If you've ever wondered what exactly a director brings to a film, this book answers that question. The theory that the director is the auteur of a film is debatable, especially when he or she is working from a script or work by someone else. At the same time, a director certainly can give a film a unique point of view; this book explains that better than I am trying to do.



Dancyger gives examples of one director bringing single a point of view--an idea--to all of his or her works. One example is director Mary Harron, whose idea is "Celebrity and Banality," which affects the point of view of both I Shot Andy Warhol, which she from a true story, and American Psycho, from the Ellis book. Dancyger shows how this idea plays out in camera angles, and how the actors speak.



The biggest strength of The Director's Idea is how Dancyger has gone through the works of notable directors and synthesized their works into the one Idea, and then shows how the Idea is applied.



Anyone interested in film, or what a director really does will like this book. I loved it.



-Matt R