Directed by Allen Smithee: Volume 6

by Jeremy Braddock

Allen Smithee specializes in the mediocre. He is versatile. He is prolific. And he doesn't exist. From 1969 until 1999, Allen Smithee was the pseudonym adopted by Hollywood directors when they wished not to be associated with films ostensibly of their making . Encompassing over fifty films of various stripes -- B movies, sequels, music videos, made-for-TV movies -- Smithee's three decades of work affords the authors of this volume a unique opportunity...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 081663534X
• ISBN13: 9780816635344
• Release Date: January 2000
• Publisher: University of Minnesota Press
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.94 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

Absalom, Absalom!

I am, sadly perhaps, Allen Smithee's son, Herbert Smithee. I found this exploration of my father's work long overdue but somehow completely disgusting. True the authors have tapped into the psyche of my father in ways that no one save my mother ever has, and yet, I think this is why I hate this book so much. It's like reading an orgasm: it feels continuously rewarding, but it must be bad for you... it must...

why is the cover sideways?

This book flies in the face of boring academic work: the authors take a small cultural phenomenon and explore and expand it in interesting directions and to worthwile ends. Both playful and serious - excellent for students and scholars of the auteur theory or anyone who wants to learn something about good minds doing fun things. The authors show us that Allen Smithee is the workingman's Pierre Menard - and they capture some of that excellent Borgesian spirit. Check it out.