I purchased this as a gift for my son, who is a huge fan of cinema, to put it mildly. Having purchased 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, also by Steven Jay Schneider, it was not much of a jump to order both 501 Movie Stars: A Comprehensive Guide to the Greatest Screen Actors and 501 Movie Directors: A Comprehensive Guide to the Greatest Filmmakers, upon their recent release as soon as they became available.
501 Movie Stars is a thick book and interesting to be sure; filled with wonderful info and photos.
I would doubtless give it 5 stars if it were not for some glaring omissions. It goes without saying that any reader would come up with a list of actors that they felt should be included and this reviewer understands you cannot include every actor of merit.
However, glance at this partial list of actors omitted from this huge hardcover book and tell me they should not have been included (many of whom have been nominated several times and have won Academy Awards):
Sean Astin
Ed Harris (4 nominations)
Phillip Seymour Hoffman (1 nomination, 1 win)
Diane Lane (1 nomination)
Jude Law (2 nominations)
Ian McCellan (2 nominations)
Viggo Mortenson
Billy Bob Thornton (1 nomination, 1 win)
Most glaring to us is the omission of Joe Pesci, who was nominated twice and won an Oscar for Goodfellas and Robert Duvall, who was nominated 6 times, including for his work in The Godfather and one win for Tender Mercies.
Again, this is but a partial list. Each day my son thinks of additional notable actors he is shocked to discover have been omitted. 501 Movie Stars: A Comprehensive Guide to the Greatest Screen Actors
If you watch movies for a hobby, you may get easily disappointed by the superficial selections of both actors and the movies they played in. Just as an example, I was surprised that we have a page dedicated to Divine (I did not even know of this actor), yet David Carradine, the "Kill Bill", "North and South" and "Kung-Fu" guy is missing.
The book is titled "...Guide to the Greatest Screen Actors" and therefore commits to a lot. Unfortunately little is offered. The movie titles listed under each actor is very selective and includes low quality ones instead of better ones - at least with AMG you can select their best work. You will be much better off getting one of Roger Ebert's books or the Video Hound. They may not have all the fancy photographs of this book, yet if you're looking for substance, you'll get a lot more for your buck.
I rated this star review with only three stars for two very good reasons. The first being I think that many stars of whom belonged in this book, weren't. And the second being that there were far to many foreign stars that are totally unknown to most americans. But, the reviews were excellent, considering the fact that most had to be short. The picture choices were very good, and the content of this work generally first rate. I am glad that I purchased this item and will scan through it for years to come. - Movie Collection'
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