Sander van der Heide
The Title: I don't get the title, 100 all-time favorite movies. Of whom? Of the film critics? Of the editor? Of the filmmakers? Of the public? There is no introduction why this book was made and why these specific 100 films were being selected. Of course there are a lot of really good movies missing (The Big Lebowski, Alien, E.T., The Nightmare before Christma) and also some of these movies are disputable as an all-time favorite. But if I had known the context of the ones chosen, it would have made more sense to me
Layout: I hate this format Taschen is using for their cheaper issues. As far as I know, this is the only format available, but 832 pages in such a small size is problematic to open up completely without ruining the book itself. I can imagine this wasn't a fun job for the layout department, only presenting the main credits on one page and the movie post on the one next to it, makes sense. But after that, the way the text and images are mangles together is utter chaos. The still from the films were cropped in such a horrible manner, it's a disgrace to the cineast who composed the original shots. A bigger size would have made it much easier to present the movies in a more respectable way and better looking.
The content: The facts and description of the movies vary a lot in quality. They are written by around 20 film critics, historians, journalists and professors from different countries. Some are spot on and with fun facts why the movie is made as it is or why it had a huge impact on the film making industry. Others are just descriptions on the story and some historical facts. There is no connection between them at all. That could have been a main reason to create a book like this. So now it's just 100 tip, which could have been presented in a whole other way (online playlist, a bucketlist app, a podcast series).
These photos made me feel happy, but also sad at the same time. Something felt really ambiguous. The photos seemed familiair, but the black people in it felt misplaced. After reading Tyler's introduction to this body of work, I realized this was exactly the point he was trying to make. Normally, these kind of pictures are featured by white models having fun. So after reading this, these photos made more sense to me and although it wasn't maybe meant for me as a white person, they made me feel good.
The English title sums it up better than the original title, meaning “the magnet”. I really felt clueless, which isn't a bad thing. But the ending wasn't satisfying and kind of abrupt. Solve the story or create a cliffhanger for a second part, but it now seemed the writer also didn't where to go from the last scene.
I liked the artwork though, so an extra star for that. Too bad the borders between the scenes were black lines. Lots of times this was confusing.
Heb je een licentie om letterlijk wat magisch te gaan doen, maak je iets wat de cover niet waardig is. Dit had een soort “Kingdom Hearts” in boekstijl kunnen zijn. Helaas, slechte tekeningen, slechte teksten, standaard ingekleurd. Misschien leuk tijdverdrijf voor de jongsten, ik vind het de Donald Duck nog niet eens waardig. Een gemiste kans!
De tekeningen van Robi Pena zijn waanzinnig en je kunt zien dat hier 3 jaar aan is gewerkt, maar net zoals zijn tattoo's, het lijken allemaal op zichzelfstaande werkjes in één boek. Geen samenhangend geheel. Daarnaast zijn de teksten vaag en zo kinderlijk eenvoudig alsof het een eerste leesboek is voor groep 4 basisschool, terwijl dat hier echt de bedoeling niet is. Het verhaal pakt niet en gaat nergens naartoe. Het is ook niet origineel en Tinkerbell wekt totaal geen empathie op (op haar borsten na dan). Ik zit echt niet te wachten op deel 2, behalve misschien om gewoon te kijken naar het mooie artwork van Pena.
Achterin zijn 8 bladzijdes met een ‘making of', dat maakt het boek wel interessanter en misschien een extra ster waard.
Prachtige tekeningen van Eric Henninot, met nog mooiere inkleuring van Delphine Rieu. Elke nieuwe bladzijde heeft zijn eigen kleur en dat werkt echt mee aan het snelle schakelen tussen de vele locaties waar het verhaal zich afspeelt.
De hoofdkarakters weten me nog niet echt te grijpen, vooral de twee bladzijdes waar Kim Meville met tranen over het water staat uit te kijken, wekken totaal geen medeleven op en zijn eerder vaag.
Verder is het verhaal zeer intrigerend en leest als een sensatiefilm, Jaws, maar dan groter....letterlijk. Ik kan niet wachten om deel 2 te lezen.
I bought my first Apple computer in 1994 (a Macbook duo 230) and owned a lot of Apple products since then. This book was a trip down memory lane with lots of stuff I just forgot I owned (Apple iSight), lots of stuff I wish I owned (Bandai Pipin game console) and lots of stuff I didn't even know Apple made (Quicktake photo camera). All photos look really fancy and stylish as if they were made by Apple themselves, but were made by author Jonathan Zufi. I would have loved to read all about the products you see exposed on every page, but there isn't much info. This could be a kind of boring read if you're not into Apple (although if you like great design, it's interesting too), but for Apple owners and computer history interested collectors, it's a great historic document. Could use an update now though.
These stunning photos are made with a titanium 10 x 8 GP810TI analogue camera (digitized at 500MP). It's not an easy camera, but in the hands of photographer Jimmy Nelson, you get these mesmerizing pictures. I really like the way it the book gets promoted with all these background videos, a beautiful website, a special bookstand and even an app that scans the photos and provides you with all these extra info. Also the subject, forgotten Dutch traditional costumes, has never been presented this way, a worthy historical document. The only thing I don't like so much in the book is all these ‘behind the scenes' kind of photos in between. It's almost like they added the leftovers to fill the book. Just when you get sucked in the atmosphere, you're back in reality again. Without that, it would have worked better. Also the photos with modern windmills have the same effect. Without Covid, this book would have probably never been made, since mister Nelson couldn't travel the world for his other projects. A blessing in disguise.
I loved the first two. The third didn't do it for me. Or maybe it was so good, it made me feel with an uncomfortable feeling.
Goed verhaal tegen een ongebruikelijke achtergrond. Tempo en lengte van het verhaal was perfect en actie scenes zorgen ervoor dat ik op het puntje van mijn stoel zat. Goeie illustraties, emoties en gelaatsuitdrukkingen klopten met de houding en de tekst.
Besides a great story if the journey of two ai-beings spread over almost 300 years, every two new pages has a different approach in coloring with such a mesmerizing effect, I couldn't stop reading (even though it's a really long read).
I love these books on collectibles. As long as the author is passionate about the subject, I don't mind if it's about vinyl records, synthesizers, game consoles or sneakers. In this case, you couldn't wish for a better expert on skateboard deck designs than Sean Cliver, who started as a designer himself at the famous Powell-Peralta in 1989. As a fanatic collector, he photographed skateboard desks from the 70s to the 00s. They are presented in a quite boring catalogue kind of way, but oh so efficient and even for a non-skater as me, still interesting and an insight in the world of skateboard deck designs, designers, brands and skateboarders with their custom decks.
It's not perfect (as with any encyclopedia), but very helpful when reading marvel comics or watching their movies.
The first time I saw Taxi Driver, was 47 years after it's first release in 1976. I have to say, I wasn't impressed. Probably because I expected too much, being an iconic movie and a ‘must see'. Lot's of directors mentioning it as their inspiration and actors praising the performance by Robert DeNiro. Probably it was revolutionary at the time, but I think there are better examples of timeless movies (like The Graduate)/ I was hoping this book by Taschen would convince me otherwise, or just pointing out I missed some stuff or didn't get the meaning of it. I was hoping for lot's of background stories and behind the scenes photography. Sadly, the main part is stills of the movie itself and some black pages with quotes of the movie. If Taxi Driver is your favorite movie of all time, you're gonna love this. If not, this book will not convince you the brilliance your missing. There are some interviews in the end with de Niro and director Martin Scorsese, but I got more out of the bonus material of the movies Blu-ray release.
This book is one big chain of anecdotes. If you're a big Disney fan and like biographies, it's ok. If not, it's quite boring with a transcription of the live broadcast of the Disneyland opening as a low point.
Characters: better and more surprising than in his other books
Murder Mystery: felt like it had nothing to do with the rest of the book.....until the end of course
Origin: What I most love about books by Dan Brown. He does a lot of research and creates a novel around it. It always plants new ideas in your head and makes you wonder.
This book was brought to me by the photographer himself, Peter van Breukelen, during a studio session (he is a great musician as well). I worked with Peter, I worked with his subject, Benjamin Herman, so I'm a bit biased. This book is on my bookstand a couple of days and I keep coming back to it. It's so well done. I knew Peter could kill his darlings and there are exactly the right amount of photos in here to tell the story, 55 in total (although he followed Benjamin 2 years for this book, so there were lots of photos to choose from). I like the way it's presented in landscape mode and all photos are on the right page and the titles on the left. Peter shows again that besides concert photography, he also possesses the skill of documentary photography als well.
#coffeetablebook #photographybooks #artbooks #bwphotography #musicphotography #photodocumentary
I really got attracted to these picture books for adults. Another example is this one, The Wanderer. It's again like an art book with a storyline. The protagonist of the story is a small fragile paper boat. During it's journey he has to face enemies, problems, but also gets to meet friends and to explore new surroundings. Being small and fragile is never an excuse not to take risks, to explore to face your problems. This book works also great as a coffee table book, just flip to any page and have the book spread open for a day. Once in while take a look and find new meanings to what you see or in context with the other artworks. All hand drawn picture completely done with just a pencil and drawing lines.
Tip: just buy any language version you want, the title is the only text you will find here.
#bookcollector #flatlay #coffeetablebook #koffietafelboek #bookphotography #photographybooks #photobooklovers #photobookcollectors #photobookjousting #artbooks #designbook #bookcover #graphicdesign #illustration #geekculture #bookreview #picturebook #prentenboek #illustrator
I once attended a talk by Rutger Geerling, where he showed his photos and explained how he made them and his way of working. So impressive how he creates these photos, shot directly in JPG and almost with no retouching. Look at the cover photo, what a great shot it shows you exactly what to expect from this book. Worth a buy if you can find it.
Without reading one word, this book had an enormous impact on me. Literally without a word, because Shaun Tan only uses his drawings to tell the story. Not as you see with graphic novels, where there is no room for interpretation, but with little masterpieces, which take you by the hand through the story, the longer you look at them. It's an universal story, an ode to all immigrants and refugees of all ages and places. The images first caught me off guard, I felt the same confusion of the main character and only then I realized this is how it must feel when someone moves to a strange country with a different culture. The beauty of not using any words is that it's readable by almost anyone, discarding your age or language you are speaking (although it's not a children's book). The only text you will find is the prologue and after word. That's why you'll see a different title on all international versions, like this Dutch one. The rest is the same craftful, intense pieces of art, mister Tan worked on for over 5 years. It's a an art book with a story inside.
This is one of my favourites, a book of Anton Corbijn and his fashion photography. Let it get through to you and you still don't know what to expect, at least I didn't. The first pages will get you off the wrong foot, photos for fashion brands like Guess and Louis Vuitton. But then we get all these great shots of actors, artists and other celebrities in a way only Anton can present them. You think you know these people, but then again, it's like you don't know them. Every page made such an impact, I had to stare at them longer as I would normally do. Even such a simple thing like putting a moustache on Paul McCartney resulted in something intriguing. As Anton puts it himself “I photograph mostly personalities, but fashion is more and more part of it. We all make a decision in the morning about what to wear, even if it is just a hat or a black T-shirt. Fashion is not always spelled out in capital letters.” So great to see that not every photo is in high contrast black and white, but even his use of colours is iconic Anton Corbijn.
I have a lot of artbooks on Star Wars, but never had seen this one. It's absolutely one of the better ones, with lots of conceptual art by really talented artists. Made me watch the movie again (and again :-)
Production Value: 8 out of 10
Cover: 9 out of 10
Photo-Text Ratio: 20:1
Appeal: 9
Captivation: 9
Overall Score: 9
Buy, borrow or bury: Buy!
Op het gebied van Star Wars heb ik vele documentaires, making of, interviews en specials bekeken, filmpodcasts en interviews beluisterd, biografieën en collector books gelezen, maar deze grafische roman is veruit de beste, meest overzichtelijke, meest vermakelijke en meest getrouwe versie van het verhaal over het tot stand komen van deze iconische film. Het doet je nog meer beseffen dat haast niemand vertrouwen had in deze film (uiteindelijk zelfs ook George Lucas niet meer). Een opmerkelijk verhaal, niet alleen interessant voor Star Wars fanaten, maar zeker ook voor filmfanaten. Achterin nog een uitleg over het character design van Renaud Roche, wat hij fenomenaal heeft neergezet. De bibliografie en bronvermelding laten zien dat hier (net zoals bij de film) jaren werk in zit. Op alle fronten geef ik dit 5 uit 5 sterren!!