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A review by didyousaybooks
There and Back Again: An Actor's Tale - A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Lord of the Rings by Sean Astin, Joe Layden, Joe Layden
2.0
I'm happy to have read this, even +13 years after it was published, because I love lotr, Sam and behind the scenes stuff and I learned a lot about Sean Astin who, I have to admit, kinda never pinpointed on my radar expect for the role of Sam.
Now, I have to say I don't like the guy much, he seemed a bit too pretentious for my taste but I'll give him that: he's pretty honest about it.
When it comes to it, I appreciated the frank looking into Hollywood, from an "Hollywood brat" perspective, and I'm glad I don't have to handle all those egos, Astin's first of all.
It's hard to connect with Sean Austin I found, which is always sad when you read an autobiography. You don't have to agree with everything they think (I certainly didn't) but a little common ground doesn't do any harm. And it was hard to empathise with the guy. He's just an unappreciated whiney dude.
Writing this book probably didn't help though. First, it's badly written, and he spent his time criticizing every person he meets (especially if they don't appreciate his "genius") while somehow also complimenting them, as not too offend. That pretty much failed and mostly came across as insincere.
Mostly, he's jealous of everyone's success. At least, it appeared that way.
As a lotr fan, I appreciated the little insight but would have probably loved more details.
So as glad as I am I got to read this, I'm glad I only paid NZ$2 for it. And I really hope to forget some of it before the next time I watch the movies though. Because Sam's the best thing ever, on paper and on screen (can't deny Astin did a good job there, always makes me cry) and while I obviously know the difference between actors and characters, I hope to have forgotten Astin's unlovable persona and just enjoy my darling Sam without being teinted by me reading this book. That's be a shame.
Now, I have to say I don't like the guy much, he seemed a bit too pretentious for my taste but I'll give him that: he's pretty honest about it.
When it comes to it, I appreciated the frank looking into Hollywood, from an "Hollywood brat" perspective, and I'm glad I don't have to handle all those egos, Astin's first of all.
It's hard to connect with Sean Austin I found, which is always sad when you read an autobiography. You don't have to agree with everything they think (I certainly didn't) but a little common ground doesn't do any harm. And it was hard to empathise with the guy. He's just an unappreciated whiney dude.
Writing this book probably didn't help though. First, it's badly written, and he spent his time criticizing every person he meets (especially if they don't appreciate his "genius") while somehow also complimenting them, as not too offend. That pretty much failed and mostly came across as insincere.
Mostly, he's jealous of everyone's success. At least, it appeared that way.
As a lotr fan, I appreciated the little insight but would have probably loved more details.
So as glad as I am I got to read this, I'm glad I only paid NZ$2 for it. And I really hope to forget some of it before the next time I watch the movies though. Because Sam's the best thing ever, on paper and on screen (can't deny Astin did a good job there, always makes me cry) and while I obviously know the difference between actors and characters, I hope to have forgotten Astin's unlovable persona and just enjoy my darling Sam without being teinted by me reading this book. That's be a shame.