Francis Ford Coppola's Zoetrope: All-Story

by Francis Ford Coppola

Presents a collection of stories that integrate the worlds of film and fiction and features works by Amy Bloom, Peter Lefcourt, Philip Gourevitch, and Melissa Bank, all selected from the literary journal "Zoetrope."

Genres: Short Stories, Anthologies, Fiction

368 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2000

About the author

Francis Ford Coppola is a five-time Academy Award-winning American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Coppola is also a vintner, magazine publisher, and hotelier. He is a graduate of Hofstra University where he studied theatre. He earned an M.F.A. in film directing from the UCLA Film School. He is most renowned for directing the highly-regarded Godfather trilogy, The Conversation, and the Vietnam War epic Apocalypse Now.

Reviews

[Peter Tillman]

I happened to pick up my wife's battered of this, looking for bathroom reading. I found more substantial fare. So here are my comments on the first couple of things I read, both essays by novelists on screenwriting. Then on my first 3 stories. This is a Progress Report

The first essay was by Salman Rushdie, on his quest to make a short TV series for the BBC of his novel "Midnight's Children." Spoiler alert: it didn't work out. Rushdie was approached to write the screenplay and declined, as he had no screenwriting experience. He did consult on the project, which went through many contortions and heartbreaks. After the producers finally got a screenplay they (and Rushdie) were happy with, the BBC approached the Government of India for permission to film there. They thought this would be a formality. It wasn't: permission was refused, with no explanation and no recourse.

After awhile, someone thought of Sri Lanka as an alternative, and approached the authorities there. They were enthusiastically received. But then... a critical article appeared in The Guardian, locals in Sri Lanka became worried about upsetting their Muslim minority, and the project was off. Again. So there's a good screenplay waiting, written by Rushdie himself. Maybe someday? 20 years on, hasn't happened yet....

The second essay is by John Nichols, who we both know slightly from our time living in Taos a few years back. Nichols' experience with screenwriting was much more cheerful: he has mostly worked at home, never did anything on spec, made good money, and had a good time enroute. He remarks that after 20 years in the movie business, he'd spent only 48 hours in LA, and that he's a happy screenwriter. "Hey -- *somebody* has to be happy."

Nichols goes on to retail a number of screenwriting and movie-land anecdotes, all of which are entertaining. He makes the useful observation that, with a 2-hour or so runtime, a movie script can only encompass (roughly) a short story. He wonders why so many directors try to make movies out of doorstops. Good question! He ends his essay about writing his favorite script, "Che & Fidel," about two of his heroes. He had a great time doing the research -- despite knowing that, at best, that pair would be a hard sell in Hollywood. That indeed proved to be the case -- but he got paid!

Stories:
● "A Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing" by Melissa Bank. A famous story, and the lead-off tale in the book of the same name. The reviews for that collection here are mixed, at best. But the story at hand starts out well. The "hunting and fishing," if you you didn't already know, is for a suitable bridegroom....
Jane is a New York girl, thirty-something, unlucky in love. She meets a cute guy at a friend's wedding, and decides to follow the guidelines in a cheesy "How to land your ideal man" self-help guide. Which frustrates her new friend, but it works out in the end. A sweet and well-written romance. Not at all my usual fare, but I enjoyed it. 3.6 stars, rounded up.
● "Scaring the Baddest Animal" by Chris Spain. The "141st St. Bad Bengalis" challenge Tigre to twist the tail of his namesake animal at the Bronx Zoo. He actually does it! I liked this very short, slice-of-city-life story. 3.5 stars.
● "Notes to My Biographer" by Adam Haslett. A manic Dad visits his adult children. Well, the one who will actually see him. He's got a new invention, for a rechargeable electric bicycle! Mayhem ensues. 3+ stars.

Many more to come! I'm enjoying them more than I expected to. A pleasant surprise!
2021 note: closing out as temporarily stalled: may come back sometime. Or not. So many book....
Book itself let unrated, but see the ratings for individual essays above. Good stuff here!

[christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just started this book and am very impressed by the quality and range of stories. I also really liked Francis Ford Coppola's introduction, which surprised me for some reason...

[Brad · Rating 3 out of 5]

A substantial amount of time has passed since I completed a full read of FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA'S ZOETROPE: ALL-STORY. I admit, my memory of the material has weakened, and only increases so the further I distance myself from the scripture and the closer my appointment with death approaches. There for, I would have to say, it would be unrealistic for me to give it a fair review at this point. However, my recollected feelings towards this literature can, and have been, expressed in my rating of the book. If, by chance, I find the desired time to revisit FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA'S ZOETROPE: ALL-STORY, I will be sure to give it the accurate criticism it deserves upon it's second completion for myself. Until then, there is a plethora of things to be read, so be sure to keep your eyes pealed for my opinion on them. READ ON!!!

[Garrett Rowlan · Rating 3 out of 5]

reading this collection of stories published in 2000 was a bit of a time capsule experience, as the tales within contained computers but no cell phones, if I recall correctly, and certainly not the plague of social media that has stained this century. There were the names of authors (Amy Bloom, Tim Gautreaux) that I hadn't heard for a few years, and the apparent centerpiece of the collection was Melissa Bank's "The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing," a writer who didn't seem to capitalize on early success and was surpassed by more edgy writers like Jennifer Egan and Lorrie Moore. Several notable writers mentioned their novel-to-film experiences. Two writers in the publication still seems to be going strong nowadays, Javier Marias and Salmon Rushdie. A decent collection, but I've read better.

[Fran · Rating 5 out of 5]

I discovered this book by accident and am so glad I did. Like any collection, there are pieces I am not as crazy about but most are so intriguing and so exceptional on their own. I have two Melissa Bank collections on my book shelf now because of this book. I love Francis Ford Coppola's idea of collecting good writing, short stories, with the possibility of making good films...maybe I should say great writing. The only things I might take out are the nonfiction pieces more about the film world - I didn't really find any of them enlightening. But I thoroughly enjoyed sitting down with this collection and wondering on what journey the next piece would take me. A fabulous collection.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good collection of stories & essays. My favorites:

Notes to My Biographer by Adam Haslett - a ne'er-do-well father with behavioral issues takes a trip to see one of his estranged sons. It doesn't go well.

Inside Information by Nicola Barker - an embryo weighs in on her inappropriate host, Martha. Very funny.

Her New Life by Emily Perkins - a woman's life takes a surprising turn after she lands her dream job with a documentary film maker, thanks to her boyfriend, who's rapidly losing his sight.

[Sweetie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Lame AF, Michael Ray’s a tired lib hack who is wouldn’t know a good story if it smacked him in his face. A perfect example of why people don’t read: it’s not due to lack of interest but the narrow and hackneyed “vision” of ass hats like Ray, stuck in Berkeley, coddled by Coppola, and wearing pork pie hats. The “magazine” that Ray produces is a greatest hits of the tired — Mary Gaitskill, and Eggers — and insufferable identity politics and a “contest” that is clearly rigged.

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Collection of short stories and essays from the literary journal Zoetrope. The essays included here did almost nothing for me: as an example, Salman Rushdie writes about an aborted attempt to turn one of his books into a television miniseries that has all the excitement of a day at the DMV. The stories are more varied: some of them aren't really my taste, but some of them are quite compelling, and they're all pretty interesting.

This book straddles the three and four star ratings -- if it were tightened up and a few of the less interesting pieces left out, I would have rounded up.

[Peter DiCicco · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice little collection of short stories from the Zoetrope magazine. It's a bit hard to judge overall because some stories are better than others, which of course is expected. Mostly though, the enjoyment of each story is really dependent on the point of view of the reader. I would certainly recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading and is looking for new or different voices. Plus, since they are "short" stories, you don't have to make a novel-sized commitment to each author.

[Cherie · Rating 3 out of 5]

B Many original Zoetrope stories

[Alyson · Rating 3 out of 5]

great short story collection

[Arnold · Rating 4 out of 5]

good stories that transport, great ones that change!!

[S · Rating 3 out of 5]

some good some bad