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A review by angelofthetardis
Inside Bridgerton by Shonda Rhimes
informative
fast-paced
2.0
The most impressive thing about this book is the aesthetics of the product. It's not a long book, but it's beautifully put together and is actually quite hefty! The pages are thick and glossy, which really serves to enhance the gorgeous photographs included throughout, and despite it being an 'outsize' book it's been very comfortable to sit with it propped against my knees to read. But the one thing that did bug me slightly was the constant changes in font size. I can't see that it's deliberate - on several occasions it happens within one 'article'. And I picked up on a few typos too.
Unfortunately, in my opinion the content doesn't match up to the looks. It mostly reads like a lot of self-congratulatory back slapping for a job well done, and while it appears to be split into 'chapters' mirroring the production process, there doesn't feel like very much depth of information or anecdotes from the making of the show. There are a couple of mentions of production difficulties (a roof caving in on freshly built sets etc), but there's no in-depth discussion of the effects these 'disasters' had, how they worked around them and so on. It seems to me that most major shows that do BTS books/interviews/documentaries make their production sound like a nightmare, and the way this us written just makes me feel like they've dropped in these little tidbits to join the club.
Although there is some input from the cast, it is quite limited and, again, it's not really about their filming experiences or getting under the surface of their roles. Instead, it all feels quite superficial; like they were only included as an afterthought. Likewise, if you are looking to work in the film/TV industry as a member of crew, you might find some interesting insights in here, but nothing detailed enough to give a full understanding of these important roles.
I absolutely love the series and think everyone involved deserves all the praise they can get. But this just doesn't shine enough of a light on all their hard work.
Unfortunately, in my opinion the content doesn't match up to the looks. It mostly reads like a lot of self-congratulatory back slapping for a job well done, and while it appears to be split into 'chapters' mirroring the production process, there doesn't feel like very much depth of information or anecdotes from the making of the show. There are a couple of mentions of production difficulties (a roof caving in on freshly built sets etc), but there's no in-depth discussion of the effects these 'disasters' had, how they worked around them and so on. It seems to me that most major shows that do BTS books/interviews/documentaries make their production sound like a nightmare, and the way this us written just makes me feel like they've dropped in these little tidbits to join the club.
Although there is some input from the cast, it is quite limited and, again, it's not really about their filming experiences or getting under the surface of their roles. Instead, it all feels quite superficial; like they were only included as an afterthought. Likewise, if you are looking to work in the film/TV industry as a member of crew, you might find some interesting insights in here, but nothing detailed enough to give a full understanding of these important roles.
I absolutely love the series and think everyone involved deserves all the praise they can get. But this just doesn't shine enough of a light on all their hard work.