Here are some recommended film books

Recommended Books and References
Movie-Made America, by Robert Sklar		One of my favorite books about the history of Hollywood cinema and its cultural environment. It covers the entire history of American cinema so it’s a bit condensed and sometimes have to read it slowly to capture everything that’s squeezed in. It’s written in chronological order so you can skip the borings stuff about Thomas Edison and just read the parts that interest you the most.
American Movies, by Paul Monaco		A film-by-film look at the art, craft, and business of cinema. Normally I wouldn’t go anywhere near a book that attempt to explore the entire history of cinema. American Movies is an amazing accomplishment in doing the impossible in 340 pages. This book is not for beginners. He assumes that the reader already has a basic understand of American film history. He skips all the basic historical overview that you can find any a zillion other books. He focuses on key facts of film history that distill the essence and backstory of what created this film history. I learned a lot from this book. It’s not a jumble of trivia. He helps fill in the blanks of anything you might have glossed over.
Goodbye Cinema, Hello Cinephilia, By Jonathan Rosenbaum		Don’t let the title scare you away from this one. Rosenbaum is one of the most respected American movie critic. He has great insight and a lively way of describing films. He has written many books. Most of them are anthologies of his film reviews. I like this one because it one of his most recent books and includes lots of writing about films as well as film reviews.
Pictures at a Revolution, by Mark Harris		There are many books on American films from the 60s and 70s. It’s a very popular subject for writers and readers. This book is one of my favorites. A non-academic overview of films from that era. It’s well-researched, lively, and fun book that will give you great insight into that period of time. The book gives an detailed look at the five best picture nominees for 1967 (The Graduate, Bonnie and Clyde, In the Heat of the Night, Guess Whose Coming to Dinner, and Dr. Doolittle).
Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex-Drugs-and-Rock ‘N Roll Generation Saved Hollywood		Written by Peter Biskind and published in 1998. Easy Riders, Raging Bulls is also about the 1960s and 1970s Hollywood. The title is taken from films which bookend the era: Easy Rider (1969) and Raging Bull (1980). The book follows Hollywood on the brink of the Vietnam War, when a group of young Hollywood film directors known as the “movie brats” are making their names. Several of the film-makers profiled in the book have criticized Biskind. Robert Altman denounced both the book and Biskind’s methods, saying “It was hate mail. We were all lured into talking to this guy because people thought he was a straight guy but he was filling a commission from the publisher for a hatchet job. He’s the worst kind of human being I know.”
High Concept, by Justin Wyatt		Movies and marketing in Hollywood. Some movies have to stew in your head for a few days before you fully understand it. It takes much longer to understand film history. In his 1994 book, High Concept, Justin Wyatt did a damn good job putting the films of the 1980s in an historical context. Justin Wyatt captured the essence and impact of films from the 1980s. Not every film made in the 1980s could be seen as “high concept” but that style of filmmaking is the key to understanding it. Only 200 pages, but his extensive footnotes helps in finding other key texts. He isn’t afraid to break out the numbers, including detailed charts to help back up his ideas. The book is bouncy and filled with movie posters making it really fun to read.
Kings of the Bs, Edited by Todd McCarthy and Charles Flynn		There are many books about B-movies and cult cinema, Published in 1975, this is one of the first. Half of the book are profiles of individuals involved in the production of B-movies. The second half are interviews. These folks are very knowledgeable about the nuts and bolts of how movies work. It’s an oblique angle into the inner working of the industry. It’s a loving tribute to individuals who lived on the fringes of the movie business. It’s surprisingly insightful and engaging.
The New Wave, by Peter John Graham		The New Wave (Cinema World Series 5) (January 1, 1968) Paperback, 184 pages. One of the first English-language books that explored the French New Wave. A good concise introduction to the subject.
A Year in the Dark		1969 by Random House A Year in the Dark is a compendium of film reviews Renata Adler wrote for The New York Times. Although some critics felt that Adler’s lack of formal training in film studies diminished her criticism, it was generally recognized that she had expanded the role of a movie reviewer by writing a wide range of articles, from a report on the arts in Cuba to reviews of pornographic movies.
The Devil’s candy		The Devil’s candy The Bonfire of the Vanities Goes to Hollywood 1991
Imitation of Life		Imitation of Life, by Douglas Sirk · published 1991
Breathless		Breathless, by Jean-Luc Godard, published 1988 a low-budget film, came to be regarded…
42nd Street		BFI Film Classics – 42nd Street
The Big Lebowski		BFI Film Classics – The Big Lebowski
Bonnie and Clyde		BFI Film Classics – Bonnie and Clyde
The Exorcist		BFI Film Classics – The Exorcist
On the Waterfront		BFI Film Classics – On the Waterfront
Singin’ in the Rain		BFI Film Classics – Singin’ in the Rain
Greed		BFI Film Classics – Greed
La Grande Illusion		BFI Film Classics – La Grande Illusion
Lolita		BFI Film Classics – Lolita
The Night of the Hunter		BFI Film Classics – The Night of the Hunter
The Third Man		BFI Film Classics – The Third Man
The Usual Suspects		BFI Film Classics – The Usual Suspects
Withnail & I		BFI Film Classics – Withnail & I
Children and the Movies		Children and the Movies: Media Influence and the Payne Fund Controversy ISBN 0521482925, 9780521482929 Garth S. Jowett, Ian C. Jarvie, Kathryn H. Fuller, Professor Kathryn H Fuller Cambridge University Press, Jan 26, 1996 – History – 414 pages Author: Garth Jowett; I C Jarvie; Kathryn Fuller-Seeley Publisher: Cambridge [England] ; New York, NY, USA : Cambridge University Press, 1996.