Smiley, Tavis. "Melvin Van Peebles". Tavis Smiley. PBS. 27 May 2004. .

After some bantering where Melvin reveals he is actually “Sir Melvin” (“brother from the south side of Chicago has been knighted”), Tavis Smiley begins the interview with Melvin Van Peebles and his son Mario. Tavis asks Mario what it was like growing up in the shadow of his father, who responds saying that Melvin “never though being successful would make him forget his blackness…who he is.” They discuss Melvin growing up in an institution/industry where he is “mad at the system but not mad at the people.” Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song was therefore an indictment of the system but not necessarily everyone who functions within that system. Melvin acknowledges that all the film unions were all-white and he sought to make a film that utilizes people of all races in spite of the singular racial perspective portrayed in Sweetback. Next they talk about Mario’s film New Jack City (1991) and Mario confides that since the studio heads are all white, it’s tough to pitch a movie with complex non-white characters. More often than not, studio heads use black characters in simple way (i.e. comic relief or subservience). Thus, most of the Van Peebles’ films are done by racially mixed crews and funded by black producers. They move on to Mario losing his virginity on screen in Sweetback’s beginning at 13 years old, which Mario says was a great experience (he kept asking for retakes). The conversation continues about the paternal link between Melvin, Mario, and now Mario’s kids in his recent biopic of his father, Baadasssss (2003). After discussing how they make due with limited resources and time (Sweetback was shot in 19 days “without technology), they finish by talking about how to promote a controversial movie nobody wants to advertise.

This interview was very interesting to read because it shed light not only on some of the feelings behind the controversial production of Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song, but also illustrated the father-son relationship between Melvin and Mario Van Peebles. Sweetback is a film that is meant to affect the younger generation, instilling them with a sense of pride and refusal to tolerate intolerance. As this interview demonstrates, Melvin instilled his son with a sense of purpose and duty, not only to his family and race, but to under-privileged, under-utilized film crews as well. Although the character of Sweetback ultimately becomes a loner, it was the production of that film that brought people together in order to challenge society and the Hollywood system with new, provocative images and stories.  As Melvin said, it was the system, not the people, that needed to be directly confronted.

Barnes, Peter. “The Director on Horseback.” The Quarterly of Film Radio and Television 1956.  From JSTOR [database online].  [Cited 4 Apr. 2006].

This article attempts to plot the career of John Huston, director of The Maltese Falcon.  At its outset, the article sadly notes that after The Maltese Falcon and The Treasure of Sierra Madre, Huston’s films decline steadily in importance.  The author begins with a discussion of The Maltese Falcon and The Treasure of Sierra Madre, and explains how Huston manipulates his distinct style to make these two movies significant.  The author then details the other films Huston has made and discusses the shortcomings of each film.  He speaks of each film as one that could have possibly redeemed Huston, but then discusses the many flaws the film has.  With each film after The Treasure of Sierra Madre, the author states his disappointment with Huston, harshly chastising his work from multiple angles.

At this point the article takes an interesting turn, as the author tries to pinpoint when Huston is able to put forth his best work.  The argument that this article proposes is that Huston is only able to make impressive films when working for the Hollywood system.  The author states that although this system can be crippling for certain directors, it is actually beneficial for Huston.  This is true, argues Barnes, because when working within a Hollywood framework, Huston does not need to focus on as many details, and can therefore better focus his creative talent.  It is his movies made outside of this style, according to the author, that are mediocre at best.

This essay gives insight into Huston’s work, and explains his overarching styles, as well as how he is best able to direct films.  This is clearly important for someone researching The Maltese Falcon, as it allows the viewer to understand the film in context of Huston’s other films.

Mike Nichols was born on November 6, 1931 in Berlin. His family moved to America when he was seven and five years later, his father died, causing incredible financial issues for his family. Nichols worked very hard in school to fulfill his dream of being accepted at the Universtiy of Chicago. However, in his college years, he quickly grew tired of academic life and small jobs. He dropped out and eventually joined a group of actors in Chicago that formed the Compass, which gave him some wonderful connections is the acting/film world, the most important being Elaine May. Elaine May had a profound affect on Nichols, inspiring him to mock the ordinary and typical, and look towards the unconventional. The two of them became stars in the Satire Boom, poking fun at mainstream American culture, which was something Nichols would later include in many of his movies. By the early 60s, they were finished working with each other, and Nichols began working on his first major film, a theater translation of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? It was a groundbreaking translation and with stars like Elizabeth Taylor in his first movie, he was quickly put on the map as a wonderful director. This paved the way for his next movie The Graduate, which included some of the most playful and youthful directing ever seen at that time. He wanted to create his own individual path in the directing world, and proved very capable of this with the interesting perspectives in this inventive film. Although he made a name for himself in these early films, the nature of the movies he created took a different twist after The Graduate. As he continued down this path, critics began to lessen their reviews of him, because although his films were always cinematically artistic, they no longer contained great concepts about society.

Nichols' influence in the film world reaches many directors today. Certain scenes, such as the one with the scuba equipment epitomize the way that his novel directing could add to the mood of otherwise simple stories. The director of a movie plays an integral part in giving the film its own unique style, as Nichols did with The Graduate.

This particular book about Billy Wilde gives accounts of conversations and experiences which illustrate both his personal and social life.  Zolotow looks at exchanges Wilder has with different actors, directors etc. and incorporates dialogue from these dialogues into the bibliographic form in order to give the reader a more engaging account of the events in Wilders life. 

            A book such as this gives a good background perspective on Wilders life and personality from exchanges he has with people.  It is through gaining this greater understanding of the director and his life that one gains insight into the director’s work. Billy Wilder was a dynamic genius who gave his movies a great deal of attention and care which is how he was able to produce several masterpieces.  It is the often overlooked and even the seemingly inane details that make scenes in Wilders movies works of art.  One example the book offers of Wilders cinematic brilliance is from a scene in the movie Some Like it Hot. In the scene when Daphne (Jerry) tells Josephine (Joe) that he is engaged a rich billionaire, Wilder insisted that Jack Lemmon who plays Daphne have maracas and shaken them after every line.  In this scene the maracas were added to give the audience a chance to laugh during the maracas shaking sequence, and then settle down in time to hear the rest of the witty dialogue. A simple detail such as this shows the care and consideration Wilder has for his audience.

            The conversationalist tone taken by the speaker gives this book the feel of a story.  And while this tone makes the book reader friendly it also gives it a seemingly less credible foundation.  The lack of references and a background research section also make the book a questionable source.