King of the Action Thriller
Films from the Mind of Alistair MacLean
by Brian Hannan
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Book Presentation:
The Scottish novelist Alistair MacLean didn't speak English until he was six, but he went on to become one of the world's best-selling authors (over 150 million copies sold) and Hollywood's highest-paid screenwriter. His films are the very portrait of action. Where Eagles Dare, The Guns of Navarone, Puppet on a Chain, and Fear Is the Key set the template for Die Hard, the Bourne films, and John Wick. The cable car fight, speedboat pursuit, and car chase set a new high for action sequences. Movies were sold on his name alone. He achieved Hollywood's highest honor--his name above the title--because he appealed to a vast global audience.
This is the first book to explore Alistair MacLean's unique magic, detailing how 18 of his bestsellers were transformed into movies and mini-series. His movies starred Clint Eastwood, Charles Bronson, Gregory Peck, Donald Sutherland, multiple Oscar nominees Richard Burton and Richard Harris, and two-time Oscar-winner Anthony Hopkins. Moviemakers had such faith in MacLean's name as a marketing tool that they also handed leading roles to unknowns like George Maharis or Sven Bertil-Taube. This much-needed work of cinema history fills a gap in the scholarship, telling the full story of the man who dominated the action movie for two decades.
About the Author:
Brian Hannan writes a regular column for Cinema Retro magazine and gives lectures on film at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, Scotland.
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