The French New Wave of the late 1950s and the auteur theory that came to the U.S. in its wake revolutionized critical discussion of movies, particularly American movies. Starting in the mid-1960s, publication of film books mushroomed, with many important works intended for both academic and “common” (in Virginia Woolf’s sense) readers. Here, Rodney Powell has selected six books published since then that he recommends to those just beginning to study American cinema.

The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929-1968 by Andrew Sarris.

First published in 1968, cineastes of a certain age might call this the Citizen Kane of film books. Spurred by his exposure to the film culture of France, where American movies were taken seriously, Sarris promulgated his own version of the auteur theory, emphasizing the director as the primary creative force in filmmaking during the studio era. Although battered by detractors (most notably Pauline Kael), Sarris stood his ground and this book remains the best starting point for an appreciation of the art of the American cinema.

Hitchcock by François Truffaut.

Truffaut’s book-length interview with the director who was deemed by most English-speaking critics at the time as, at best, a master entertainer is a great practical education in filmmaking—the acolyte absorbs technical lessons from the master in their film-by-film discussions. The Revised Edition, published in English translation in 1984 after Hitchcock’s death, contains additional reflections on Hitchcock’s career by an older and more experienced Truffaut (who himself died in 1984). Tapes of the original interviews are now available online at several sites, including this one.

Conversations with the Great Moviemakers of Hollywood’s Golden Age at the American Film Institute edited by George Stevens, Jr.

Edited by the founding director of the American Film Institute, this is in many respects the Hollywood establishment film book par excellence. But what a line-up of interviewees—twenty-five directors, two writers, one producer, and four cameramen! And the interviews do give a good sense of how movies were put-together in the Hollywood factories and how creative talent worked within, adapted to, and fought against that very successful system.

Romantic Comedy: In Hollywood, from Lubitsch to Sturges by James Harvey.

Undoubtedly too long and sprawling, this is nevertheless a book I keep returning to for insights into the works of two major directors and for rich recreations in prose of the complex experience of viewing this whole body of remarkable films—to me the real cream of the studio system in the Golden Age—that seem (curmudgeon alert!) so much richer (and funnier) than the mostly pedestrian and silly comedies of these later days.

The Way Hollywood Tells It: Story and Style in Modern Movies by David Bordwell.

Roger Ebert calls Bordwell “our best writer on the cinema,” and says this book is “simply astonishing.” I agree. This is the most “academic” of the books I’ve chosen, but in this case “academic” doesn’t mean dry and boring, but lively and challenging. Although many argue that movies have changed drastically since the break-up of the studio system (and particularly since the blockbuster era inaugurated by Jaws in 1975), Bordwell convincingly makes the case for continuity in narrative goals (it’s still the same old story), achieved by similar artistic strategies—similar, but with important new emphases in a style that he dubs “intensified continuity.” Here theorizing is the product of careful analysis, and Bordwell’s insightful prose and well-chosen illustrations make this a must.

Who the Devil Made It: Conversations with Legendary Film Directors by Peter Bogdanovich.

Now out of print in both hardcover and paperback, this behemoth (over 850 pages) is my favorite among interview books. Bogdanovich was one of the crucial figures in the establishment of the auteur theory in the U.S. (he helped the Museum of Modern Art in New York put together retrospectives of the work of Orson Welles, Howard Hawks, and Alfred Hitchcock in the early 1960s and wrote a series of influential pieces for Esquire before directing his first feature in 1968) and he has continued to interview both directors and actors throughout his career (a companion volume, Who the Hell’s In It: Conversations with Legendary Actors, first published in 2004, is still available in paperback and is also highly recommended). These sixteen interviews exhibit Bogdanovich’s enthusiasm, knowledge, and ability (usually) to elicit illuminating comments from his formidable subjects. And by the way, his own films are also well worth seeking out.

Rodney Powell is an assistant editor at the University of Chicago Press and a Co-op member. He also contributed a short piece on Scorsese by Ebert to The Front Table earlier this month.