What do you think?
Rate this book
Never Coming to a Theater Near You: A Celebration of a Certain Kind of Movie
It is in the nature of today's movie business that while Hollywood blockbusters invade every megaplex, smaller, quality films often don't get screen time. Fans of finer films have to count on catching up with them on video and DVD, but even the most hard-core devotees have trouble remembering what sounded good when a film was originally released. Never Coming to a Theater Near You will remedy that situation. This selection of renowned film critic Kenneth Turan's absorbing and illuminating reviews, now revised and updated to factor in the tests of time, point viewers toward the films they can't quite remember, but should not miss. Moviegoers know they can trust Turan's impeccable taste. His eclectic selection represents the kind of sophisticated, adult, and entertaining films intelligent viewers are hungry for. More importantly, Turan shows readers what makes these unusual films so great, revealing how talented filmmakers and actors have managed to create the wonderful highs we experience in front of the silver screen.
416 pages, Paperback
First published September 28, 2004
6 people are currently reading
288 people want to read
About the author
Kenneth Turan
17 books8 followersKenneth Turan is the film critic for the Los Angeles Times and NPR’s Morning Edition, as well as the director of the Los Angeles Times Book Prizes. He has been a staff writer for the Washington Post and TV Guide, and served as the Times’ book review editor. A graduate of Swarthmore College and Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, he is the co-author of Call Me Anna: The Autobiography of Patty Duke. Turan teaches film reviewing and non-fiction writing at USC and is on the board of directors of the National Yiddish Book Center. His most recent books include Free for All: Joe Papp, The Public, and the Greatest Theater Story Ever Told and Never Coming To A Theater Near You. Turan lives in Los Angeles, CA.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
June 21, 2017
We used to call them "art" films but they are now known as independents or "indies". These are the films that were worth watching but often hard to find as their distribution was limited (at least in the US). As time passed, the movie mavens realized that there were gems out there that were not getting the exposure they deserved. The Sundance Festival brought these films out of the shadows and this book, written by film critic, Kenneth Turan, contains his favorite hidden treasures.
Divided into the categories of English speaking films, foreign films, documentaries, and classics, the author shows the reader what makes these films so great and in many cases unusual. Those of us who love obscure film have seen some of them but frankly I have never even heard of many of them. After reading this book, I hope to remedy that situation....it is just a matter of finding these elusive films.
A great guide to the unknown and often under-appreciated movies that will probably never be coming to a theater near you. Recommended.
Divided into the categories of English speaking films, foreign films, documentaries, and classics, the author shows the reader what makes these films so great and in many cases unusual. Those of us who love obscure film have seen some of them but frankly I have never even heard of many of them. After reading this book, I hope to remedy that situation....it is just a matter of finding these elusive films.
A great guide to the unknown and often under-appreciated movies that will probably never be coming to a theater near you. Recommended.
January 7, 2009
Turan brings attention to some great over-looked or obscure movies such as Together, Safe, Thirty-Two Short Films About Glenn Gould, Hilary and Jackie, Jesus' Son, Lovely & Amazing, To Die For, Time Out and many, many more. Definitely check this out if you need to diversify your queue!
Read
March 27, 2008I now baptize this book as my "what to read when I need an emergency reading material selection at work." Amen.
September 2, 2019
An excellent guide to quality films
The kind of movies that Los Angeles Times film critic Kenneth Turan is talking about in this fine collection of his reviews are those that are "sophisticated, mature, [and] always entertaining." (p. xiv) His point in the title about such films "never coming to a theater near you" is a good one since most of the films reviewed here had either a short life on the large screen or went directly to video and DVD. (The exceptions are classics like The Third Man (1949), A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), and others which were produced before the advent of video and DVD.) The reason, as every veteran film viewer knows, is that most movies shown in theaters today are aimed at a relatively young and unsophisticated mass audience, an audience that demands (producers believe) the sort of film that most of us have grown out of.
Turan's book is in five parts, English Language Films, Foreign Language Films, Documentaries, Classics, and Retrospectives. Characteristic English language films are, Election (1999), Heavenly Creatures (1994), Manny and Lo (1996), Proof (1991), 12 Monkeys (1995), to name some that I have seen and reviewed myself, and 66 more. Some foreign language films are, Autumn Tale (1998), Un Coeur en Hiver (1992), The Dreamlife of Angels (1998), Red (Trois Couleurs: Rouge) (1994), and 39 others. There are 20 documentaries including, Black Harvest (1994), Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control (1997), The Saltmen of Tibet (1998), etc. The classics include Das Boot (1981), Once Upon a Time in America (1984), Vertigo (1958), and nine others. What the selections in this eclectic assemblage have in common is that they are all very much worth seeing--at least the ones that I have seen. Indeed several of them--Un Coeur en Hiver, Red, Das Boot, A Streetcar Named Desire, etc.--are among the best movies I have ever seen.
Turan's reviews are mostly appreciations (which is not surprising since these are his favorite films) written in a clear, informative style infused with the sort of background information and historical perspective that only an expert on film can provide. Reading this volume is a film education in itself and a pleasure. And for most people I think value of the book is consistent with Turan's intent: that is, to point to films that the serious film-goer may have missed and to demonstrate why those films are very much worth seeing.
The "Retrospectives" are essays inspired by "a specific film event" centered around individual film makers like Anthony Mann or the largely forgotten Frank Borzage, and others; or they are about genres or movements in cinema that Turan wanted to learn more about such as the Yiddish film or the Chinese martial arts film. There is an essay on "Pre-Code Hollywood."
Bottom line: if you are like me and have to screen three or four films (i.e., actually rent them or buy them) to find one worth watching, then this book is a godsend. Turan knows quality in film and he tells you why the film is worth watching, and his enthusiasm is contagious.
--Dennis Littrell, author of the movie review book, “Cut to the Chaise Lounge, or I Can’t Believe I Swallowed the Remote!”
The kind of movies that Los Angeles Times film critic Kenneth Turan is talking about in this fine collection of his reviews are those that are "sophisticated, mature, [and] always entertaining." (p. xiv) His point in the title about such films "never coming to a theater near you" is a good one since most of the films reviewed here had either a short life on the large screen or went directly to video and DVD. (The exceptions are classics like The Third Man (1949), A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), and others which were produced before the advent of video and DVD.) The reason, as every veteran film viewer knows, is that most movies shown in theaters today are aimed at a relatively young and unsophisticated mass audience, an audience that demands (producers believe) the sort of film that most of us have grown out of.
Turan's book is in five parts, English Language Films, Foreign Language Films, Documentaries, Classics, and Retrospectives. Characteristic English language films are, Election (1999), Heavenly Creatures (1994), Manny and Lo (1996), Proof (1991), 12 Monkeys (1995), to name some that I have seen and reviewed myself, and 66 more. Some foreign language films are, Autumn Tale (1998), Un Coeur en Hiver (1992), The Dreamlife of Angels (1998), Red (Trois Couleurs: Rouge) (1994), and 39 others. There are 20 documentaries including, Black Harvest (1994), Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control (1997), The Saltmen of Tibet (1998), etc. The classics include Das Boot (1981), Once Upon a Time in America (1984), Vertigo (1958), and nine others. What the selections in this eclectic assemblage have in common is that they are all very much worth seeing--at least the ones that I have seen. Indeed several of them--Un Coeur en Hiver, Red, Das Boot, A Streetcar Named Desire, etc.--are among the best movies I have ever seen.
Turan's reviews are mostly appreciations (which is not surprising since these are his favorite films) written in a clear, informative style infused with the sort of background information and historical perspective that only an expert on film can provide. Reading this volume is a film education in itself and a pleasure. And for most people I think value of the book is consistent with Turan's intent: that is, to point to films that the serious film-goer may have missed and to demonstrate why those films are very much worth seeing.
The "Retrospectives" are essays inspired by "a specific film event" centered around individual film makers like Anthony Mann or the largely forgotten Frank Borzage, and others; or they are about genres or movements in cinema that Turan wanted to learn more about such as the Yiddish film or the Chinese martial arts film. There is an essay on "Pre-Code Hollywood."
Bottom line: if you are like me and have to screen three or four films (i.e., actually rent them or buy them) to find one worth watching, then this book is a godsend. Turan knows quality in film and he tells you why the film is worth watching, and his enthusiasm is contagious.
--Dennis Littrell, author of the movie review book, “Cut to the Chaise Lounge, or I Can’t Believe I Swallowed the Remote!”
August 25, 2018
Essentially Turan's recommendations of the hidden movie gems to seek out. Covers films in English, foreign language, documentaries and several essays on specific topics (pre-code movies) or people (Anthony Mann). Films I have seen that Turran selects are certainly worthy of recognition. So his views are to be taken seriously. But his description of the films often fell short of compelling a moviegoer who had not seen the film to seek it out. At least this moviegoer. I did get some ideas for future viewing so probably Turan's views will be of more interest once the film is seen.
December 19, 2020
This book is nice because it can be read one review at a time, in any order. So if you’re tired and can only stay awake for a few pages, this is perfect. And if you put the book down for a few weeks, no problem — you won’t miss a thing. I noticed that Turan is a bit too fond of the word “adroit” which irked me a bit. But in general, I learned a lot about film and used this as a guide for movies to add to my watchlist.
May 3, 2018
Books of movie reviews tend to get tedious after awhile, and this book is no exception. But it is useful for compiling a list of good movies you should see, because you probably haven't seen them yet. Also good that the movies are divided into English-language, foreign-language, and documentaries.
May 1, 2019
A primary premise of this book when it was written was that the DVD made viewership of these rarely seen masterpieces a possibility; today, the advent of streaming makes this even more so! A great guide to track down those films that were overlooked when first released.
April 10, 2012
What a wonderful idea for a book! Kenneth Turan has brought together 150 reviews representing the top 5% of the films he sees as film critic for the Los Angeles Times. The result is a collection of movie reviews for (a) little-known and under-sung films that are (b) for grownup audiences instead of teenagers and (c) available on VHS and DVD.
Altogether there are reviews of movies from 39 countries, most of them released over the last dozen or so years, half of them English-language films. The other half are foreign language and documentaries. Turan also includes reviews of 12 classic movies and nine short essays on subjects ranging from Chinese martial arts to pre-code Hollywood films. There are no blockbusters here and very few films you're likely to have seen on HBO. They are instead the movies made with a nod to the inner adult - original, entertaining and wise, while touching on real emotions.
While I'd seen most of the English-language films Turan includes, and said "yes!" to each choice (like "A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries" and "Uncle Vanya on 42nd Street"), it was the foreign films and documentaries I knew far less about. And with a short list quickly picked from those sections, I went straight to Vidiots in Santa Monica, which had all of them. Starting with two French comedies, "The Dinner Game" and "Un Air de Famille," we were greatly entertained on a lazy Thanksgiving afternoon.
Turan has his sensibilities and his film sense all finely tuned. You can trust him to pick the good ones. And you can wonder at the other 95% of not-so-great fare he had to wade through to get to these gems.
Altogether there are reviews of movies from 39 countries, most of them released over the last dozen or so years, half of them English-language films. The other half are foreign language and documentaries. Turan also includes reviews of 12 classic movies and nine short essays on subjects ranging from Chinese martial arts to pre-code Hollywood films. There are no blockbusters here and very few films you're likely to have seen on HBO. They are instead the movies made with a nod to the inner adult - original, entertaining and wise, while touching on real emotions.
While I'd seen most of the English-language films Turan includes, and said "yes!" to each choice (like "A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries" and "Uncle Vanya on 42nd Street"), it was the foreign films and documentaries I knew far less about. And with a short list quickly picked from those sections, I went straight to Vidiots in Santa Monica, which had all of them. Starting with two French comedies, "The Dinner Game" and "Un Air de Famille," we were greatly entertained on a lazy Thanksgiving afternoon.
Turan has his sensibilities and his film sense all finely tuned. You can trust him to pick the good ones. And you can wonder at the other 95% of not-so-great fare he had to wade through to get to these gems.
June 28, 2015
This book wasn't what I wanted it to be. While Turan certainly is a very astute reviewer, I find it difficult to really see what the focus of this book actually is.
What I wanted it to be was a sort of close look at movies that don't get talked about very much. Cult films, blockbusters, critical favorites, and to a lesser degree genre films, generally get a lot of film criticism, but there's a certain kind of middle-of-the-road film that gets glossed over. The thing is, these MOR movies are really the bread-and-butter of the movie industry, and say as much about our culture as anything else.
The issue I have with Kenneth Turan's book is that it presents these mainstream films as if they were underground classics--so other than vaguely discussing the merits of each one, he doesn't say much more beyond that. The thing is, a large percentage of these movies you'll at least heard of before, and what I would have more liked to have seen is a look at these minor hits with a fresh eye.
What I wanted it to be was a sort of close look at movies that don't get talked about very much. Cult films, blockbusters, critical favorites, and to a lesser degree genre films, generally get a lot of film criticism, but there's a certain kind of middle-of-the-road film that gets glossed over. The thing is, these MOR movies are really the bread-and-butter of the movie industry, and say as much about our culture as anything else.
The issue I have with Kenneth Turan's book is that it presents these mainstream films as if they were underground classics--so other than vaguely discussing the merits of each one, he doesn't say much more beyond that. The thing is, a large percentage of these movies you'll at least heard of before, and what I would have more liked to have seen is a look at these minor hits with a fresh eye.
July 12, 2022
A nice source for reviews of lesser known/independent films and documentaries from the 90s and early 2000s. I’ve seen and enjoyed some of the movies explored but unfortunately because I’ve seen a lot of movies over the years, my memory of them is dim. So this book also served as a reminder of some really good movies that I would like to revisit if possible. Other movies, sadly, I don’t think I’ll have access to because they either aren’t streaming or robust DVD sources just aren’t available anymore. It’s a shame because the time span covered is in my opinion a very unique, special time in cinema history. I also found the section on the Classics interesting.
December 26, 2007
Kenneth Turan is one of my favorite critics whom I listen to on NPR. This book highlights movies that rarely come to my multiplex in my small town. Comedies likie FLIRTING WITH DISASTER and classics like Cocteau's Beauty and the Beast are given loving attention. Turan has a real love for movies that are unique in approach and in style. This collection is first rate.
August 23, 2016
I've been dipping into this book ever since a friend loaned it to me. Coming back from nearly 30 years in film deprived out-back Africa I was starved for films. This book helped enormously in orienting me to what was most worth watching. Turan and the Movie Data Base I have to add. Turan's reviews are entertaining to read and give worthwhile insights into the movies he mentions. I came away knowing I'd better check out film directors as well as film stories, actors and actresses. Even producers. I feel wiser and better equipped with this thoughtful book.
December 3, 2014
I thought I was going to find a lot of movies off the beaten track that are worth seeing. I was almost flattered to learn that my tastes in movies are nearly in lockstep with the kinds of movies Turan covers here. If it's important to you to see what everyone else is seeing while it's first run in theaters, then pass on this book. If you're looking for something with real character, you'll find it here.
July 15, 2014
Great movie list! I checked the reviews he wrote on the independent films I loved, such as next stop wonderland, station agent, state and main, all were very insightful. I am going to check out the movies in the book for sure. After Ebert is gone (sadly and irreplaceable), I am glad I found another film critic whose reviews are intelligent and witty.
June 11, 2016
An excellent book of movie reviews focusing on brilliant, little-known movies that never really found the audience they deserved. There are two major sections on American and Foreign Films, plus another excellent section of brilliant classics that have been all but forgotten.
Terrific book for anyone who loves film.
Terrific book for anyone who loves film.
April 5, 2016
"Great" - The LA Times
"Trustworthy" - Hollywood Reporter
"Indispensable" - Portland Tribune
"Insightful" - Variety
"Delightful" - David Ansen
I'm with Variety. And mainly because of the quite informative Classics chapter.
"Trustworthy" - Hollywood Reporter
"Indispensable" - Portland Tribune
"Insightful" - Variety
"Delightful" - David Ansen
I'm with Variety. And mainly because of the quite informative Classics chapter.
January 2, 2008
Some of my favorite overlooked movies are reviewed in this book. A fantastic guide for movie lovers.
July 26, 2008
interesting movies
not really B style... just good- not hollywood blockbuster style... but good.
ya
not really B style... just good- not hollywood blockbuster style... but good.
ya
April 26, 2009
This gave me lots of new films to add to my Netflix queue.
February 3, 2011
Great reviews. Now to find the time to see the movies. So many and of the few I've seen his reviews are spot on.
August 8, 2011
i like books of lists...especially if they are about GOOD lists.
October 24, 2008
This guy's not a very insightful critic.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews