Sidney Lumet : Interviews

Sidney Lumet (b. 1924) is considered one of the most gifted and socially conscious American filmmakers of his generation. His best-known movies--includingSerpico,Dog Day Afternoon,The Verdict,12 Angry Men, andNetwork--have garnered him an Honorary Academy Award in 2005, multiple Oscar nominations for Best Director, the D. W. Griffith Award for Lifetime Achievement, and numerous other tributes.This book features over twenty interviews with the director, including an interview conducted by the editor for this volume. One of the few mainstream directors who works outside of Hollywood, Lumet discusses how his home base, New York City, fuels his films. Candid, outspoken and occasionally brash, Lumet talks passionately and clearly about his work with great actors (among them Al Pacino, Faye Dunaway, River Phoenix, and Sean Connery) and acclaimed screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky.Insisting that moviemaking is collaborative, Lumet often notes his determination to find styles that serve the many different kinds of stories he has told, such as the social dramaThe Pawnbroker, the crime filmsPrince of the CityandSerpico, the intimate family pieceGarbo Talks, the play adaptationLong Day's Journey into Night, and the television series100 Centre Street.Joanna E. Rapf is professor of English and of film and video studies at the University of Oklahoma in Norman. She is the author ofOn the WaterfrontandBuster Keaton: A Bio-Bibliography, and her work has appeared inFilm Quarterly,Literature/Film Quarterly,Post Script, andJournal of Popular Culture.