Recently, a Gwyneth Paltrow biography was published and people were only too happy to revisit and re-examine the old gossip about the friendship breakdown between Paltrow and our 90s queen Winona Ryder. One of the articles referenced an excerpt from Ed Zwick’s memoir. The excerpt was about his struggle to get Shakespeare in Love made, although it was primarily focused on the behind the scenes drama associated with the original cast, focusing on a young Julia Roberts. It all read as very juicy and 90s, so I immediately put in a reserve request for the library.
Ed Zwick is a Hollywood producer, director, and writer. He worked on 30something, My So Called Life, Glory, Shakespeare in Love and Legends of the Fall. Not everything he’s made has been a hit, but he’s certainly been involved in some of my own cultural touchstones. Zwick alternates chapters that focus on specific projects/eras with material from his personal notebooks, generally tongue in cheek lists on what he has learned throughout his 40 years in Hollywood. It’s a genuinely interesting book. I am reluctant to reveal the details of anything, because some of the stories are such a good surprise. He is of course generally careful not to throw anyone under the bus, with the notable exception of Harvey Weinstein, but there are still lots of behind the scenes discussion with some polite but critical commentary on the actions of actors, other producers and writers, and also of himself and closest colleagues. He has worked with Tom Cruise several times, and is pretty careful to avoid talking about Scientology, but does discuss what an enthusiastic professional Cruise is, akin to what we often read in the media.
Zwick takes an interesting approach throughout – sometimes he is very honest and critical about the movie making business, making pointed comments about how the drive to create art and explore ideas runs up against the business and politics of it all. In some circumstances, he seems to almost gush in a relatable way about movies and television, talking about how movie stars seem to almost glow and you can’t help but want to know more about them.
Zwick includes a few blind items in the book that I just could not figure out. I don’t blame myself, I blame the current failure of Google to look up anything useful or relevant. Overall, this book was a lot of fun, very readable and with just enough juicy information to be sure Zwick can keep working but also keep the reader involved.
CBR Bingo: Culture