I was really looking forward to this book, it's a great premise and I'm a big fan of all three directors. But I had a number of issues. My main issue is that so much of this has been covered in many, many other books and documentaries. How many times do I have to read about the time Lucas screened Star Wars for his filmmaking buddies? Coppola losing his mind during the making of Apocalypse Now? The making of Jaws? Spielberg and Lucas creating Indiana Jones while vacationing? The list goes on. Why is there so much material on Scorsese, once again, mostly recycled from other books? The author also seems oddly obsessed with FFC's personal life. He had affairs, we know! Big deal. Lucas comes off as a petty penny pincher. Spielberg's portrayed as socially maladjusted and sort of pathetic as a young man. BOO! Much of this reads like Easy Riders, Raging Bulls by Peter Biskind, only the prose is less sharp. It reads like AI edited this book; there's no energy to the prose. The tone is detached and devoid of passion, which is a shame considering the rich subject matter. For a newcomer wanting to learn about the subject, this book could maybe work as a primer. But there's so much better material out there.
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