Roger Ebert

Presents a collection of essays that combine history, analysis, and love for movies covering such films as "All About Eve," "Casablanca," "Lawrence of Arabia," and "Schindler's List."

The Great Movies

The film critic best known for his "Chicago Sun-Times" reviews and his thirty years as co-host of "Siskel & Ebert at the Movies" describes his life and career, including his recovery from alcoholism and the complications from thyroid cancer treatment.

A Memoir

Life Itself

The Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic assembles and introduces more than one hundred essays and articles about film, with entries by and about movie stars, famous directors, industry executives, and critics. Tour.

Roger Ebert's Book of Film

Roger Ebert has been writing film reviews for the Chicago Sun-Times for nearly forty years. And during those four decades, his wide knowledge, keen judgment, prodigious energy, and sharp sense of humor have made him America’s most celebrated film critic. He was the first such critic to win a Pulitzer Prize—one of just three film critics ever to receive that honor—and the only one to have a star dedicated to him on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His groundbreaking hit TV show, At the Movies, meanwhile, has made “two thumbs up” one of the most coveted hallmarks in the entire industry. No critic alive has reviewed more movies than Roger Ebert, and yet his essential writings have never been collected in a single volume—until now. With Awake in the Dark, both fans and film buffs can finally bask in the best of Ebert’s work. The reviews, interviews, and essays collected here present a picture of this indispensable critic’s numerous contributions to the cinema and cinephilia. From The Godfather to GoodFellas, from Cries and Whispers to Crash, the reviews in Awake in the Dark span some of the most exceptional periods in film history, from the dramatic rise of rebel Hollywood and the heyday of the auteur, to the triumph of blockbuster films such as Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark, to the indie revolution that is still with us today. The extraordinary interviews gathered in Awake in the Dark capture Ebert engaging not only some of the most influential directors of our time—Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Woody Allen, Robert Altman, Werner Herzog, and Ingmar Bergman—but also some of the silver screen’s most respected and dynamic personalities, including actors as diverse as Robert Mitchum, James Stewart, Warren Beatty, and Meryl Streep. Ebert’s remarkable essays play a significant part in Awake in the Dark as well. The book contains some of Ebert’s most admired pieces, among them a moving appreciation of John Cassavetes and a loving tribute to the virtues of black-and-white films. If Pauline Kael and Andrew Sarris were godmother and godfather to the movie generation, then Ebert is its voice from within—a writer whose exceptional intelligence and daily bursts of insight and enthusiasm have shaped the way we think about the movies. Awake in the Dark, therefore, will be a treasure trove not just for fans of this seminal critic, but for anyone desiring a fascinating and compulsively readable chronicle of film since the late 1960s.

The Best of Roger Ebert

Awake in the Dark

A first record of America's most respected film critic's engagement with the works of one of America's greatest living directors chronicles every single feature film in Martin Scorsese's considerable oeuvre and explores the different phases of his development and the abiding themes.

Scorsese by Ebert

Roger Ebert's I Hated Hated Hated This Movie, which gathered some of his most scathing reviews, was a best-seller. This new collection continues the tradition, reviewing not only movies that were at the bottom of the barrel, but also movies that he found underneath the barrel. From Roger's review of Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (0 stars): "The movie created a spot of controversy in February 2005. According to a story by Larry Carroll of MTV News, Rob Schneider took offense when Patrick Goldstein of the Los Angeles Times listed this year's Best Picture nominees and wrote that they were 'ignored, unloved, and turned down flat by most of the same studios that . . . bankroll hundreds of sequels, including a follow-up to Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo, a film that was sadly overlooked at Oscar time because apparently nobody had the foresight to invent a category for Best Running Penis Joke Delivered by a Third-Rate Comic.' Schneider retaliated by attacking Goldstein in full-page ads in Daily Variety and the Hollywood Reporter. In an open letter to Goldstein, Schneider wrote: 'Well, Mr. Goldstein, I decided to do some research to find out what awards you have won. I went online and found that you have won nothing. Absolutely nothing. No journalistic awards of any kind. . . . Maybe you didn't win a Pulitzer Prize because they haven't invented a category for Best Third-Rate, Unfunny Pompous Reporter Who's Never Been Acknowledged by His Peers. . . .' Schneider was nominated for a 2000 Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actor, but lost to Jar-Jar Binks. But Schneider is correct, and Patrick Goldstein has not yet won a Pulitzer Prize. Therefore, Goldstein is not qualified to complain that Columbia financed Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo while passing on the opportunity to participate in Million Dollar Baby, Ray, The Aviator, Sideways, and Finding Neverland. As chance would have it, I have won the Pulitzer Prize, and so I am qualified. Speaking in my official capacity as a Pulitzer Prize winner, Mr. Schneider, your movie sucks."

Your Movie Sucks

Roger Ebert wrote the first film review that director Martin Scorsese ever received—for 1967’s I Call First, later renamed Who’s That Knocking at My Door—creating a lasting bond that made him one of Scorsese’s most appreciative and perceptive commentators. Scorsese by Ebert offers the first record of America’s most respected film critic’s engagement with the works of America’s greatest living director, chronicling every single feature film in Scorsese’s considerable oeuvre, from his aforementioned debut to his 2008 release, the Rolling Stones documentary Shine a Light. In the course of eleven interviews done over almost forty years, the book also includes Scorsese’s own insights on both his accomplishments and disappointments. Ebert has also written and included six new reconsiderations of the director’s less commented upon films, as well as a substantial introduction that provides a framework for understanding both Scorsese and his profound impact on American cinema. "Given their career-long back-and-forth, this collection makes perfect sense. . . . In these reconsiderations, Ebert invites us into his thought processes, letting us see not just what he thinks, but how he forms his opinions. Ebert’s insights into Scorsese are terrific, but this book offers the bonus of further insights into Ebert himself."—Time Out Chicago "Ebert, film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times, is an unabashed fan of Scorsese, whom he considers ‘the most gifted director of his generation.’ . . . Of special note are interviews with Scorsese over a 25-year period, in which the director candidly discusses his body of work."—Publishers Weekly

Ian Nairn

Nairn's London

Describes how movies are made, marketed, and shown, and answers questions about specific films

Questions for the Movie Answer Man

Since The Little Book of Hollywood Cliches was first published the author has been flooded with new contributions and, along with some of his own insights, has combined the best of old and new in this expanded compendium of movie cliches, stereotypes and obligatory scenes.

The Bigger Little Book of Hollywood Clichés

Presents scathing reviews for over two hundred movies that the reviewer has given a rating of two stars or fewer since 2006.

More Movies That Suck

A Horrible Experience of Unbearable Length

The popular film critic offers a compilation of witty and wise observations about the film lexicon, including "Fruit Cart," a chase scene through an ethnic or foreign locale, or "The Non-Answering Pet," referring to a dead pet in a horror movie.

A Greatly Expanded and Much Improved Compendium of Movie Clichés, Stereotypes, Obligatory Scenes, Hackneyed Formulas, Shopworn Conventions, and Outdated Archetypes

Ebert's Bigger Little Movie Glossary

In The Pot and How to Use It, Roger Ebert--Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic, admitted "competent cook," and long-time electric rice cooker enthusiast--gives readers a charming, practical guide to this handy and often-overlooked kitchen appliance. While The Pot and How to Use It contains numerous and surprisingly varied recipes for electric rice cookers, it is much more than a cookbook. Originating from a blog entry on Roger's popular Web site, the book also includes readers' comments and recipes alongside Roger's own discerning insights and observations on why and how we cook. With an introduction by vegetarian cookbook author Anna Thomas and expert assistance from recipe consultant and nutritionist Yvonne Nienstadt, The Pot and How to Use It is perfect for fans of Roger's superb writing, as well as anyone looking to incorporate the convenience and versatility of electric rice cookers into his or her kitchen repertoire.

The Mystery and Romance of the Rice Cooker

The Pot and How to Use It

Fully indexed by title, stars, and director and thoroughly cross-referenced, this guide to movies on video also features lists of outstanding movies, new interviews, and full-length reviews

Roger Ebert's Video Companion

Presents a collection of the critic's most positive film reviews of the last four decades, arranged alphabetically from "About Last Night" to "Zodiac."

Roger Ebert's Four Star Reviews--1967-2007

Martin Scorsese

Previous edition: Kansas City: Andrews and McMeel, 1987.

A Cannes Notebook

Two Weeks in the Midday Sun

Collects the author's often sarcastic reviews of movies earning two stars or fewer.

I Hated, Hated, Hated This Movie

The 1991 edition includes some 150 new reviews, bringing a total of close to 1000. Exclusive interviews with such stars and directors as Spike Lee, John Waters, Tracey Ullman, Woody Allen, Matt Dillon, and Morgan Freeman.

Roger Ebert's Movie Home Companion

The holidays—that time between Thanksgiving and New Year's—jam more "together" time together than any other time during the year. And all that being together calls for movies to watch together to celebrate the season or movies to watch alone to survive the season. From such classics to enjoy as a family like A Christmas Story, It's a Wonderful Life, and Planes, Trains, and Automobiles to more offbeat films like Home for the Holidays (the Thanksgiving family reunion from hell) and Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (an R-rated Santa Claus origin story crossed with The Thing), Roger Ebert's full-length reviews suggest a wide range of titles sure to please everyone on your list. Also included are thoughtful films like John Huston's rendering of James Joyce's The Dead, a poignant look at life and Joyeux Noel, based on the true story of a spontaneous cease-fire between German and Allied troops on Christmas Eve 1914. As a bonus, in the enhanced version, more than half of the reviews include a clip of the movie's trailer.

30 Movies to Get You Through the Holidays: Ebert's Essentials

The preeminent movie guide includes thoughtful, full-length reviews by the only film critic to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize--a thorough reference and an infectiously readable examination of the movie-making scene.

Roger Ebert

About

Books

Join the club