The movie that inspired filmmakers to direct is like the atomic bomb that went off before their eyes. The Film That Changed My Life captures that epiphany. It explores 30 directors' love of a film they saw at a particularly formative moment, how it influenced their own works, and how it made them think differently. Rebel Without a Cause inspired John Woo to comb his hair and talk like James Dean. For Richard Linklater, “something was simmering in me, but Raging Bull brought it to a boil.” Apocalypse Now inspired Danny Boyle to make larger-than-life films. A single line from The Wizard of Oz--“Who could ever have thought a good little girl like you could destroy all my beautiful wickedness?”--had a direct impact on John Waters. “That line inspired my life,” Waters says. “I sometimes say it to myself before I go to sleep, like a prayer.” In this volume, directors as diverse as John Woo, Peter Bogdanovich, Michel Gondry, and Kevin Smith examine classic movies that inspired them to tell stories. Here are 30 inspired and inspiring discussions of classic films that shaped the careers of today's directors and, in turn, cinema history.

In essays that function at once as film criticism and autobiography, 23 writers recall the films that shaped them in this thoughtful and moving book that explores the mysterious interplay of art and life. Includes Russell Banks on Bambi, Joyce Carol Oates on Dracula, and Harold Bloom on The Fatal Glass of Beer.

"The true story of the 'Driss' character in the ... film The intouchables"--Cover.

Thirty-five directors reveal which overlooked or critically savaged films they believe deserve a larger audience while offering advice on how to watch each film.

Nick Clooney, one of America's most respected film critics and historians, presents a distinctive catalog of movies that have influenced and altered not only the world of cinema, but also the world in which we live. Since the advent of moving pictures, there have been films that exist as more than just entertainment. These rare movies have touched the collective soul of the public with such passion and artistic skill that they have actually changed the way we view life, history, and ourselves. Some have transformed the way movies are made and viewed -- and some have actually transformed us. In The Movies That Changed Us, Clooney explores, explains, and theorizes upon twenty films -- reaching from 1998 back to 1915 -- that forever shifted our perceptions about race, religion, sex, politics, and the very definition of humanity. From the ambitiously epic -- though manifestly racist -- Birth of a Nation, to the controversial violence of Taxi Driver, to the mythic idealism and visual cornucopia of 2001:A Space Odyssey and Star Wars, Clooney relates the stories behind the camera in an informative, engaging, and personal chronicle of cinema and society.

An awe-inspiring compilation of the most uplifting and powerful real-life stories from readers of the worldwide bestseller The Secret. Discover how everyday people completely transformed their lives by applying the teachings of The Secret. Since the very first publication of The Secret a decade ago, Rhonda Byrne’s bestselling book has brought forth an explosion of real people sharing real stories of how their real lives have miraculously changed for the better. How The Secret Changed My Life presents a selection of the most heartwarming and moving stories in one inspirational volume. Each story provides an authentic, real-life illustration of the pathway that leads to success in every area of life: money, health, relationships, love, family, and career. The people in How The Secret Changed My Life show time and again that no one is excluded from living the life of their dreams.

In 1990, Frank Conniff joined the staff of Mystery Science Theater 3000. First he was hired as a writer, then he was called upon to play TV's Frank, the bumbling yet lovable Mad Scientist henchman in Deep 13. And then he was given the sacred duty of finding the films that would be riffed on the show. Thus, because of his actions, the world now knows of Manos: The Hands of Fate, Monster A-Go-Go, The Brain That Wouldn't Die, Teenagers From Outer Space, and many other cheesy movies that the world would just as soon not know about. In these essays, TV's Frank focuses on twenty-five of the Mystery Science Theater 3000 films he found and riffed with his fellow MST3K writers and cast mates. It tells the story of how a comedian who was lucky enough to work on beloved Peabody Award winning TV show was transformed into a comedian who was lucky enough to work on a beloved Peabody Award winning TV show. It's a story that will stay with you for the rest of your life, if you happen to die just as you finish reading the book.