Scan barcode
Reviews
Backwards and in Heels: The Past, Present and Future of Women Working in Film by Alicia Malone
mcyewfly's review
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
4.0
You know those pop-feminism books that you get as a gift from an acquaintance/coworker because they know you’re feminist, but not much else about you? And the book’s contents start and stop at the Greatest Hits like Patriarchy 101? This book is that. How fitting—this time last year I read Burnout, a similar experience. It all rhymes.
Also, full disclosure: I was/still am a massive YouTuber baby. I was in the trenches, watching Screen Junkies and Collider and all of their programming religiously since the Honest Trailers for Titanic. I’ve only stopped since everyone’s gone solo or found work elsewhere. Reading Malone’s book just made me feel so warm and proud in a weird-parasocial way; she made it, etc.
The book’s first section does a pretty great job at telling the story of women in Hollywood. The writing style is a bit off in. It’s not directly reporting on events like a journalist, and it’s not really analyzing or developing a central argument, either. It’s just summarizing a collection of primary sources with the occasional quip or aside. It’s one of those situations where I would never have read the Wikipedia articles for all of these people, but I essentially just did that. The book is a net-good because it got me to care more about the individual careers of women in Hollywood and some of the grittier details; yet, if I already knew these names, I don’t think this book earned its existence. There’s not a lot of meat on the bone because it’s 100 years of women, and they each get 2-4 pages.
There’s an interesting gamble this book takes when it starts including present day women as history makers, as the public (and my own personal) perception of people like Ava DuVernay or Patty Jenkins have definitely shifted since 2017. Of course, everyone she’s included are complicated and flawed people, and Malone doesn’t really put anyone up on an impossible pedestal. It was just fascinating to read the present section as a part of the Past section in just 7 years. It’s also really, really funny that she included J.J. Abrams and Paul Feig in their own token-section due to their “exceptional, honorary-woman ally” status.
It definitely belongs on any film lover’s shelf, and her bibliography looks like an awesome next step for what to read.
Also, full disclosure: I was/still am a massive YouTuber baby. I was in the trenches, watching Screen Junkies and Collider and all of their programming religiously since the Honest Trailers for Titanic. I’ve only stopped since everyone’s gone solo or found work elsewhere. Reading Malone’s book just made me feel so warm and proud in a weird-parasocial way; she made it, etc.
The book’s first section does a pretty great job at telling the story of women in Hollywood. The writing style is a bit off in. It’s not directly reporting on events like a journalist, and it’s not really analyzing or developing a central argument, either. It’s just summarizing a collection of primary sources with the occasional quip or aside. It’s one of those situations where I would never have read the Wikipedia articles for all of these people, but I essentially just did that. The book is a net-good because it got me to care more about the individual careers of women in Hollywood and some of the grittier details; yet, if I already knew these names, I don’t think this book earned its existence. There’s not a lot of meat on the bone because it’s 100 years of women, and they each get 2-4 pages.
There’s an interesting gamble this book takes when it starts including present day women as history makers, as the public (and my own personal) perception of people like Ava DuVernay or Patty Jenkins have definitely shifted since 2017. Of course, everyone she’s included are complicated and flawed people, and Malone doesn’t really put anyone up on an impossible pedestal. It was just fascinating to read the present section as a part of the Past section in just 7 years. It’s also really, really funny that she included J.J. Abrams and Paul Feig in their own token-section due to their “exceptional, honorary-woman ally” status.
It definitely belongs on any film lover’s shelf, and her bibliography looks like an awesome next step for what to read.
serenitylive's review
4.0
This book was made for me. Despite a lifelong obsession with Hollywood and filmmaking, I really know nothing of substance about it. I'm grateful for this read about so many women with gumption and with Hollywood dreams like mine. Movies have an interesting history and not usually an exemplary one, but the stories within it are as varied as the stories it tells. I still say storytelling is the loveliest profession and film one of my favorite mediums. It's deeply flawed but with so much potential for good.
The book describes women in film from old Hollywood to now, including current lawsuits and movements attempting to overcome gender inequality. It's not a very pretty book, but it's packed with introductions to women *and* men adding great value to the biz.
The book describes women in film from old Hollywood to now, including current lawsuits and movements attempting to overcome gender inequality. It's not a very pretty book, but it's packed with introductions to women *and* men adding great value to the biz.
lduran39's review
5.0
I devoured the audiobook of this book! It was a great insight into the history of females in Hollywood with insights into what it’s like today and in the future. I highly recommend this book.
andforgotten's review against another edition
I've regretfully decided to give up on this. No offense to anybody who enjoyed it or the author herself, but content-wise at halfway through there was barely anything I didn't already know (which may be due to the fact that women in film is a topic I care and read about). The fact that the chapters on each lady are kept fairly short to include a lot of them certainly doesn't set the stage for a more in-depth look, and though I'm sure that style was chosen to give an overview of as many women as possible, it ultimately feels lacking and unsatisfying.
In combination with the style of the actual writing itself, the chapters come across as a mixture of someone summarizing wikipedia entries and writing a blog post. Strange style breaks from an objective third person narration to a subjective first person 'conclusion' certainly don't help and make it all sound rather amateurish.
For someone who's looking for an intro into interesting women in the history of Hollywood, this book certainly offers that, but for anyone who knows more and is looking for something they haven't already seen before, I'm sure there are other books out there to satisfy that need.
In combination with the style of the actual writing itself, the chapters come across as a mixture of someone summarizing wikipedia entries and writing a blog post. Strange style breaks from an objective third person narration to a subjective first person 'conclusion' certainly don't help and make it all sound rather amateurish.
For someone who's looking for an intro into interesting women in the history of Hollywood, this book certainly offers that, but for anyone who knows more and is looking for something they haven't already seen before, I'm sure there are other books out there to satisfy that need.
terib's review
4.0
This is an insider type expose of Hollywood and the movie industry, in terms of how women are seen, treated and shut out of roles and leadership.
I liked the historical approach, writing about women in each decade. It contains those that succeeded, and acknowledgment of who helped them succeed. It includes those that never reached their dreams as well.
The section regarding each woman is only a few pages, sometimes less. There were a few I skipped, but not many. They discussed positions I really don’t know much about. Read it, have your daughters read it, plus anyone who plans or is in the TV/movie industry, so they know the status quo and are aware of things that need to be done or changed. They need to know who are women allies.
I liked the historical approach, writing about women in each decade. It contains those that succeeded, and acknowledgment of who helped them succeed. It includes those that never reached their dreams as well.
The section regarding each woman is only a few pages, sometimes less. There were a few I skipped, but not many. They discussed positions I really don’t know much about. Read it, have your daughters read it, plus anyone who plans or is in the TV/movie industry, so they know the status quo and are aware of things that need to be done or changed. They need to know who are women allies.