The unmistakable opening bars of John Williams' score for 'JAWS' heralded not just the arrival of a man-eating shark, but the birth of a new type of movie. Fast, visceral, and devouring all in its path, the summer blockbuster had landed.
For one generation of film-makers it spelled the very death of cinema, but for another it was the birth of a new era, one which would be ruled by such titans as Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and James Cameron. Between them, these blockbuster auteurs would change the face of Hollywood - reviving the flagging fortunes of the studios, and bringing audiences back into theatres in record numbers.
But somewhere along the line, something went wrong. The beast they awakened took on a life of its own, and by the 1990s, it had run completely out of control. Are the studios even in the movie business any more? Or are they just in the blockbuster business?
Written with a passion of a true movie fan, and the wit of one of our best critics, Tom Shone's book is the first to try to make sense of this global phenomenon. He has interviewed all the key participants - from directors like Spielberg and Lucas to the executives and effects boffins - and produced what is easily the most incisive and entertaining book about film since Peter Biskind's 'Easy Riders, Raging Bulls'. It will be a must for all film fans, or for anyone who ever wondered: just what did happen in the summer of 1975?
