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Coppola
"Cowie's cinematically literate biography balances a vivid portrait of Francis Ford Coppola with jargon-free analysis of his films."-- Choice
By 1982 Francis Ford Coppola had won five Academy Awards; at the same time he was over 20 million in debt following the disastrous failure of One from the Heart. This astute biography critically examines Coppola's singular vision and why it makes such paradoxes not only possible but prevalent in his long turbulent career. At the age of 32 Coppola became a superstar in Hollywood with The Godfather, which rapidly climbed to the top of the all-time box-office hits. Two years later he won the coveted Palme d'Or at the Cannes festival for The Conversation. His savage epic of the Vietnam War, Apocalypse Now, established him as the most daring, brilliant filmmaker of his generation. This book not only goes behind the cameras to track the creative and financial turmoil involved in his productions, but offers perceptive analyses of his films, including all three parts of The Godfather and the visually stunning remake of Dracula.
Based on three years of research and exclusive interviews with the subject, Coppola illuminates the director's rise to prominence, his personal tragedies, intermittent failures, and resurgent successes with telling insights into the shaping of his artistic sensibility. This is a spirited, penetrating study of a man whose films have a strange way of mirroring his own sometimes tempestuous life.
By 1982 Francis Ford Coppola had won five Academy Awards; at the same time he was over 20 million in debt following the disastrous failure of One from the Heart. This astute biography critically examines Coppola's singular vision and why it makes such paradoxes not only possible but prevalent in his long turbulent career. At the age of 32 Coppola became a superstar in Hollywood with The Godfather, which rapidly climbed to the top of the all-time box-office hits. Two years later he won the coveted Palme d'Or at the Cannes festival for The Conversation. His savage epic of the Vietnam War, Apocalypse Now, established him as the most daring, brilliant filmmaker of his generation. This book not only goes behind the cameras to track the creative and financial turmoil involved in his productions, but offers perceptive analyses of his films, including all three parts of The Godfather and the visually stunning remake of Dracula.
Based on three years of research and exclusive interviews with the subject, Coppola illuminates the director's rise to prominence, his personal tragedies, intermittent failures, and resurgent successes with telling insights into the shaping of his artistic sensibility. This is a spirited, penetrating study of a man whose films have a strange way of mirroring his own sometimes tempestuous life.
- GenresBiographyFilmNonfiction
352 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1990
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About the author
Peter Cowie
121 books16 followersPeter Cowie is a film historian and author of more than thirty books on film. In 1963 he was the founder/publisher and general editor of the annual International Film Guide, a survey of worldwide film production.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 21, 2019
"'It was a film about morality, and there's not much place in America for those kinds of themes.'"
(Francis Coppola's quote about his Apocalypse Now)
Most people, when asked to name a Francis Ford Coppola movie, would say The Godfather. Indeed, it is a great movie, one of the best in the history of world's cinematography. The Godfather Part II, while perhaps slightly less popular, is critically even more acclaimed. I admire all three parts of Godfather yet I prefer two other films directed by Mr. Coppola: Apocalypse Now and The Conversation. I wouldn't be able to say which of these two I love more, they are certainly among the 10 best movies I have ever seen. In my view, no movie directed by Mr. Coppola after the early 1990s comes even close to the greatness of his early masterpieces so Peter Cowie's biography of the great director, titled simply Coppola, which was published in 1994, is as timely today as it had been 25 years ago.
Coppola is a great biography, unlike the book about Janis Joplin that I reviewed two months ago Pearl or, particularly, the utter disaster of Led Zeppelin bio Stairway To Heaven . In addition to recounting Francis Coppola's life story, Mr. Cowie gives the reader a serious, deep (sometimes perhaps too deep!) and thoroughly captivating analysis of all his films on the background of the social, cultural, political, and movie business environment. The analyses of films are seamlessly merged with the portrait of the times.
We read about Mr. Coppola's Italian roots, his childhood, his overcoming polio, and - naturally - his early fascination with movie projectors and tape recorders. Then come his studies in the Theater Arts Department at Hofstra, graduate studies at UCLA, and the apprenticeship with Roger Corman, the "Z-movie director."
I am now jumping over to the chapter focused on The Godfather. Mr. Cowie writes:
The book is not only the story of Francis Coppola and his movies, it is also a story of Coppola's Zoetrope Studios. The book is very well written, and well researched, with its 40 pages of detailed filmography, references, and index. I have also found it compulsively readable. Very highly recommended!
Four-and-a-half stars.
(Francis Coppola's quote about his Apocalypse Now)
Most people, when asked to name a Francis Ford Coppola movie, would say The Godfather. Indeed, it is a great movie, one of the best in the history of world's cinematography. The Godfather Part II, while perhaps slightly less popular, is critically even more acclaimed. I admire all three parts of Godfather yet I prefer two other films directed by Mr. Coppola: Apocalypse Now and The Conversation. I wouldn't be able to say which of these two I love more, they are certainly among the 10 best movies I have ever seen. In my view, no movie directed by Mr. Coppola after the early 1990s comes even close to the greatness of his early masterpieces so Peter Cowie's biography of the great director, titled simply Coppola, which was published in 1994, is as timely today as it had been 25 years ago.
Coppola is a great biography, unlike the book about Janis Joplin that I reviewed two months ago Pearl or, particularly, the utter disaster of Led Zeppelin bio Stairway To Heaven . In addition to recounting Francis Coppola's life story, Mr. Cowie gives the reader a serious, deep (sometimes perhaps too deep!) and thoroughly captivating analysis of all his films on the background of the social, cultural, political, and movie business environment. The analyses of films are seamlessly merged with the portrait of the times.
We read about Mr. Coppola's Italian roots, his childhood, his overcoming polio, and - naturally - his early fascination with movie projectors and tape recorders. Then come his studies in the Theater Arts Department at Hofstra, graduate studies at UCLA, and the apprenticeship with Roger Corman, the "Z-movie director."
I am now jumping over to the chapter focused on The Godfather. Mr. Cowie writes:
"The notion of family as a paradigm for American capitalism - survival of the fittest, the ruthless annihilation of critics, and the amassing of money which in turn purchases power [...]"I was eagerly waiting for the author's treatment of The Conversation and I am happy to report that he holds this movie in extremely high esteem:
"No more intense or impassioned film exists in the Coppola canon."Then comes the chapter about Apocalypse Now. The dramatic story of making this movie, particularly the deeply traumatic events that happened on location in the Philippines are rather well known (by the way, I absolutely have to read Eleanor Coppola's Notes on the Making of Apocalypse Now); I just have to emphasize how wonderfully understated the author's coverage of these events is: a lesser author could have offered pages and pages of salacious details. I absolutely adore this chapter and all the quotable passages the reader can find here, for instance:
"[...] the psychological plot from Heart of Darkness, the traumatic ordeal of an entire generation in the Southeast Asian conflict, Francis's own odyssey, and the melodramatic, pop-opera idiom so accurately reflecting time and place."I have a minor complaint here: although a careful reader may draw the conclusion reading "between the lines" of the text, the author never explicitly compares the grossly under-rated performance of Martin Sheen as Captain Willard with the grossly over-rated performance of Marlon Brando as Colonel Kurtz. Well, it would be unusual to agree on everything with the author. Chapters on The Rumble Fish, The Cotton Club, Bram Stoker's Dracula and several other movies follow.
The book is not only the story of Francis Coppola and his movies, it is also a story of Coppola's Zoetrope Studios. The book is very well written, and well researched, with its 40 pages of detailed filmography, references, and index. I have also found it compulsively readable. Very highly recommended!
Four-and-a-half stars.
July 6, 2014
An interesting book that covers his life history. Well written. While it mentions in his more current years a pursuit of smaller, independent films that can be shot quickly, Coppola as a director has pretty much disappeared from view. I started watching his stuff from the very beginning. I wish he would return to the arena.
July 3, 2020
A Book I Couldn't Refuse
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It begins by introducing Coppola as a kid in his family and the environment he was brought up in. A creative and inventive child born in to an artistic family.
Something that has been vividly illustrated through out the book is how the concept of "Family" has been influenced him through out his life, both personally and cinematically. His relationship with his elder brother and the untimely death of son are two prominent cases. The author presents a lot of evidence and sheds light on how those relationships and dynamics have made them into his creations. Such dissections and analysis may be the best of this book.
The book is also filled with Coppola's relationship with his contemporaries such as George Lucas and film-makers such as "Akira Kurosawa" whom he reveres. And along the narration, you'll learn some bits of film-making while reading on Coppola's love for technology and innovation.
Still, I have seen only a few of the films made by him. And, the "#TheGodfather Trilogy" should be the first ones among them. From what I've seen, I love his film-making. His children and some relatives have also been in the industry. For instance, "Sofia Coppola", his daughter is also a film director. I've seen a few of her, including "Lost in Translation [2003]", which is among my most favourite films.
When you're progressing through the book, you might naturally conclude that "Mr. Cowie" has done his homework. Because, he has done a pretty good job at portraying Coppola (including ups and downs), discussing the contemporary film industry, cultural, social and political factors and nicely interweaving all of them in to one piece. If you're a fan of Coppola's films or a cinephile who loves to study the history of cinema and film-making, then I'd highly recommend this book to you.
#FrancisFordCoppola
#Hollywood
#Filmmaking
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It begins by introducing Coppola as a kid in his family and the environment he was brought up in. A creative and inventive child born in to an artistic family.
Something that has been vividly illustrated through out the book is how the concept of "Family" has been influenced him through out his life, both personally and cinematically. His relationship with his elder brother and the untimely death of son are two prominent cases. The author presents a lot of evidence and sheds light on how those relationships and dynamics have made them into his creations. Such dissections and analysis may be the best of this book.
The book is also filled with Coppola's relationship with his contemporaries such as George Lucas and film-makers such as "Akira Kurosawa" whom he reveres. And along the narration, you'll learn some bits of film-making while reading on Coppola's love for technology and innovation.
Still, I have seen only a few of the films made by him. And, the "#TheGodfather Trilogy" should be the first ones among them. From what I've seen, I love his film-making. His children and some relatives have also been in the industry. For instance, "Sofia Coppola", his daughter is also a film director. I've seen a few of her, including "Lost in Translation [2003]", which is among my most favourite films.
When you're progressing through the book, you might naturally conclude that "Mr. Cowie" has done his homework. Because, he has done a pretty good job at portraying Coppola (including ups and downs), discussing the contemporary film industry, cultural, social and political factors and nicely interweaving all of them in to one piece. If you're a fan of Coppola's films or a cinephile who loves to study the history of cinema and film-making, then I'd highly recommend this book to you.
#FrancisFordCoppola
#Hollywood
#Filmmaking
December 8, 2024
Doesn’t really try to explain how Coppola had a dream decade followed by a steady stream of mediocrity
September 21, 2013
Un libro muy recomendable para los incondicionales del celuloide y admiradores del director, que quieran saber más acerca de él de primera mano.
Nos narra su vida desde sus inicios , con anécdotas y curiosidades que quizá se llegan a desconocer, por ser escasamente mencionadas cuando se nos habla del cineasta en pantalla o reportaje. Un fiel retrato de cómo entiende, vive (y casi diría yo, respira) el cine Coppola; una auténtica radiografía de la manera de ser y vivir que tiene y su amor por el séptimo arte con sus intereses, metas y proyectos, alegrías, disputas con los artistas, obsesiones, decisiones, su cierto idealismo (que incluso peca de ingenuidad)y sus rodajes.
Nos narra su vida desde sus inicios , con anécdotas y curiosidades que quizá se llegan a desconocer, por ser escasamente mencionadas cuando se nos habla del cineasta en pantalla o reportaje. Un fiel retrato de cómo entiende, vive (y casi diría yo, respira) el cine Coppola; una auténtica radiografía de la manera de ser y vivir que tiene y su amor por el séptimo arte con sus intereses, metas y proyectos, alegrías, disputas con los artistas, obsesiones, decisiones, su cierto idealismo (que incluso peca de ingenuidad)y sus rodajes.
February 5, 2017
Todella vähän sisältöä Coppolalta itseltään eikä hänestä kerrota henkilönä juuri mitään. Lisäksi kirjoittaja käy ohjaajan jokaisen elokuvan omalla analyysillä läpi, mikä a) on ärsyttävää, jos kaikki elokuvat eivät ole tuttuja ja b) edustavat yhden henkilön näkemystä elokuvista. Paha pettymys enkä voi suositella.
July 8, 2009
So I read the first 20 pages or so of this book, and then I watched the movie Tetro - and there were some funny parallels of the family in the movie and Coppola's family. I wonder if he was writing a twisted version of what his family could have turned into if they were supposed to be an Opera.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews