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jonwesleyhuff's review against another edition
4.0
I've had this book for years but finally got around to reading it. The gorgeous artwork is accompanying ed by some quick info on many of the pieces, which start out with some insight into their creation but generally turns into tales of how awful studio and marketing people are now. It makes for some melancholy reading by the end. But overall I enjoyed the book a great deal.
trike's review against another edition
3.0
I've been a big fan of Drew Struzan's work ever since I can recall becoming aware of movie posters. In my mind it was always a toss-up between Struzan and Richard Amsel as to who my current favorite was. That largely depended on whose poster was at the movie theatre. Amsel did The Sting, Struzan did Star Wars. Amsel did Raiders of the Lost Ark, Struzan did E.T. Amsel did Flash Gordon, Struzan did The Thing. Then, far too young, Amsel died of AIDS and settled that rivalry.
The art here is lovely and we are treated to many behind-the-scenes rough drafts. Unfortunately, the text isn't as informative except in a few cases, such as his trials and tribulations making (and remaking) the Adventures in babysitting poster. Struzan carries a lot of bitterness with him, and that really comes out on every page.
You'd think someone as successful as he is, who is much-lauded and did a job he seems to have liked, would have let some of this stuff go -- or, at the very least, able to put it into perspective, since he won out in the end against the people who "done him wrong."
He laments when studios took his comps and assigned the work to others (in a couple cases, Amsel), but then barely mentions when he did the same to other artists. His famous Back to the Future painting wasn't his idea at all, but the work of another artist. A couple times he even took work from Amsel. He doesn't seem to see the irony in this. It's just the nature of the business, and he's had more wins than losses.
Still, the paintings are lovely and the book is a high-quality product, with none of that aggravating "print the picture across both pages so you lose 30% of it in the valley" nonsense. I do wish there were some more representations of his early work, his Emmy-winning album covers and books covers, as well as his post-retirement art.
This is mostly a "greatest hits" collection of his movie posters, and just as with bands who release those kinds of albums, there are a few less-interesting bits here, such as the 1981 Lone Ranger movie.
The art here is lovely and we are treated to many behind-the-scenes rough drafts. Unfortunately, the text isn't as informative except in a few cases, such as his trials and tribulations making (and remaking) the Adventures in babysitting poster. Struzan carries a lot of bitterness with him, and that really comes out on every page.
You'd think someone as successful as he is, who is much-lauded and did a job he seems to have liked, would have let some of this stuff go -- or, at the very least, able to put it into perspective, since he won out in the end against the people who "done him wrong."
He laments when studios took his comps and assigned the work to others (in a couple cases, Amsel), but then barely mentions when he did the same to other artists. His famous Back to the Future painting wasn't his idea at all, but the work of another artist. A couple times he even took work from Amsel. He doesn't seem to see the irony in this. It's just the nature of the business, and he's had more wins than losses.
Still, the paintings are lovely and the book is a high-quality product, with none of that aggravating "print the picture across both pages so you lose 30% of it in the valley" nonsense. I do wish there were some more representations of his early work, his Emmy-winning album covers and books covers, as well as his post-retirement art.
This is mostly a "greatest hits" collection of his movie posters, and just as with bands who release those kinds of albums, there are a few less-interesting bits here, such as the 1981 Lone Ranger movie.
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