The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film (2002) by Michael Ondaatje is a stimulating look into the world of film making from the point of view of a film editor. Walter Murch is an erudite artist that has many other interests besides film and is very good at talking about his craft. In fact, I found it somewhat galling his lack of knowledge about the history of cinema, in that he doesn't like to watch films while he is working, which I can understand, but it seems he was always working. Ondaatje encountered Murch when Anthony Mighella was adapting his novel The English Patient for the screen. Murch has worked on some of the most auspicious films in recent memory due to his connection with Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas among others:The Godfather I, II, III, American Graffiti, The Conversation, Apocalypse Now, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, and The Talented Mr. Ripley among others. I was compelled to go and seek out two e-edits led by Murch when he lead a team to restore Orson Welles' classic film noir A Touch of Evil and Coppola's alternative edit, Apocalypse Now Redux. It seems to me the Welles re-edit was a success, while the re-edit of Coppola's film was largely unnecessary. Murch confirms and strengthens my notion of the importance of sound, music, and editing in the film making process. I think this book would be of great interest to any film fan or artist.

Had some decent insight on Apocalypse Now. Not suggested unless you have seen most of the films mentioned in the book (i.e "The Godfather", "The English Patient", "Return to Oz", etc.).

I would have never picked up this book but it was suggested by a friend and boy was he right... this book essentially is a compilation of conversations with a booker prize winning novelist and a master editor ... it is a superb read filled with some amazing insights on editing and how an editor sees a film. A must read for anyone who loves cinema :)

Really enjoyed it, and makes me want to re-see most of the movies mentioned as well as some that I haven’t seen (e.g., Orson Welles, A Touch of Evil, that Murch re-edited according to Welles’ wishes). Some favourite quotes:

"I can think of no higher tribute to a film than … that you sense simultaneously that it’s crystalline and organic at the same time. Too crystalline and its lifeless, too organic and it’s spineless.

….

There’s that wonderful line of Rilke’s, “The point of life is to fail at greater and greater things.” Recognizing that all our achievements are doomed, in one sense – the earth will be consumed by the sun in a billion years or so – but in another sense the purpose of our journey is to go farther each time. …. I think we’re always failing, in Rilke’s sense – we know there’s more potential that we haven’t realized. But because we’re trying, we develop more and more talent, or muscles, or strategies to improve, each time.

…

When something is successful, everything that went into it, both the good and the bad, tends to get bundled up as the recipe for how to make a success. It becomes very difficult to separate out what was true and what was untrue, what was good and what was bad, what was superficial and what was profound.

….

The distortions of failure, of course, are the opposite: instead of having everything unjustly accepted, everything is rejected. Or that’s the risk, at any rate. Truly great lessons can be learned from work that fails, but failure is stamped on the product and there’s a tendency to think everything you did was wrong, and you vow not to go there again. You have to resist this impulse, just as you have to resist the syrupy entanglements of success. These are, almost, religious issues. What the world thinks is a success, what it rewards, has sometimes very little to do with the essential content of the work and how it relates to the author and his own development."

Helpful in my trying to develop some non-linear and more creative ways to tell stories and engage, as well as good reflections in themselves.

Not to mention a renewed appreciation for the importance of sound in movies,

An odd book — a transcription of three or four conversations between a writer and a movie editor/sound mixer.

I didn't know most of the movies that they were talking about (Except for the Godfather trilogy) which made it hard to follow and stay engaged. But I did enjoy their discussions on editing and the creative process, as well as the effects of sound on the movie-going experience.

And then anytime they talked about the BTS of the Godfathers, I was all there for it.

Converses sobre cinema entre dos grans "monstres" culturals i polifacétics. Val molt la pena. Et mostra com es fan algunes pelis, el seu trasfons i a partir de llegir.ho, potser veuras el cinema amb més "ulls i orelles" que abans. També t'empeny a reveure pelis com "El Paciente Inglés", "El Padrino" o "Apocalyspse Now Redux"

A good look into the world of the job that holds a film together but is seldom recognized by common watchers. The power of the editor as well as the creative control is shown here. While the specific window on film is mostly specific to what Walter Murch has worked on in his long career, the more general discussion about creativity and the artistic process makes the book a double stroke.

Fascinating, poetic, philosophical look at the Art of Film Editing.

مایکل انداتجه(اونداتیه یا انداج) را خیلی‌ها با رمان 《بیمار انگلیسی》می‌شناسن. در این کتاب انداتجه بخاطر علاقه خودش به سینما و برخلاف روال نویسندگیش میره و با یکی از بزرگترین تدوینگران و صداگذاران حال حاضر، یعنی والتر مرچ به گفتگو می‌شنیه.

کتاب شامل چهار جلسه مکالمه در زمان‌های متفاوته به همراه تک‌گفتار‌هایی از افرادی که با مرچ کار کردن، مثل کاپولا.

کتاب رو نه فقط به علاقه‌مندان به تدوین و صداگذاری، که به عاشقان سینمایی که کرم دونستن درباره جزئیات تاریخ سینما دارن هم شدیدا پیشنهاد می‌کنم. مرچ در این‌جا کلی اطلاعات جالب درباره‌ی مراحل ساخت 《پدرخوانده》،《مکالمه》،《سبکی تحمل‌ناپذیر هستی》و خیلی فیلم‌های دیگه می‌ده.

Murch is one of the most talented editors in the history of film. "The Conversations" delves into Murch's thoughts on sound, editing, directing, writing and all of the myriad aspects of filmmaking. A great read for anyone who makes films.

“The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film” es un libro de Michael Ondaatjede y trata de una serie de pláticas que tuvo junto con el editor Walter Murch a lo largo de los años.

Walter Murch es uno de los mejores editores en mi opinión, “In the Blink of an Eye” es un gran libro para los editores y después de leerlo quería saber más del proceso creativo de Walter, "The convesation" nos habla de esto y al mismo tiempo de otros temas relacionados con el cine, también nos cuenta de las veces que trabajó con Coppola o George Lucas y sobre los problemas y soluciones que tuvo para cada película que ha editado.

Lo recomiendo si:

-Te gusta la edición

-Te gusta leer los procesos creativos de un artista.

-Te gustó “In the blink of an eye”.

Gorgeous & fascinating.