Delightful ... the world's leading sage about film ... It's like having the most film-literate pal you can imagine sitting beside you in a multiplex -- John Walsh Independent This book sets the bar. There isn't a more intelligent, insightful and provocative guide to individual movies in the world -- Nigel Andrews Financial Times A dazzlingly authoritative treat ... crammed with insight and epigram -- Geoff Dyer Observer Eccentric, brilliant, scholarly, perverse, witty, egocentric and infuriating, sometimes all at once -- Philip French Time Out A treasure trove for film buffs ... there is probably no finer contemporary writer on what makes the movies so unmissable -- Allan Hunter Herald

David Thomson is, among many other things, author of The New Biographical Dictionary of Film, now in its fourth edition. His recent books include a biography of Nicole Kidman, Fan Tan (a novel written in collaboration with Marlon Brando) and The Whole Equation: A History of Hollywood. Born in London, he now lives in San Francisco.