BOOK REVIEW: Willis Buhle's Bookshelf
Synopsis: The authoritative biography of the twentieth century's most influential science fiction filmmaker!
George Pal: Man of Tomorrow chronicles the life and films of the trailblazing producer/director/ animator who fathered modern science fiction cinema. George Pal's classics like Destination Moon, When Worlds Collide, The War of the Worlds, and The Time Machine were a quantum leap forward for the genre's quality, intelligence, and special effects wizardry. When few people in Hollywood - or elsewhere - took science fiction seriously, Pal steadfastly stood by it, paving the way for SF's enormous future popularity and inspiring generations of filmmakers. Pal's beloved The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm and 7 Faces of Dr. Lao elevated cinematic fantasy to new heights.
Written and researched with the full cooperation of the George Pal Estate, Justin Humphreys' George Pal: Man of Tomorrow involved twenty years of exhaustive research in international archives and private collections, including unprecedented access to the Pal family's archive. This definitive, profusely illustrated biography of this visionary movie futurist includes new interviews with over sixty of Pal's coworkers, family members, and admirers in the film industry, dozens of rare photographs, and gorgeous cover art by renowned science fiction illustrator/historian Vincent Di Fate.
Critique: George Pal: Man of Tomorrow is a thorough biography of visionary filmmaker George Pal and the standout science fiction and fantasy movies he created. A handful of black-and-white photographs, appendices, and an index round out this fascinating tour, written with the blessing and cooperation of the George Pal Estate. Science fiction movie connoisseurs will be especially interested in the life-and-times and behind-the-scenes of the man responsible for classic films such as The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm and 7 Faces of Dr. Lao. Highly recommended! It should be noted for personal reading lists that George Pal: Man of Tomorrow is also available in a Kindle edition ($9.95).
Editorial Note: Author Justin Humphreys is a writer, film historian, and curator. His other works include the Rondo Award-winning The Dr. Phibes Companion. George Pal: Man of Tomorrow is his fourth book.
-- Willis M. Buhle, Reviewer