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The films of James Mason
With some second thoughts by James Mason. Research by Corin Moore. Profusely illustrated in black and white . 8vo pp. 256 Rilegato tela, sovracoperta (cloth, dust jacket) Sovracoperta leggermente sciupata ai margini con strappetti e mancanze (Some chipping and nicks around top and bottom of dust jacket) Molto buono (Very Good)
- GenresBiography
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1977
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February 27, 2024
James Mason (1909 - 1984)
A few snippets from The Encyclopedia of British Film (2013):
"One of the greatest of all British male stars, tall, dark and saturnine Mason began as a stage actor after reading architecture at Cambridge, making his professional debut with a rep company in Croydon before being taken on by Tyrone Guthrie at the Old Vic in 1933 ... In the 30s he made about a dozen mostly forgotten films ... It was when he took a riding crop to wicked Margaret Lockwood in "The Man in Grey" (1943) that he became Everywoman's favourite brute: he persecuted Phyllis Calvert in "Fanny by Gaslight" (1944); drove Dulcie Gray to drink and suicide in "They Were Sisters" (1945); smashed his walking stick over Ann Todd's piano-playing fingers in "The Seventh Veil" (1945); and as a highwayman, fell in love with "The Wicked Lady" (1945), Lockwood again.
Post-war, he gave, in "Odd Man Out" (1947), what may be his greatest performance, as a wounded gunman pursued relentlessly through the night-time city to his inevitable end. This is work of tragic stature."
In the following years Mason became an international star with memorable performances in such films as "The Reckless Moment" (1949), as Rommel in "The Desert Fox" (1951), outstanding as 'Cicero' in "Five Fingers" (1952), as Brutus in "Julius Caesar" (1953), as the tragically doomed Norman Maine in his Best Actor Academy Award nominated performance* in "A Star is Born" (1954), "Bigger Than Life" (1956), as the charmingly sinister Vandamm in Hitchcock's "North by Northwest" (1959), as Humbert Humbert in Kubrick's "Lolita" (1961), "The Pumpkin Eater" (1964) and Supporting Actor Academy Award nominations for "Georgy Girl" (1966) and "The Verdict" (1982).
"Anyone who makes over 100 films is inevitably going to be associated with some rubbish; Mason's achievement is, partly, that one wouldn't think of attributing the blame to him."
Hirschorn: "Even in the plethora of mediocre and downright bad films ... his characterizations have, at least been interesting; and that distinctive Mason voice has frequently rescued both himself and his audience from his material."
This handsome "Films of" was published in 1975 and naturally doesn't cover his final films, most notably his acclaimed performance in Sidney Lumet's "The Verdict."
Volume is written by well-known film historian Clive Hirschorn (author of those massive studio histories "The Universal Story" and "The Columbia Story") and lists all of Mason's films up to and including 1975's "Mandingo" and comes with the usual cast and credits, synopsis and selected capsule reviews of each individual work. An added bonus is that James Mason himself offers brief comments on most of the films.
The author also provides an excellent in depth biographical and career assessment of the actor.
256 pages with more than 200 photos.
Review based on original 1975 hardcover edition, published by LSP Books, London. Same book was published (with different cover) by Citadel Books in the U.S.
* Won Golden Globe for Best Actor, Comedy or Musical: "A Star is Born" (1954).
A few snippets from The Encyclopedia of British Film (2013):
"One of the greatest of all British male stars, tall, dark and saturnine Mason began as a stage actor after reading architecture at Cambridge, making his professional debut with a rep company in Croydon before being taken on by Tyrone Guthrie at the Old Vic in 1933 ... In the 30s he made about a dozen mostly forgotten films ... It was when he took a riding crop to wicked Margaret Lockwood in "The Man in Grey" (1943) that he became Everywoman's favourite brute: he persecuted Phyllis Calvert in "Fanny by Gaslight" (1944); drove Dulcie Gray to drink and suicide in "They Were Sisters" (1945); smashed his walking stick over Ann Todd's piano-playing fingers in "The Seventh Veil" (1945); and as a highwayman, fell in love with "The Wicked Lady" (1945), Lockwood again.
Post-war, he gave, in "Odd Man Out" (1947), what may be his greatest performance, as a wounded gunman pursued relentlessly through the night-time city to his inevitable end. This is work of tragic stature."
In the following years Mason became an international star with memorable performances in such films as "The Reckless Moment" (1949), as Rommel in "The Desert Fox" (1951), outstanding as 'Cicero' in "Five Fingers" (1952), as Brutus in "Julius Caesar" (1953), as the tragically doomed Norman Maine in his Best Actor Academy Award nominated performance* in "A Star is Born" (1954), "Bigger Than Life" (1956), as the charmingly sinister Vandamm in Hitchcock's "North by Northwest" (1959), as Humbert Humbert in Kubrick's "Lolita" (1961), "The Pumpkin Eater" (1964) and Supporting Actor Academy Award nominations for "Georgy Girl" (1966) and "The Verdict" (1982).
"Anyone who makes over 100 films is inevitably going to be associated with some rubbish; Mason's achievement is, partly, that one wouldn't think of attributing the blame to him."
Hirschorn: "Even in the plethora of mediocre and downright bad films ... his characterizations have, at least been interesting; and that distinctive Mason voice has frequently rescued both himself and his audience from his material."
This handsome "Films of" was published in 1975 and naturally doesn't cover his final films, most notably his acclaimed performance in Sidney Lumet's "The Verdict."
Volume is written by well-known film historian Clive Hirschorn (author of those massive studio histories "The Universal Story" and "The Columbia Story") and lists all of Mason's films up to and including 1975's "Mandingo" and comes with the usual cast and credits, synopsis and selected capsule reviews of each individual work. An added bonus is that James Mason himself offers brief comments on most of the films.
The author also provides an excellent in depth biographical and career assessment of the actor.
256 pages with more than 200 photos.
Review based on original 1975 hardcover edition, published by LSP Books, London. Same book was published (with different cover) by Citadel Books in the U.S.
* Won Golden Globe for Best Actor, Comedy or Musical: "A Star is Born" (1954).
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review