenlight. A Christian who’s selectively forgiving. Hubris.
October 10, 2022
Sigh.
I loved Hollywood Animal but the things that bothered me about it are the exact things that Eszterhas decides to double down on in this sad little exposé. You don't have to be a Gibson apologist to understand what a weird and bitchy undertaking this book is.
Thank you so much for showing us the light with your cherry-picked anecdotes, Mr. Eszterhas — Moral Person™, Good Man™, Savior of Israel™, Not-Mel-Gibson™.
I loved Hollywood Animal but the things that bothered me about it are the exact things that Eszterhas decides to double down on in this sad little exposé. You don't have to be a Gibson apologist to understand what a weird and bitchy undertaking this book is.
Thank you so much for showing us the light with your cherry-picked anecdotes, Mr. Eszterhas — Moral Person™, Good Man™, Savior of Israel™, Not-Mel-Gibson™.
October 20, 2020
Joe Eszterhas turns a tabloid subject into a fascinating portrait of a man on the verge of complete madness. That man happens to be Mel Gibson. I could do without the born-again Christian feeling that makes Eszterhas write like a messenger from God or something, but this one is a real page-turner or page-scroller for that matter.
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June 25, 2020An utterly compelling tale of two monumental egos, both thinking they were ordained by God himself to create, clashing amid diverging ideologies and certain... psychological issues.
Eszterhas worships himself almost as much as he worships The Lord, and that makes for a heck of a read.
Eszterhas worships himself almost as much as he worships The Lord, and that makes for a heck of a read.
November 20, 2023
Quick and "dirty" (in more ways than one). I've never thought Mel Gibson was "nice" and I don't now.
July 25, 2024
One born-again Hollywood nutjob snitches on another bigger born-again Hollywood nutjob. Vaguely interesting in a salacious kind of way, but with a real whiff of ass-covering about it.
December 31, 2020
Jesus. What a mess of a situation.
July 8, 2012
This book certainly changed my idea of what a "Kindle Single" is, as it was quite cheap, and still took me a weekend to read (albeit a busy weekend).
I started this book already under the belief that Mel Gibson is an anti-Semitic, racist, homophobic, misogynist, abusive asshole. So I definitely had my choir robes on, ready for the preacher. And Joe Eszterhas didn't disappoint. Joe begins the book focusing on himself: his recent born-again conversion; and the revelation that his father, shortly before his death, was revealed to have written Nazi propaganda during WWII. Joe now wants to turn his talents to writing Catholic screenplays and feels the weight of the Holocaust on his back, so when an agent suggests that Mel Gibson is interested in developing a movie about the Maccabees, Joe feels wary but hopeful that Mel needs to make this movie as much as Joe does.
And then it all goes downhill. As his main vocation is a screenwriter, perhaps Joe let Mel's personality slowly build for narrative effect. Maybe it really did work that way, as is typical of abusive characters. But Mel goes from an aging, chainsmoking star deserving of pity to a rabid devil, paranoid of communist conspiracies in the church, and turning a Caribbean holiday into a nightmare where Joe's family goes to sleep with butcher knives under their pillows, just in case. The real straw that seems to break Joe, however, is his discovery that Mel isn't concerned with making the Maccabees as atonement for some of his tirades; he wants to use Judah Maccabee as a Christ figure, in hopes it will convert Jews to Catholicism. The book ends with Joe's plea that Mel release his hold on the finished screenplay, so that someone who is willing will make the movie. I hope that happens, too.
I started this book already under the belief that Mel Gibson is an anti-Semitic, racist, homophobic, misogynist, abusive asshole. So I definitely had my choir robes on, ready for the preacher. And Joe Eszterhas didn't disappoint. Joe begins the book focusing on himself: his recent born-again conversion; and the revelation that his father, shortly before his death, was revealed to have written Nazi propaganda during WWII. Joe now wants to turn his talents to writing Catholic screenplays and feels the weight of the Holocaust on his back, so when an agent suggests that Mel Gibson is interested in developing a movie about the Maccabees, Joe feels wary but hopeful that Mel needs to make this movie as much as Joe does.
And then it all goes downhill. As his main vocation is a screenwriter, perhaps Joe let Mel's personality slowly build for narrative effect. Maybe it really did work that way, as is typical of abusive characters. But Mel goes from an aging, chainsmoking star deserving of pity to a rabid devil, paranoid of communist conspiracies in the church, and turning a Caribbean holiday into a nightmare where Joe's family goes to sleep with butcher knives under their pillows, just in case. The real straw that seems to break Joe, however, is his discovery that Mel isn't concerned with making the Maccabees as atonement for some of his tirades; he wants to use Judah Maccabee as a Christ figure, in hopes it will convert Jews to Catholicism. The book ends with Joe's plea that Mel release his hold on the finished screenplay, so that someone who is willing will make the movie. I hope that happens, too.
July 17, 2014
Two stars is "it was ok". In this case, it means "it was ok for what it is". What it is is crap. Ok crap, though!
Jow Eszterhas is probably the worst writer I have ever read. He is a sanctimonious, delusional, self-glorifying ass. He believes god talks to him about his movies. He believes the virgin sends signals to him and his producers greenlighting his scripts (and even then, they don't get produced!)
And he writes about another sanctimonious, delusional, self-glorifying ass, Mel Gibson. They really sound pretty much the same to me, except one sounds angry and stupid, and the other sounds petty and stupid.
Allegedly, the author had such fear of Mel Gibson he slept holding a rosary in one hand and a golf club in the other while staying at his house. Then, after a year of working on a script with this man he feared so much, he takes his teenage son and wife to stay at Mel Gibson's house in a secluded, remote location in Costa Rica, so his son can go on long nature walks with Mel Gibson.
How does that end? With the family so afraid of Mel Gibson they sleep with butcher knives under their pillows.
That's beyond stupid, that's unbelievably stupid., so I either have to believe Joe Eszterhas lacks the common sense evolution gave a garden slug, or willingly put his family in harms way, or things didn't quite happen that way.
So, either the author is a moron, he's evil, or he's a liar. Please notice that those are not mutually exclusive explanations.
If the average christian is anything like him and Mel Gibson, I sure am happy to be an atheist.
Finally, the prose is awful. How a person so incapable of threading three sentences into a coherent paragraph has managed to make a living off his writing is a mistery.
Jow Eszterhas is probably the worst writer I have ever read. He is a sanctimonious, delusional, self-glorifying ass. He believes god talks to him about his movies. He believes the virgin sends signals to him and his producers greenlighting his scripts (and even then, they don't get produced!)
And he writes about another sanctimonious, delusional, self-glorifying ass, Mel Gibson. They really sound pretty much the same to me, except one sounds angry and stupid, and the other sounds petty and stupid.
Allegedly, the author had such fear of Mel Gibson he slept holding a rosary in one hand and a golf club in the other while staying at his house. Then, after a year of working on a script with this man he feared so much, he takes his teenage son and wife to stay at Mel Gibson's house in a secluded, remote location in Costa Rica, so his son can go on long nature walks with Mel Gibson.
How does that end? With the family so afraid of Mel Gibson they sleep with butcher knives under their pillows.
That's beyond stupid, that's unbelievably stupid., so I either have to believe Joe Eszterhas lacks the common sense evolution gave a garden slug, or willingly put his family in harms way, or things didn't quite happen that way.
So, either the author is a moron, he's evil, or he's a liar. Please notice that those are not mutually exclusive explanations.
If the average christian is anything like him and Mel Gibson, I sure am happy to be an atheist.
Finally, the prose is awful. How a person so incapable of threading three sentences into a coherent paragraph has managed to make a living off his writing is a mistery.
June 17, 2012
Eszterhas comes across as extremely sanctimonious and very unworldly in his retelling of what happened with Mel Gibson. Look, I despise Mel Gibson, and thought I might gain some insight through reading this. But all I found out is that Joe Eszterhas is very religious, holier-than-thou, and naive all at the same time, and Mel Gibson is a chain smoking dirtbag.
It was poorly written, very self-aware (how many times did he say he wrote Basic Instinct and Showgirls?!), and I'm glad it only cost me a couple of bucks. I'm also glad to be done with it. I'm not interested in either of these jerks, whether or not they're pro Jew.
It was poorly written, very self-aware (how many times did he say he wrote Basic Instinct and Showgirls?!), and I'm glad it only cost me a couple of bucks. I'm also glad to be done with it. I'm not interested in either of these jerks, whether or not they're pro Jew.
March 13, 2017
A short "Tell All" about Joe Eszterhas' attempt to write a script for Mel Gibson, and about Mel Gibson being a vile asshole the entire time.
The author manages to keep the work engaging, but most readers are already going to be hooked by the chance to read yet more dirt on Mel Gibson, and the author uses that to its full advantage.
Honestly I was more interested in the story of the Maccabees screenplay than the Gibson stuff.
The author manages to keep the work engaging, but most readers are already going to be hooked by the chance to read yet more dirt on Mel Gibson, and the author uses that to its full advantage.
Honestly I was more interested in the story of the Maccabees screenplay than the Gibson stuff.
August 25, 2012
Very entertaining and revealing about Mel Gibson and his outrageous temper and anger management problems. Only negative thing is Eszterhas's constant inclusion of his religious conversion. He already wrote one book about that, which was enough. Bringing himself into this story slows down the real story of his relationship with Gibson.
June 28, 2014
It's tough to separate my feelings about the book from my feelings about the author. On the one hand, the book does get the "Hollywood Tell All" job done: it's an entertaining voyeuristic story with a satisfying villain. On the other hand, it's hard for me to forgive that the author allowed his 15-year-old son to spend unsupervised hours with Mel Gibson.
September 28, 2015
"Hell and Mel!!!
I, also, will never watch Braveheart ever again, unless Mel Gibson gets some badly needed therapy. To accept his anti-semitism (and other racism), and misogyny as if it were somehow normal would be disloyal to all of our brothers and sisters all over the world. I, for one, refuse to do so!!
I, also, will never watch Braveheart ever again, unless Mel Gibson gets some badly needed therapy. To accept his anti-semitism (and other racism), and misogyny as if it were somehow normal would be disloyal to all of our brothers and sisters all over the world. I, for one, refuse to do so!!
October 12, 2012
Hard to believe that anyone in Hollywood would actually behave the way that is described here in this book.
Interesting read, if you're interested in Hollywood gossip. Certainly worth the price.
Interesting read, if you're interested in Hollywood gossip. Certainly worth the price.
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