Suggested New Books on Filmmaking: Terrence Malick, Chateau Marmont, Korean Cinema, and More

      Our initial roundup for 2025 highlights some significant releases; considering the current climate, we should be very grateful for this. Be aware that our next column will feature an extensive list of new and recent novels and short stories (including a notable short story collection from Burning director Lee Chang-dong) along with remarkable Blu-Ray and 4K releases from Criterion and Warner Home Entertainment. In essence, there’s a lot to immerse ourselves in—thank goodness for that.

      However, before that, we present the following excellent texts, beginning with an exceptional biography of one of our finest contemporary filmmakers.

      The Magic Hours: The Films and Hidden Life of Terrence Malick by John Bleasdale (University Press of Kentucky)

      John Bleasdale’s Magic Hours is, astonishingly, the first comprehensive biography of Terrence Malick. This alone makes the book a significantly important release. Indeed, it's an essential text in cinema, crafted with intellect and charm (Bleasdale starts with a visit to Malick’s childhood home and the actual Tree of Life), overflowing with intriguing details (we finally receive the definitive recounting of the 1995 Thin Red Line table read, and learn about an early-70s meeting between AFI classmates Malick and David Lynch, along with critic Pauline Kael), and deeply insightful. We explore how Malick’s complex and challenging relationship with his father, the loss of his younger brother, and his passion for philosophy (and Texas, for that matter) have shaped his career journey. Magic Hours concludes at our present moment, as we await the release of The Way of the Wind, Malick’s ambitious “series of scenes from the life of Jesus.” Could this be the director’s most daring endeavor yet? “Approaching his eighties, Terrence Malick was still engaged, being in the world, going on location, moving around with his rock group.” How fitting to envision Malick perpetually in motion, always innovating, constantly dreaming up something unprecedented. Perhaps the most remarkable accomplishment of The Magic Hours is that it reminds us how fortunate we are that Terrence Malick is alive, thriving, and creating.

      Louis B. Mayer & Irving Thalberg: The Whole Equation by Kenneth Turan (Yale University Press)

      In The Whole Equation, esteemed former Los Angeles Times film critic Kenneth Turan offers an immensely enjoyable read focusing on two pivotal figures in Hollywood history. The bond and subsequent fallout between Louis B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg serve as the subject of this distinctive joint biography. While both individuals are fascinating, it is the volatile Mayer who captures the most attention. “Like the high-volume Automat eateries,” Turan describes, “he aimed for quality, but only if it could be mass-produced and scaled up.” His office was vast (“You need an automobile to reach your desk,” remarked Samuel Goldwyn), his affection for the Andy Hardy films skewed, and his influence extensive. Mayer and Thalberg were titans; Turan vividly depicts the era in which they thrived.

      The Chateau Marmont Hollywood Handbook edited by André Balazs (Rizzoli Universe)

      The background of this collection of rare writings and candid photos is enthralling. Edited by the iconic hotelier André Balazs, the book is republished for the first time since 1996. It contains contributions from notable figures such as Lillian Ross, Budd Schulberg, Dominick Dunne, and Jay McInerney, accompanied by photographs of nearly every prominent person in Hollywood. Highlights include the Annie Leibovitz image of a bald, bare-chested Dennis Hopper with long-haired Christopher Walken; a shirtless Humphrey Bogart “tending to the bungalow garden”; and a joyful Björk moving “between rooms,” captured by Spike Jonze. The common thread binding it all is the hotel itself. The Chateau Marmont emerges as the central character here.

      Falling in Love at the Movies: Rom-Coms from the Screwball Era to Today (Turner Classic Movies) by Esther Zuckerman (Running Press)

      Esther Zuckerman consistently delivers delightful writing. Following her entertaining works Beyond the Best Dressed and A Field Guide to Internet Boyfriends, she presents an aptly timed February release, Falling in Love at the Movies. This easily consumable guide to romantic comedies is organized into categories like “The Meet-Cute,” “The High-Maintenance Woman,” “Not So Happily Ever After,” and “LGBTQ+ Love.” In her introduction, Zuckerman clarifies that the book is “a selective history. It’s by no means comprehensive.” Still, she manages to feature lesser-known gems such as The Watermelon Woman, Palm Springs, and the significantly underrated Joe Versus the Volcano. I would argue that Falling in Love at the Movies is quite comprehensive.

      George Cukor’s People: Acting for a Master Director by Joseph McBride (Columbia University Press)

      Joseph McBride