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King of the Action Thriller: Films from the Mind of Alistair MacLean

King of the Action Thriller: Films from the Mind of Alistair MacLean - Paperback

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Availability:In StockContributor:Brian HannanPublish date:2/19/2026Pages:229
Language:EnglishPublisher:McFarland & CompanyISBN-13:9781476695334ISBN-10:1476695334UPC:9781476695334Book Category:Performing ArtsBook Subcategory:FilmBook Topic:ScreenwritingSize:10.00 x 7.00 x 0.48 inchesWeight:0.8907Product ID:SCHZM4152R

The Scottish novelist Alistair MacLean didn't speak English until he was six, but he went on to become one of the world's best-selling authors (over 150 million copies sold) and Hollywood's highest-paid screenwriter. His films are the very portrait of action. Where Eagles Dare, The Guns of Navarone, Puppet on a Chain, and Fear Is the Key set the template for Die Hard, the Bourne films, and John Wick. The cable car fight, speedboat pursuit, and car chase set a new high for action sequences. Movies were sold on his name alone. He achieved Hollywood's highest honor--his name above the title--because he appealed to a vast global audience.

This is the first book to explore Alistair MacLean's unique magic, detailing how 18 of his bestsellers were transformed into movies and mini-series. His movies starred Clint Eastwood, Charles Bronson, Gregory Peck, Donald Sutherland, multiple Oscar nominees Richard Burton and Richard Harris, and two-time Oscar-winner Anthony Hopkins. Moviemakers had such faith in MacLean's name as a marketing tool that they also handed leading roles to unknowns like George Maharis or Sven Bertil-Taube. This much-needed work of cinema history fills a gap in the scholarship, telling the full story of the man who dominated the action movie for two decades.

Language:EnglishPublisher:McFarland & CompanyISBN-13:9781476695334ISBN-10:1476695334UPC:9781476695334Book Category:Performing ArtsBook Subcategory:FilmBook Topic:ScreenwritingSize:10.00 x 7.00 x 0.48 inchesWeight:0.8907Product ID:SCHZM4152R
Brian Hannan writes a regular column for Cinema Retro magazine and gives lectures on film at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, Scotland.
Publisher: McFarland & Company

Contributor(s)

Brian Hannan

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