Shit, Actually: The Definitive, 100% Objective Guide to Modern Cinema
One of the "Best Books of 2020" by NPR's Book Concierge **Your Favorite Movies, Re-Watched** New York Times opinion writer and bestselling author Lindy West was once the in-house movie critic for Seattle's alternative newsweekly The Stranger, where she covered film with brutal honesty and giddy irreverence. In Shit, Actually, Lindy returns to those roots, re-examining beloved and iconic movies from the past 40 years with an eye toward the big questions of our time: Is Twilight the horniest movie in history? Why do the zebras in The Lion King trust Mufasa-WHO IS A LION-to look out for their best interests? Why did anyone bother making any more movies after The Fugitive achieved perfection? And, my god, why don't any of the women in Love, Actually ever fucking talk?!?! From Forrest Gump, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, and Bad Boys II, to Face/Off, Top Gun, and The Notebook, Lindy combines her razor-sharp wit and trademark humor with a genuine adoration for nostalgic trash to shed new critical light on some of our defining cultural touchstones-the stories we've long been telling ourselves about who we are. At once outrageously funny and piercingly incisive, Shit, Actually reminds us to pause and ask, "How does this movie hold up?", all while teaching us how to laugh at the things we love without ever letting them or ourselves off the hook. Shit, Actually is a love letter and a break-up note all in one: to the films that shaped us and the ones that ruined us. More often than not, Lindy finds, they're one and the same.
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Community Reviews
I picked this up for bookclub. I knew it was nonfiction, but I didn't know much more about it.
I listened to it on audio, and the author read it herself. It was a fun book to listen to, mostly because I was familiar with most of the movies the author wrote about. Even the movies that I hadn't seen were interesting in this book. The author pointed out the flaws and plot holes in many of the movies. I had never watched them closely enough to think about them.
I recommend this fun read as an audiobook. I don't know that I would enjoy it as much if I was reading it on my own. The author's tone and storytelling ability made the story so fun.
I listened to it on audio, and the author read it herself. It was a fun book to listen to, mostly because I was familiar with most of the movies the author wrote about. Even the movies that I hadn't seen were interesting in this book. The author pointed out the flaws and plot holes in many of the movies. I had never watched them closely enough to think about them.
I recommend this fun read as an audiobook. I don't know that I would enjoy it as much if I was reading it on my own. The author's tone and storytelling ability made the story so fun.
UPDATING ON 3/14/2023 TO ADD: I just saw The Fugitive (the whole "rating system" used in this book) for the first time two nights ago. Can you believe it?! It's weird seeing it for the first time in my mid-30s because it is very much a movie of that time. A bit dramatic and cheesy. A lot of long action scenes (running and car chases galore). A predictable-ish one-dimensional-ish bad guy. It also makes this book and the rating scale even more hilarious.
Original Review March 2022:
I ❤️ Lindy West.
I truly do.
I think she is one of the funniest writers of all time. No writer has ever made me laugh out loud (LOL) as consistently as she does.
It feels like there is a "but" coming, doesn't there?
There's not.
This book was pure entertainment but still was not without the signature Lindy West thoughts on feminism, policitcs, sex, etc. that I adore her for.
Do I agree on every single thought and rating? Heck no! I still love Titanic to this day, and I don't care who knows it. Did I get all sensitive when an opinion was different than my own? Heck no number two! This book is hilarious and her observations are not wrong. She isn't nitpicking, folks. She's just making funny observations. She's not slamming a 1 "DVDs of the Fugitive" rating on every movie she found a contradiction in. Lighten up. Live a little.
It looks like it took me a long time to finish this. I guess it did. But I was actually just reading a few at a time to savor it.
I'm definitely adding "please make Lindy West write a Part II to Shit, Actually" to my prayers.
5 Stars
Original Review March 2022:
I ❤️ Lindy West.
I truly do.
I think she is one of the funniest writers of all time. No writer has ever made me laugh out loud (LOL) as consistently as she does.
It feels like there is a "but" coming, doesn't there?
There's not.
This book was pure entertainment but still was not without the signature Lindy West thoughts on feminism, policitcs, sex, etc. that I adore her for.
Do I agree on every single thought and rating? Heck no! I still love Titanic to this day, and I don't care who knows it. Did I get all sensitive when an opinion was different than my own? Heck no number two! This book is hilarious and her observations are not wrong. She isn't nitpicking, folks. She's just making funny observations. She's not slamming a 1 "DVDs of the Fugitive" rating on every movie she found a contradiction in. Lighten up. Live a little.
It looks like it took me a long time to finish this. I guess it did. But I was actually just reading a few at a time to savor it.
I'm definitely adding "please make Lindy West write a Part II to Shit, Actually" to my prayers.
5 Stars
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