In the good seats

by Michael Magee (Contributor), Darran Anderson (Contributor), Maggie Armstrong (Contributor)

In the good seats: Essays on film is a collection featuring some of the most talented writers working today, setting their sights on what’s so alluring and moving about film and cinema. A childhood movie encountered on the big screen, a favourite celluloid instant, a resonating discovery, an awkward first date; the threadbare seats, the click and whirr of the projector, the sense of scale expanding.

Each essayist in this book unearths those particularly breathless and unforgettable moments when their lives were touched by film. Like a projection of light beaming across a darkened hall, In the good seats pulls us closer to those flickers of magic that film and cinema usher forth.

Genres: Nonfiction, Essays

187 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2025

Reviews

[Peter Boyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Last year, PVA Books released You Spin Me Round, a collection of essays on music, which I really enjoyed. In The Good Seats applies the same formula to film, with mixed results. I have to say I wasn't always convinced by the contributors' passion for all things celluloid. In fact Susannah Dickey's account of reading the synopsis of films she hadn't seen on Wikipedia and then watching their most notable scenes on YouTube made this cinephile recoil in horror. However, the anthology is saved by Ali Smith's sublime Eden - a beautiful recollection of the cinema in Inverness that lit up her teenage years. It truly captures the magic and wonder of one of life's great pleasures.

[Cyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's about 3 or 4 wonderful essays in here, the others you can take or leave tbh

[Jacobcerisgandy]

07/20

Thanks maisie for the lend, some really nice essays in here. My favourites from Daisy Lafarge, Ali Smith and Cathy Sweeney.

[Colette Webber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really loved the essay on Don’t Look Now and disability. The essay on the Play for Today film Elephant and Northern Ireland was also great. Lovely little collection purchased from the Whitechapel gallery bookshop 💗

[Maja Rokicka · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were parts of this book that I personally found slightly uninteresting yet this was avenged with the chapters that have captured my attention. The chapters from Michael Magee and Darran Anderson were my favourite, exhibiting both personal experiences and quiet musing and how these have shaped their connection with their chosen movies. The other authors delved into thoughts on different genres and their experiences which I also found quite enjoyable yet it was the first and last chapter that in my opinion made the book worth checking out.

[Cathrine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Edin by Ali Smith

[tasmin · Rating 3 out of 5]

some really enjoyable essays, others felt pretentious