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Summary: Funny, Fascinatin and Inspiring
Review: This book is a must-read if you like movies - or if you like Rodriguez's work!!The fascinating story of how he made El Mariachi is highly entertaining and very motiviating yet at the same time funny and informative. Also included are some tips for filmmakers and the El Mariachi script. This book has to be yours if you like to make films
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Summary: This book inspired me to film my first movie
Review: Until I read Robert Rodriguez's book, I thought actually making films that got recognition would be a pipe dream. No film school? No problem. I felt that because I had no film school I didn't have a chance. This book made me realize that the stories in my head were really worth something. I started production on a movie a week ago because of the inspiration this book gave me. A MUST READ if you need motivation.
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Summary: Robert Rodriguez,a God among directors (and writers...)
Review: This book is so great...I'm 16 and the only thing I can talk about is films and making them,I wanted to go to a sort of film school but everybody was saying that it was hopeless.I can't really blame them,I'm from Belgium, and there's not really a movie industry here in my little country.So then I picked up this book and it encouraged me so much because he says that it is possible for anyone to make a movie and he seems so,well,modest you know.I enjoyed reading this book though my English isn't so very good,but I understood everything about it (you could say "why don't you read a translation" but the book isn't translated in Dutch,i guess)It's maybe not much but Robert Rodriguez gave me courage and support to go on with making films...Thank you!
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Summary: Big Dreamer encourages other Big Dreamers
Review: This book is great for anyone who wishes to make movies. First of all, he explains that those of us aspiring filmmakers are already filmmakers! It all starts with having a vision of what you would like to see in a movie. He believes that creativity is infinitely more important than having a big budget. This book also includes Rodriguez's 10 Minute Film School, which is priceless. Learn about his trials and tribulations, as well as his triumphs. The theme is to ignore all of the naysayers and to go for your dreams!
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Summary: So I can make movies too
Review: After reading this book, I reexamined a lot of things in my life. And I found that I had a long time interest in movies but I never thought about making one.
One days I got this book, I finished it cover to cover. It left me with a strange realization. What has this guy done? Can it be repeated? Can I do it too? So my postponing of ideas about films and was not good. My thinking that moviemaking is only for well connected and maniacs, was not accurate. Now here I am today with a DV camera and at least 5 finished small screenplays. I am not yet a full time filmmaker but hey at least my friends think I am . I don't know whether this book has created this interest or has it just unveiled a hidden treasure. But sure it all started after reading this book.
So go ahead and read it...may be this will be your beginning.
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Summary: Works on two levels
Review: "Rebel Without a Crew" is a fascinating look at Robert Rodriguez's process of writing, directing, and selling "El Mariachi," and the craziness that followed. The prose is clear, quick, and funny. But there's also an inspirational and partly unspoken message: if you are intensely creative, love your art, and willing to work incredibly hard for a very long time (Rodriguez had been making movies for over 10 years before "Mariachi"), great things can happen. Rodriguez's transition from lab rat to hot Hollywood prospect bear witness to the possibilities.
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Summary: The Low-Budget Blockbuster Filmmaker's Manifesto
Review: Robert Rodriguez is the hero that independent filmmakers long for and aspire to be like. He's the guy next door that didn't know how to write a screenplay but had a passion for making movies and years of experience playing with his parents' camcorder. Unable to get into film school at the University of Texas because of his low GPA, Rodriguez remained undeterred and actually beat out some of the UT film students at a film festival and was able to convince the University to let him in film school. He spent his summer vacation shooting a very modestly-budgeted action thriller in order to get some practice to make a "real" movie that would take him to Hollywood. Starring his best friend, a guy he met while working as a lab rat in a medical facility (long story) and some locals he shot "El Mariachi" for an unheard of $7,000. When plans failed for him to sell the Spanish-language film to the Spanish video market, he went out on a limb and took it a Hollywood talent agency. From there, Rodriguez had the privilege of sitting back and watching all the big studios fight over him -- all because of his "practice" film. "Rebel Without a Crew" is really a 4-part book. It is Rodriguez' personal commentary on all that has happened to him because of "El Mariachi". It is also includes the shooting script of the movie that made him a Hollywood bigshot. The meat of the book, though, is Rodriguez' personal production journal -- a day-by-day account of starting off as a human lab rab to raise movie for the film all the way through having his own office at Columbia Pictures. Finally, the book includes Rodriguez' own "10 Minute Film School", which has become a manifesto among low-budget aspiring filmmakers. This part alone is worth the cost of the book. "Rebel Without a Crew" is not a technical how-to book. It is the account of one guy with little money, no crew and only a basic understanding of how to make a feature film that actually went out and made an awesome film that had Hollywood in an uproar. If you are an aspiring filmmaker, this book is a definite must-read. Even filmmakers that have been in the business for years will learn some valuable lessons from this book.
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Summary: Inspiration is the word...
Review: This book was referred to me and I must say that I was instantly inspired upon finishing the introduction. I could not put the book down and finished it in three days. I highly recommend this text to anyone who wants to see the results of a young, aspiring director that jumped feet first into making a full-fledge action movie then asked questions later...only to come out on the other side smelling like roses and attaining a powerful position within the film industry. Fun, humorous and easy to follow, this is an absolute MUST-READ for ANY aspiring film director.
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Summary: Inspirational
Review: Anyone who has ever said "I want to make a movie" should grab this book. It will inspire you to stop saying and start doing. It shows how someone can work outside "the system" and become successful in doing something they love. In conjunction with the El Mariachi/Desperado DVD, this is a fantastic insight into how one person can overcome high odds and acheive his dreams. It has inspired me greatly.
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Summary: Most inspiring book I've ever read!!
Review: There's nothing that I can really say that hasn't already been said about this book. Like a true filmmaker, he makes us become part of the story. We go through all the pain, , stress, confusion, excitement and joy. I've gained a new found respect for him. I've also come to appreciate the advantages that we have today. His $7,000 movie could probably be made for $70 today.
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