Blockbuster: How Hollywood Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Summer

Blockbuster: How Hollywood Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Summer

by Tom Shone

Simon & Schuster $275

Tom Shone has drawn a line in the sand. Blockbuster is his response to the argument presented in Peter Biskind's best-selling Easy Riders, Raging Bulls that the rise of box office sensations such as Jaws and Stars Wars in effect spelt the end of creativity in Hollywood, bringing its 'golden era' to a halt.

Such was the impact of Biskind's work that this notion pretty much has been adopted as fact. But it shouldn't be, says Shone. What the advent of the blockbuster did was return cinema to its roots as a form of pure entertainment, giving it back to the people, as it were, and forcing the big studios to make films that audiences actually want to see.

And he makes a compelling case. A former Sunday Times film critic, Shone has a wealth of insider knowledge and his access to the likes of George Lucas and Steven Spielberg gives the book plenty of priceless anecdotes. You get a real sense of their enthusiasm for their craft and their desire to keep people entertained, as well as a steady stream of facts and figures to highlight the impact their films have had on the industry. The depth of Shone's research is impressive. You get the impression he's scoured each and every film fansite and chanced down everything to do with the film industry since the early 1970s.