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Peter Bogdanovich's Movie of the Week: 52 Classic Films for One Full Year
A FRONT-ROW SEAT TO A YEAR'S WORTH OF MUST-SEE FILMS
Director, producer, screenwriter, author, actor, and film critic, Peter Bogdanovich knows movies. Now, in this unique new book, he shares his passion with a connoisseur's insight and delight by inviting the reader to join him for a year at the movies--fifty-two weeks, fifty-two films, fifty-two reasons to watch. Which films does Peter Bogdanovich call . . .
"The most hauntingly chilling, strangely prophetic science-fiction picture ever made."
(You'll be treated to it on Halloween)
"A scintillatingly directed comedy."
(Discover it with someone you love on Valentine's Day)
"A bittersweet human comedy of vintage genius [that] only becomes more precious as the years pass."
(Ringing in the New Year with it is reason enough to celebrate)
With recommendations specific to the seasons and holidays--from sparkling comedies, timeless musicals, landmark foreign films, powerful dramas and thrillers to legendary masterpieces and neglected treasures--Bogdanovich's eclectic cinematic calendar of classics, each available on video, each accompanied by an illuminating essay, and each followed by a list of tie-in recommendations, makes the perfect date for movielovers every week of the year.
Director, producer, screenwriter, author, actor, and film critic, Peter Bogdanovich knows movies. Now, in this unique new book, he shares his passion with a connoisseur's insight and delight by inviting the reader to join him for a year at the movies--fifty-two weeks, fifty-two films, fifty-two reasons to watch. Which films does Peter Bogdanovich call . . .
"The most hauntingly chilling, strangely prophetic science-fiction picture ever made."
(You'll be treated to it on Halloween)
"A scintillatingly directed comedy."
(Discover it with someone you love on Valentine's Day)
"A bittersweet human comedy of vintage genius [that] only becomes more precious as the years pass."
(Ringing in the New Year with it is reason enough to celebrate)
With recommendations specific to the seasons and holidays--from sparkling comedies, timeless musicals, landmark foreign films, powerful dramas and thrillers to legendary masterpieces and neglected treasures--Bogdanovich's eclectic cinematic calendar of classics, each available on video, each accompanied by an illuminating essay, and each followed by a list of tie-in recommendations, makes the perfect date for movielovers every week of the year.
208 pages, Paperback
First published November 2, 1999
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About the author
Peter Bogdanovich
68 books92 followersPeter Bogdanovich is an American film historian, director, writer, actor and critic. He was part of the wave of "New Hollywood" directors (which included William Friedkin, Brian DePalma, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Michael Cimino and Francis Ford Coppola, among others), and was particularly relevant during the 1970s with his film The Last Picture Show.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
February 15, 2022
In the last few years I've really gotten into watching movies from the classic Hollywood era (30's all the way into the early 60s), mostly because the vast majority of Hollywood's output in the past ten years or so has devolved into blockbustery corporatist junk: superheroes and macho action thrillers, along with bad romcoms and CGI fantasy fests. Until Oscar season hits in the late fall each year I barely go to see anything anymore. So yeah, the old stuff is so much more appealing to me, even if much of it is rife with a lot of stuff that plays very poorly today (the racism, the sometimes horrible sexual politics, etc). Peter Bogdanovich, who made some wonderful movies in the late 60's into the mid-70s (Targets, The Last Picture Show, Paper Moon, esp), presents 52 of his favorite movies, one for each week of the year, offering a brief synopsis and fun factoids and history for each title, and details quite engagingly on what makes him love each selection. I read just a few entries per day and in fact found it to be perfect bedtime reading. Bogdanovich not only convinced me to watch or rewatch quite a few of these movies for sure, but I'm also considering watching everything, eventually, though not going with his specific chronology (I'm actually currently watching his 46th choice, Otto Preminger's classic noir from 1944, Laura). Overall it's a neat little book for movie lovers, from someone whose love for film radiates from each page. RIP Peter, and thank you.
January 27, 2022
Fifty-two essays on Bogdanovich's favorite films. Almost all are black-and-white Hollywood classics, with the occasional Japanese or French film thrown in. I think the only female-directed movie he showcases is A New Leaf, a film by Elaine May that I absolutely love. And I was happy to see my all-time-favorite film represented: The Miracle of Morgan's Creek.
December 31, 2023
Having undertaken the project to watch each of these films in 2023 per the weekly recommendation provided in the book, we watched the last film yesterday. A great education in classic films. Some were highly enjoyable, others were a pain to slog through, but we feel richer for the experience.
March 20, 2013
This book is a wonderful account of Golden Era cinema and a must for film fans everywhere. Bogdanovich's personal and amiable writing style is charming and full of lovely stories about the actors and directors that inhabit this treasure. It's a favourite for any cinemaphile.
June 6, 2025
Apparently for the reader who can't decide what old movie to watch this week. Short bits on 52 classics. It was enjoyable.
I think there were one or two I hadn't seen. I wasn't sure about The Merry Widow. It's a good selection.
Poses the question of whether Citizen Kane would have actually beat out How Green Was My Valley for the best Oscar of 1940 without all the furor over Kane. He doesn't think so. Kane is about the rich while Green was about average people. Although everyone does like to see things about the downfall of the wealthy, much more likely to see a movie about a hard working family with problems. I remember this more because it was one of the later entries.
But it is an excellent list.
Why did this take me 6 months to read? Except for the beginning and the end, I was only reading one review a day (not every day).
I think there were one or two I hadn't seen. I wasn't sure about The Merry Widow. It's a good selection.
Poses the question of whether Citizen Kane would have actually beat out How Green Was My Valley for the best Oscar of 1940 without all the furor over Kane. He doesn't think so. Kane is about the rich while Green was about average people. Although everyone does like to see things about the downfall of the wealthy, much more likely to see a movie about a hard working family with problems. I remember this more because it was one of the later entries.
But it is an excellent list.
Why did this take me 6 months to read? Except for the beginning and the end, I was only reading one review a day (not every day).
January 1, 2023
Completed the challenge, and therefore completed the book! It was fun reading about Bogdanovich’s reviews for each of these movies. He shares experiences with the director’s or the stars since he himself is a Hollywood star. I went into the challenge having watched just above 50% of the movies so I either rewatched some or watched the alternatives. Some of the ones I hadn’t seen I really didn’t like, but that’s not a diss to the book, I just disagree with his opinions, and that’s okay! This was a fun challenge!
August 29, 2024
A fine little book recommending 52 classic Hollywood movies to watch. I’d seen most but not all and it’s a solid list for sure. This would be a good way to dip your toes into old Hollywood if unsure where to start. It’s hardly exhaustive or inclusive to many foreign movies but it’s his list and he clearly explains why he likes each one so you can forgive his choices.
December 27, 2022
Peter Bogdanovich writes about movies in a special way which makes his own movies being so good make perfect sense. Watched and rewatched a lot of great movies because of this book, also saw a couple of boring ones.
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June 22, 2009Read the STOP SMILING interview excerpt with writer and director Peter Bogdanovich
A HITCHCOCKO-HAWKSIAN'S GUIDE TO HOLLYWOOD
By James Hughes
(This interview originally appeared in STOP SMILING The Auteur Issue)
Before directing films like Targets (1968), The Last Picture Show (1971) and Paper Moon (1973), New York native Peter Bogdanovich was a journalist, interviewing Hollywood legends throughout the Sixties and Seventies for publications like Esquire, under editor Harold Hayes. (Several interviews are compiled in two books: Who the Devil Made It and Who the Hell's In It.) Here, Bogdanovich discusses his appreciation of director Howard Hawks, and the influence of Hawks's films on the auteur theory.
Stop Smiling: In the Sixties, when you were documenting the thoughts and opinions of the golden-age directors, how did you observe their take on American cinema at the time, when younger, more inexperienced directors were suddenly empowered by the auteur theory?
Peter Bogdanovich: I don't think they liked the way it was going. Anyone from the golden age of Hollywood wouldn't have liked the way it ended up, because it was fragmented and thrown apart and drifted into dirty movies.
SS: Would the auteur theory rankle them?
PB: No, a lot of them liked that, because they were included in it. People like John Ford, Howard Hawks, Alfred Hitchcock and George Cukor. Orson Welles didn't think too much of what was happening. He felt that the films people were making were imitations of films they liked when they were young, which was true and not true. When you're in the middle of an epic change, it's hard to tell that you're in it. Filmmakers of my era didn't sit around and say, “Well, we're the new Hollywood.” Nobody really thought of that, it just sort of happened. I had my feet firmly planted in both eras. I was talking to the older guys, and making my own films, and continued to talk to the old guys and watch the old films. I kept that going for a while. I'm still involved.
Read the rest of the interview excerpt...
A HITCHCOCKO-HAWKSIAN'S GUIDE TO HOLLYWOOD
By James Hughes
(This interview originally appeared in STOP SMILING The Auteur Issue)
Before directing films like Targets (1968), The Last Picture Show (1971) and Paper Moon (1973), New York native Peter Bogdanovich was a journalist, interviewing Hollywood legends throughout the Sixties and Seventies for publications like Esquire, under editor Harold Hayes. (Several interviews are compiled in two books: Who the Devil Made It and Who the Hell's In It.) Here, Bogdanovich discusses his appreciation of director Howard Hawks, and the influence of Hawks's films on the auteur theory.
Stop Smiling: In the Sixties, when you were documenting the thoughts and opinions of the golden-age directors, how did you observe their take on American cinema at the time, when younger, more inexperienced directors were suddenly empowered by the auteur theory?
Peter Bogdanovich: I don't think they liked the way it was going. Anyone from the golden age of Hollywood wouldn't have liked the way it ended up, because it was fragmented and thrown apart and drifted into dirty movies.
SS: Would the auteur theory rankle them?
PB: No, a lot of them liked that, because they were included in it. People like John Ford, Howard Hawks, Alfred Hitchcock and George Cukor. Orson Welles didn't think too much of what was happening. He felt that the films people were making were imitations of films they liked when they were young, which was true and not true. When you're in the middle of an epic change, it's hard to tell that you're in it. Filmmakers of my era didn't sit around and say, “Well, we're the new Hollywood.” Nobody really thought of that, it just sort of happened. I had my feet firmly planted in both eras. I was talking to the older guys, and making my own films, and continued to talk to the old guys and watch the old films. I kept that going for a while. I'm still involved.
Read the rest of the interview excerpt...
February 7, 2008
Nice, consise essays and great recommendations for anyone who wants to see or rediscover classic films. Bogdanovich's writing and opinions and sound, but this is really just the tip of the iceberg.
November 8, 2017
I really enjoyed going through this book and watching all the old movies. Very informative!
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews