What do You think about Hollywood Animal: A Memoir (2004)?
Fascinating memoir from a fascinating human being. Joe Eszterhas is the extreme example of the badass screenwriter who was more willing to tell you to f*ck off/break your neck if he felt you were trying to... well, f*ck with his words. That's all you have when you're a writer and you have to stand up to what you believe in. Even if the threats come raining down. You get to get inside his head as he tells you his truth of working on his famous movies like Basic Instant or the infamous failures like Showgirls. And you get to see his early life as he slowly develops into the persona he is well known for. Every human being is flawed but not every human being is daring and straight talking like Joe Eszterhas. Definitely a damn good read if you're a screenwriter too... or want a entertaining read about dirty parts of Hollywood. He also has another book I was recommended to read, called: "The Devil's Guide to Hollywood: The Screenwriter as God!" Definitely got to check that one out.
—Jim Truong
He's a piece of work, but not exactly the piece of work I assumed him to be when I picked up the book. The narrative loses steam when a bout with throat cancer rather literally puts the fear of God into the guy, but it's still a blunt, engaging, touching, and provocative - if perhaps not perfectly honest - book. But what would I expect from a guy who could write Showgirls and Basic Instinct as well as The Music Box and Telling Lies in America? He's too complex a beast with too wild a life for even a talented writer like himself to capture with complete accuracy. Does he cut himself too much slack sometimes, or rewrite himself into the hero's role too transparently? Sure. But, by the end, you at least realize that facile labels like "misogynist" or "smutpeddler" are both unfair and wildly inaccurate.
—Susie
This is a long, too long, book in my opinion. Got tired of reading about Hollywood, particularly the Hollywood of the author.The book could have been half the size and sharpened up and would be much more readable, at least to me.I finished the book, but hd to work at it to get through. Guess the topic was not as interesting to me as I thought it would be.Those who want to hear all the gossip about Hollywood, as seen through the eyes of one person and that one person's opinnion, will enjoy the book.J. Robert Ewbank author "John Wesley, Natural Man, and the 'Isms'"
—J. Ewbank
