The premise of this book is alluring: that movies featuring California, regardless of genre, are imbued with prototypical California “vibes”, and have unique storylines that only make sense in light of California culture. The author goes on to elaborate on this thesis, making quite a compelling argument, and does so by looking, in turn, at broad movie categories, such as fame, war, romance or natural disaster. Of note, LaSalle is a seasoned film critic for the San Francisco Chronicle, and his wide expertise of the movie scene shines brightly. In support of his main thesis, he references dozens of movies across decades, and does so eloquently and with a nuanced eye, often providing a fresh look at “old” movies. As an example, the reader need not look further than Chapter 1, where LaSalle superimposes The Wizard of Oz onto the Hollywood movie-making machine. There are just a couple of important caveats. First, this account is nothing more than one person’s view of movies and culture, so the reader should be prepared to disagree from time to time with the author’s perspective. Second, at times the author can appear moralistic, which can detract from the reading experience. Nevertheless, these really are minor hiccups in an otherwise highly readable and enjoyable romp through movies and California.
Rafael Romero, PhD