Nonfiction

Girls on Film: The Complete History of the Women Who Broke Barriers and Redefined Roles

Girls on Film: The Complete History of the Women Who Broke Barriers and Redefined Roles

  • Downloads：7824
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-04-06 18:21:35
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Alicia Malone
  • ISBN：1642506567
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

Tea ，

Just off the bat， this is not the book that Goodreads has it listed as。 The author's foreword is very clear that this is a look at the women in film who affected the author's life in some way， NOT a "complete history of the women who broke barriers"。 I think that wrong title is giving the book some bad reviews because people are going in with wrong expectations。That said， this autobiographical look at the author's life through the films that changed her is a really enjoyable read。 I could comple Just off the bat， this is not the book that Goodreads has it listed as。 The author's foreword is very clear that this is a look at the women in film who affected the author's life in some way， NOT a "complete history of the women who broke barriers"。 I think that wrong title is giving the book some bad reviews because people are going in with wrong expectations。That said， this autobiographical look at the author's life through the films that changed her is a really enjoyable read。 I could completely relate to chapters like the one about Drew Barrymore。 While the author has made very different life choices than me， I felt a kindred spirit in her love for films。 The stories are interesting and provide lots of behind the scenes and historical information about some of the most famous women in film。 The coda chapter about how Covid changed the author's relationship with work and films was an excellent little add-on。 I really enjoyed the audiobook version of this story。 The narrator was very lively and I frequently forgot that it was not actually the author telling the story herself。Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC。 。。。more

J Earl ，

Girls on Film by Alicia Malone is an engaging and informative look at the history of women in film told using Malone's own life story as a framing device。 So this is part memoir and part （mostly） film history。I listened to the audiobook and the narrator， Brigid Lohrey， did a wonderful job of making me feel like I was listening to a conversation where all of this information was being offered。 I found the ways in which Malone weaved her growing up watching movies， the usual issues of growing up， Girls on Film by Alicia Malone is an engaging and informative look at the history of women in film told using Malone's own life story as a framing device。 So this is part memoir and part （mostly） film history。I listened to the audiobook and the narrator， Brigid Lohrey， did a wonderful job of making me feel like I was listening to a conversation where all of this information was being offered。 I found the ways in which Malone weaved her growing up watching movies， the usual issues of growing up， and the story of women in film into a coherent narrative to be very effective。 While I see this referred to as a collection of essays I think that can be misleading。 Even connected collections often lack any overarching narrative even though they are on the same topic。 This flows as a single narrative with chapters that can be read as standalone essays， or at least that is the way I prefer to talk about it。One of the key advantages of this format is that we see on both a personal level and an industry-wide level what the treatment of women in （and around） film means。 How film can be an often poor substitute for education， how having a lack of diversity in the product itself as well as those who discuss and promote the product can distort viewer's perceptions of the world around them。I would highly recommend this to anyone interested in film and film history。 It is entertaining as well as informative and offers some nice analyses of a few films。 I have gone back and revisited a few because of this book。Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley。 。。。more

EJ Pepe ，

Girls on film is part memoir and part movie history。 It's a short book about the women on film who shaped and fostered a love of movies for the author Alicia Malone。 I had a bit of trouble with this concept， I found myself wanting more information about the author and also more information about women on film。 The book left me wanting more movie history and also more personal memoir。 I learned some new information about the history of movies and how women were portrayed。 I would have loved to se Girls on film is part memoir and part movie history。 It's a short book about the women on film who shaped and fostered a love of movies for the author Alicia Malone。 I had a bit of trouble with this concept， I found myself wanting more information about the author and also more information about women on film。 The book left me wanting more movie history and also more personal memoir。 I learned some new information about the history of movies and how women were portrayed。 I would have loved to see the history expand to include more modern examples of how roles have changed。 I was also really interested in how Alicia grew to love movies and found a job working at TCM。 I would love to hear more details of her personal life and experiences。 Overall this book just left me wanting more of both stories。 Thanks to NetGalley and RB Media for providing me with a copy of this audiobook to read and review！ 。。。more

Cajsa ，

Girls On Film was an entertaining audiobook chronicling both the history of classic cinema and the author's personal journey， starting with an interest in film when she was young and culminating in being a film journalist。 Unfortunately， this mix did not really work for me。 While I enjoyed the individual parts， it did not really feel like a cohesive narration to me。 The stories about famous actors such as Liz Taylor and Marilyn Monroe were very insightful and reminded me of The Seven Husbands of Girls On Film was an entertaining audiobook chronicling both the history of classic cinema and the author's personal journey， starting with an interest in film when she was young and culminating in being a film journalist。 Unfortunately， this mix did not really work for me。 While I enjoyed the individual parts， it did not really feel like a cohesive narration to me。 The stories about famous actors such as Liz Taylor and Marilyn Monroe were very insightful and reminded me of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo at times。 Likewise， I appreciated Malone's reflection on how these women were being treated and portrayed。 However， some parts felt like she was just listing her accomplishments and name dropping celebrities she had interviewed。 This did not really speak to the expectations I had of the book。 Further， even though this could simply be due to the Australian accent I am quite frankly unfamiliar with， the narration sometimes contributed to this feeling of merely listening to a list of achievements。 All this being said， I still enjoyed this title and am very grateful to both Netgalley and Tantor Audio for having received the listening copy！ 。。。more

Ethell Yarbrough ，

I seriously enjoyed listening to Brigid Lohrey reading Alicia’s perspective on film theory and her backstory to how she got to be one of the greats in her life and career。 Malone had me laughing from beginning to end and I absolutely related to not being able to start a film club in high school successfully because no one wanted to watch the classics！I really enjoyed the different genres she touched on such as noir and dramas dealing with the female gaze。 She made really great points on the stru I seriously enjoyed listening to Brigid Lohrey reading Alicia’s perspective on film theory and her backstory to how she got to be one of the greats in her life and career。 Malone had me laughing from beginning to end and I absolutely related to not being able to start a film club in high school successfully because no one wanted to watch the classics！I really enjoyed the different genres she touched on such as noir and dramas dealing with the female gaze。 She made really great points on the struggle most female actresses in the 40s and 50s went through to keep their careers despite risking their reputation。 Truly a great read， what a way to end her series！ I want to thank Alicia Malone for publishing this book and working to keep TCM great！ I also want to thank @netgalley and @tantoraudio for the ARC。#girlsonfilm #aliciamalone #netgalley #tantoraudio #womeninfilm #womensupportingwomen Follow me:Instagram: @energygal25 Twitter: @energygal25 。。。more

Torey Pickard ，

I love well written non-fiction。 Give me an interesting storyteller who is passionate about their subject， and could happily read about the origins and details of a myriad of topics。 Alicia Malone clearly loves her work， and it shows。 Wrapping the film history and analysis of female characterization in a memoir made it even better。 Her own personal experiences and film knowledge added a unique bend to her insights。 I do wish she’d delved a bit deeper into each trope， I was left wanting more in a I love well written non-fiction。 Give me an interesting storyteller who is passionate about their subject， and could happily read about the origins and details of a myriad of topics。 Alicia Malone clearly loves her work， and it shows。 Wrapping the film history and analysis of female characterization in a memoir made it even better。 Her own personal experiences and film knowledge added a unique bend to her insights。 I do wish she’d delved a bit deeper into each trope， I was left wanting more in a few sections， but I still thoroughly enjoyed Girls on Film。 I can’t wait to watch some of the classic movies discussed。 Thank you NetGalley and Tantor Audio for this advanced audiobook copy。 。。。more

Leslie ，

Thanks to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for the ALC of this audiobook。Growing up， Alicia Malone discovered the joy of classic cinema， and for many years， that’s how she related to the world。 As I listened to her talk about her childhood， I realized she could have been recounting my own。 At eight years old， I discovered American Movie Classics。 Way before the likes of The Walking Dead， Nick Clooney and Bob Dorian would introduce films from Classic Hollywood。 I was obsessed。 Apparently， so was Malone Thanks to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for the ALC of this audiobook。Growing up， Alicia Malone discovered the joy of classic cinema， and for many years， that’s how she related to the world。 As I listened to her talk about her childhood， I realized she could have been recounting my own。 At eight years old， I discovered American Movie Classics。 Way before the likes of The Walking Dead， Nick Clooney and Bob Dorian would introduce films from Classic Hollywood。 I was obsessed。 Apparently， so was Malone。Part nonfiction， historical film book， part memoir， Malone takes us through her childhood and adult years with dreams of cinematic hosting， jobs in the industry， and how COVID changed her career and life。 I loved every minute。 Though I don’t spend as much time as I’d like with the black and white movies these days， I’m still nostalgic for those days when 10-year old me would spend all weekend binge watching noirs， dramas， and romances。Like Malone， my world-view has changed。 It’s gotten bigger， and I can see the many flaws in these films I once loved。 Plagued with racism， sexism， and queer issues， they are a product of their time。 That doesn’t excuse them， but it does spark discussions of how far we’ve come and what we might learn from the moments in between， howe filmmakers skirted certain things and managed to say some important things even when censored by the dreaded Hayes Code。I’ll always love movies， and I loved this book。 It’s out on Tuesday， so if you’re a movie buff， check it out wherever you get your books。 。。。more

Kendra （NurseKendraReads） ，

Thanks to Netgalley and Tantor Audio for the audiobook in exchange for my honest review。 Rating: ⭐️⭐️。💫/5 （2。5 stars）Narration: the narrator was okay， sometimes I struggled to stay interested as the voice was monotone at times。 This is a non fiction book that follows our author， going through her life and the woman in movies that helped shaped it。 It’s feminist and talks a lot about various female characters and their actresses in movies， with the evolution of woman in film。I’m such a movie love Thanks to Netgalley and Tantor Audio for the audiobook in exchange for my honest review。 Rating: ⭐️⭐️。💫/5 （2。5 stars）Narration: the narrator was okay， sometimes I struggled to stay interested as the voice was monotone at times。 This is a non fiction book that follows our author， going through her life and the woman in movies that helped shaped it。 It’s feminist and talks a lot about various female characters and their actresses in movies， with the evolution of woman in film。I’m such a movie lover so I really enjoyed reading about the movies， as well as hearing the behind the scenes history of some of them。 I found that very interesting。 Reason for 2。5 stars…While some things are interesting， a lot of it is about the authors personal life， and while I enjoyed the film connections to her growing up， I don’t really know who she is so I found I didn’t exactly care too much。 I found the movie part interesting and wish it had a bit more of that It was an okay read， I listened on faster speed towards the end to just get through it。 Also the narrator made it hard to keep interested at times， so it might be a better book in a non audiobook format。 。。。more

Jo Lee ，

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to listen to this audio book in return for an honest review。 Synopsis With humor and honesty， Girls on Film looks at the good， the bad， and the unfairly written women in film。 A celebration of the power of cinema and the hidden messages within media and culture， this collection of personal essays explores the women who inspired and confused a young film enthusiast。A movie freak with a feminist message。 In the tradition of feminist aut Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to listen to this audio book in return for an honest review。 Synopsis With humor and honesty， Girls on Film looks at the good， the bad， and the unfairly written women in film。 A celebration of the power of cinema and the hidden messages within media and culture， this collection of personal essays explores the women who inspired and confused a young film enthusiast。A movie freak with a feminist message。 In the tradition of feminist authors， film reporter Alicia Malone brings a collection of personal essays looking at the representation and impact of women on film。 In addition to personal anecdotes and analysis， Girls on Film weaves in interviews from a diverse group of well-known women working in cinema today。For fans of Trick Mirror and film books。 A blend of women’s history books and film reviews， each chapter of Girls on Film looks at a female character representative of a stereotype or trope。 As she explores hidden histories， Alicia connects these tropes to her very own journey in film。In this authentic approach to film theory， you’ll find essays on:The dumb blondeThe Cinderella transformationThe femme fataleA follow-up to Backwards and in Heels and The Female Gaze， Girls on Film is the final book in Alicia’s women in cinema trilogy。 If you enjoy feminism books， movie books， or cinema books—like Trick Mirror， You Play the Girl， Where the Girls Are， and Dolls！ Dolls！ Dolls！—then you’ll love Girls on Film。 This was a really interesting read/listen。 Alicia malone has a practically encyclopaedic knowledge on film， and in particular girls and woman in film。 I went in without realising properly that this was the third and final in a series， a series that I’ll be sure to pick up now， having said that it makes no real difference， I didn’t feel like I had missed any points having not read the other two， it worked perfectly well as a stand alone。 I love film and Alicia’s insight was quite remarkable。 The takes on all the typical female tropes were brilliantly insightful。 The changes that woman have made in this male dominated industry inspiring， as is Alicia herself。 I’d love to one day visit the cinema she’s fought so hard to save。 The writing is excellent。 The narration slightly so （for me personally） but great all round。 。。。more

Alicia ，

Girls on Film by Turner Classic Movies host Alicia Malone walks a fine line between a film criticism book and a memoir， blending Malone’s thoughts on classic films seamlessly into scenes from her own life。 She is critical of the flaws of older films in light of modern understanding of the treatment of women and acknowledges that even on this topic， she speaks from a position of white privilege。 What’s more， she is able to do all of this without losing sight of her love of these films and how the Girls on Film by Turner Classic Movies host Alicia Malone walks a fine line between a film criticism book and a memoir， blending Malone’s thoughts on classic films seamlessly into scenes from her own life。 She is critical of the flaws of older films in light of modern understanding of the treatment of women and acknowledges that even on this topic， she speaks from a position of white privilege。 What’s more， she is able to do all of this without losing sight of her love of these films and how they shaped her life from early childhood to her career as a film host。 I heard echoes of myself in a lot of Malone’s struggles and joys， though she is 13 years my senior and has chosen a very different career path from my own。 She speaks plainly about the expectations for women in society， and the feelings and treatment that come along with rejecting those expectations through film， history， and her own personal anecdotes。 The book ends with reflection on how COVID has affected the movie industry and movie theaters in general—and Malone’s decision to try to save and run an independent cinema near her new home in a time when such institutions are struggling worldwide。 As someone who also visits theaters in foreign countries， has a favorite seat in my local indie， and ran to the movies as soon as theaters reopened last year， I found myself thinking of how much I share with Alicia， beyond our first names。 I hope I get to visit her cinema some day。 Overall， this book felt made for me， in particular。 My one regret was that it is not read by the author， but narrator Brigid Lohrey does an excellent job in her stead。 I would highly recommend to any other girls who would rather be sequestered into a cinema than anywhere else， and to film lovers more generally。 I would also recommend it to people interested in a feminist critique of modern media。 Overall， an excellent read， and one of my favorite nonfiction choices of the year so far。Thank you to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for granting me an advanced copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more

Hmy ，

I loved this book -- plenty of information， facts and opinions about women in film。 Alicia Malone is clearly an expert in her field with an encyclopedic knowledge of films。 Her own story is inspirational alongside all the other women's stories which she sets out。 She talks about attitudes， trail blazers， icons， independent women， all determined to survive in the male-dominated film business。 And she talks about her own path to the job of her dreams。 I listened to an audio version and found the r I loved this book -- plenty of information， facts and opinions about women in film。 Alicia Malone is clearly an expert in her field with an encyclopedic knowledge of films。 Her own story is inspirational alongside all the other women's stories which she sets out。 She talks about attitudes， trail blazers， icons， independent women， all determined to survive in the male-dominated film business。 And she talks about her own path to the job of her dreams。 I listened to an audio version and found the reader very poor - but by increasing the speed I could tolerate her 。 Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy in exchange for a review。 。。。more

Nica Libres at Dusk ☁ ，

★★★★★ 5 stars！ "Perhaps， when it comes down to it， the point of watching movies is not to find answers at all but to continue asking new questions， to prod us towards discussions， to process our past， and keep evolving into the future。" I don't care which subject or topic that is， just listening to someone who is incredibly passionate and good about what they do is always a joy to experience for me。 In this case， it's Alicia Malone and her love for movies。Alicia Malone has always been ★★★★★ 5 stars！ "Perhaps， when it comes down to it， the point of watching movies is not to find answers at all but to continue asking new questions， to prod us towards discussions， to process our past， and keep evolving into the future。" I don't care which subject or topic that is， just listening to someone who is incredibly passionate and good about what they do is always a joy to experience for me。 In this case， it's Alicia Malone and her love for movies。Alicia Malone has always been passionate about films。 In Girls on Film: The Complete History of the Women Who Broke Barriers and Redefined Roles， she tells her story of how the representation of women on-screen and behind-the-scenes inspired， influenced and impacted her life。In the beginning of the book she asked these questions: Why I chose to see movies in the first place？ What am I really looking for when I go to the cinema or pick a film to watch at home？ Am I trying to learn about the world or myself？ Why do I choose to escape my own life and experience pleasure or pain through fictional characters？ How have the hundreds of hours of watching women in movies affected the way I see myself？ As I go through the audiobook， I find that I gain answers of my own。 I too love watching and re-watching old films， but not for the same reason as Ms。 Malone。 I just happen to like my details。 I like knowing that there were paper cones before paper cups and continuous cloth hand towel dispensers before interfolded single-use paper towels as seen on 12 Angry Men （1957）。 I love that Jaws （1975） theme is just two notes （more accurately—three notes） and you already know that danger is ahead。 Or that James Bond was played by seven different actors who all sounds the same （and I watched all of them）。 I love that Fiddler on the Roof （1971） is giving Hollywood a hard time for a remake because of the fact that more people simply don't want a remake of it。 Dear Hollywood， #PleaseStopRemakingClassics。 And the fact that Salt of the Earth （1954） was shunned by Hollywood at the time of its release yet is now a revered material for feminism lectures and courses。This book is equally fascinating， eye-opening and inspiring。 It gives such joy to learn about these information from Ms。 Malone's exhaustive knowledge of films， from behind the scene facts down to the media gossips， she got it covered。 I learned a great deal about the movie industry and their issues， the origin of many film tropes and women representation in film。 Many women pushed the boundaries of the male-dominated film industry and shaped the business as we see it today。 I must say that I found a new appreciation for classic films。Thanks so much to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for this audiobook。 I enjoyed it greatly。 "Find your niche and be an expert on it。" 🎧: Brigid Lohrey 。。。more

Mayla Sperindio ，

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to listen to this audiobook before the release date。This book is the story of women through the cinema。 I love a good film and thanks to this books I learned a lot about cinema and woman history。 I loved Alicia Malone way to tell us her story and the story of a lot other powerful women and a lot of issues in the cinematic universe。 This book really hooked me from the beginning eager to learn more about this world。