Book Description

Essays from the influential and beloved film critic: “No one has done as much as Ebert to connect the creators of movies with their consumers.”—Richard Corliss, Time Over more than four decades, Roger Ebert built a reputation writing reviews for the Chicago Sun-Times and, later, arguing onscreen with rival Chicago Tribune critic Gene Siskel, and later Richard Roeper, about the movies they loved and loathed. But Ebert’s wisdom went well beyond a mere thumbs up or thumbs down. The Great Movies IV is the fourth and final collection of Roger Ebert’s essays, comprising sixty-two reviews of films ranging from the silent era to the recent past. From films like The Cabinet of Caligari and Viridiana that have been considered canonical for decades, to movies only recently recognized as masterpieces, to Superman, The Big Lebowski, and Pink Floyd: The Wall, the pieces gathered here demonstrate the critical acumen seen in Ebert’s daily reviews and the more reflective and wide-ranging considerations that the longer format allowed him to offer. Also included are an insightful foreword by film critic Matt Zoller Seitz, editor-in-chief of the official Roger Ebert website, and a touching introduction by Chaz Ebert. A fitting capstone to a truly remarkable career, The Great Movies IV will introduce newcomers to some of the most exceptional movies ever made, while revealing new insights to connoisseurs.