A Book About a Film actually isn't exactly a book about a film - not if you're expecting a nonfiction exploration of how a production is created, and not if you're looking for any insights on independent filmmaking. It's actually a true-life thriller that revolves around a film's production, though, and it novelizes the lost/incomplete/controversial film 'The Cornfield People' while considering its gripping story of life, death, and everything that lies between.

We're not talking a big film, here: few people have had access to or watched the movie - which means the majority of readers of A Book About a Film will find themselves on equal footing, new to the subject under discussion. While many maintain the film actually doesn't exist, its status as a cult classic implies otherwise.

The story that revolves around this film's rumors and mystery is vivid, taking readers away from the reality of The Cornfield People's possibilities and into a world of secret societies, ulterior forces, tangled webs, and complex twists that at times adds a wry touch of irony to the discussion.

No light pursuit, the read includes: acronyms, cinematic terminology, quasi-terrorism, debates about life and death, and a narrative surrounding the evolution of an urban legend. Money, an intriguing story, the Periodic Table of Elements, production analysis and director choices: all these are wound into a saga that is heavily footnoted and researched.

There's nothing simple about 'The Cornfield People' (even some of the actors have no clue of its intentions) - and nothing easy about reading through its evolution in A Book About a Film, but readers interested in cult classic film mysteries in general and this hidden gem in particular will find C. W. Schultz's narrative to be complex, gripping, and ultimately hard to put down - even if you've never seen or heard about 'The Cornfield People' before.

I was provided with an ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review. Initially, I was not at all certain as to what to expect. The blurb got me searching the internet for as much information as I could about the premise of the story. When I realized that there was not much to go on and almost every search that turned up somehow pointed back to the upcoming book: A Book About a Film, I started reading it with much more interest.

About the Book:

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Author C. W. Schultz’s fourth release A BOOK ABOUT A FILM is a matchless thriller focusing on a low-budget movie called THE CORNFIELD PEOPLE, which follows journalist Joe Fischer as he investigates the titular group. The Cornfield People are a secret society who know the meaning of life and what comes after death. It is essential to the Cornfield People that their knowledge remain hidden from outsiders, and they will stop at nothing to protect their secret. Schultz surveys censorship through the means of violence in this chilling and unforgettable book. This satire on film-criticism takes on a double-narrative, with one acting as a novelization of the movie, while the other examines the film’s hidden messages, motifs and haunting obscurity.

My Thoughts:

This is a narrative about the plot of the above said film which is said to be lost while some think of it as an urban legend. The plot of the film is explained in a manner that prompts the reader to visualize each scene. The author not only describes the setting, but also talks about the camera angle and each character’s current position in the scene. Added to this are annotations where the author has interspersed his research along with the thoughts and quotes from several well-known film-makers, writers, producers and others in the field of film-making.

The story is intriguing, dealing with a group of people who claim to know the truth about life and what comes after death. We do however, meet some characters who are portrayed as cold and calculating. The bottom-line of the plot comes down to protecting a secret for the greater good, to protect mankind and the extent to which people can go to accomplish this. There are many references to breaking the fourth wall and how the characters are seemingly aware of their audience. This has been described in detail and analyzed in several instances. The author has made sure to bring out these points quite clearly.

The principal character, a journalist by profession is shown as intelligent with a slight sense of humor reflected when he encounters different situations while he has been tasked with investigating the Cornfield People. There are instances when we see the analysis provided while trying to narrow down a time frame or period for when this film may have been taken. With little to no information, these first hand and second hand reports add some mystery to the book. The story does fall a little flat at times where a sense of mystery is created but the author doesn’t go deeper with the explanation. However, this does not take away from the beauty of the overall idea.

The reader, through this narrative is in for an interesting read whereby the author ensures that he/she will go away with enough knowledge about this film that they will start their own research into it. Judging by the story, this would indeed be a classic film to watch. A rather well-written book, this story about a film will spark the interest of the reader and create awareness about the film.

This rather unusual read is a fictional account of a lost film or a film that never existed according to the hype in the book called The Cornfield People (aka Operation D-minor and The Phantom), which is about the secret of life and broadly speaking about the secrets held by a cult of near death survivors who will do anything to protect their cult and the secret they know.

When one of their own flees them and tries to give this secret to a journalist at a Paranormal magazine, Joe Fischer, the journalist in question must jump through a series of hoops to find validity in this bizarre tale and get to the bottom of this secret in order to write his expose.

Written as a scene by scene account of this mysterious film and annotated with editorialized footnotes (which incidentally don’t work very well on Kindle as the author has not taken advantage of the Word Wise feature to aid readers by simplifying the text) from various legendary filmmakers, like Ridley Scott and Tarantino, this is one hell of a read for film enthusiasts and though I would never describe myself as a film enthusiast I did get swept away by the mystery contained in this elusive novel. I have never read a book from this author before but I found A Book About A Film, an original, if not unusual read.

However, as much as I enjoyed it the lack of formatting on ereader and the frequent typos made this probably the most difficult ebook I have read to date.

Schultz’s (Jill, 2012, etc.) novel looks at the apocrypha surrounding an infamous lost film.

In this metafictional work, a fictionalized version of the author describes a film that he claims is real, although he acknowledges that many people believe it to be an urban legend. At the same time, he attempts to publish this account with a fictional publisher. If the plot sounds tangled, that’s sort of the point, as this novel is set in the underground world of rare, lost, and legendary independent films, where the smoke and mirrors surrounding a movie can prove more deceptive than those used to make it. The film, known as The Cornfield People, among other titles, is a low-budget neo-noir shot between 1999 and 2001. It follows a journalist at a paranormal publication investigating the eponymous secret society, which is willing to go to great lengths to protect their esoteric knowledge of life and death. The book opens with a foreword explaining that this book is actually the second edition of A Book About a Film, the first having been so explosive that the publisher was forced to redact it, due to an apparent shadowy conspiracy working to keep all knowledge of the film from the public. Even so, “there are still many out there who object to this version as well, as they believe what is reported in these texts are a threat to everyone,” says the foreword’s author. Schultz then offers an annotated, scene-by-scene account of the film, along with supplementary materials; the texts become progressively more sinister as the film’s plot begins to bleed into events of the “real” world. Overall, the novel’s conceit is rather ingenious. However, the author unfortunately gets in his own way when it comes to its execution. The story’s tension is undercut by its jocular tone, and the author isn’t enough of a skilled ventriloquist to successfully mimic the array of critics and film experts whose quotes populate the text. Additionally, the film at the center of book simply isn’t persuasive enough to support all the marginalia. Although this book is fun at times, readers will be left wishing that it had just a bit more polish.

A story with a great premise that never quite takes flight.

C.W. Schultz is a brilliant author. Or is he? Writing a book about a film about Joe Fisher’s experience while investigating the Cornfield People, a secret society that knows the meaning of life and what comes after death, calls for a medal of bravery or dare I say it aloud, a badge of stupidity. There are many out there who believe that anything written about this subject is a threat and even those interviewed advised not to release the book due to safety issues. Because of this, I am not really the reviewer/author named Joanie Chevalier. I don’t want my life threatened in any way; I love my life. Therefore, I hacked into Ms. Chevalier’s computer and I shall remain anonymous. This is all I care to say on this subject.

Just like the man on camera, I too, enjoy an apple martini every now and then and now I have the knowledge of things that are better left unknown. But is this a gift or a curse? Just like any good reviewer, I analyzed the research given about the Cornfield People and noticed that some called it a cult. Cults are scary and while I appreciate the fact that the author couldn’t get his book properly edited out of fear, it is a crime to subject readers to the kind of erRors we were burdened with. That, and the hundreds of footnotes which were reminiscent of expensive heavy college textbooks.

The author dared to state his opinion in Fn. 98 [or was it Fn. 96?] that Cornfield Persons are clowns. Reading in context, the author wrote, “these Cornfield Persons look like a bunch of clowns.” I respectfully write this in quotations so that certain persons would know it was not me who originally dare write these words down on paper. However, coming to the defense of C.W. Schultz, I concluded from the author’s other remarks that this was probably a cover up for his true fear. Writing about red-herrings is probably a cover up too, with Mr. C.W. Schultz presenting us with a “journal,” a silly “song,” and a “word search” (email me if you too find the phrase “Cornfield People are Clowns” diagonally and backwards in the red herring word search).

The Cornfield People are a proud society and was formed over a hundred years ago. I dare you to google who was alive back then; you may be surprised. Read the book. See for yourself. Find the answer to the question: Is it possible to hang yourself with a coat hanger? Only C.W. Schultz can bring that answer to light as he courageously researches and writes, A Book About A Film. I commend you Mr. C.W. Schultz. Thank you for giving me more questions than answers.

Fn. 56 [Note: Footnotes 1 through 55 must NOT be read by the public.] The day after I finished the book, I noticed a suspicious looking man dressed in a burlap sack (I just thought he was homeless, sorry) eagerly looking over my shoulder as I was typing the review during my lunch break while sitting on a bench at the park. The next day I found a sheet of paper under my windshield. All it had were five symbols, drawn in red crayon: stars. I took this to mean only one thing – to rate this book 5 stars . . . or else. I rest my case. Fade to Black.