Customer Reviews
Compelling and memorable - By: DDH255, 08 Jun 2008 
A well-researched biography, presenting its subject as a great actor but as an awkward & difficult man. The book explores the turbulent relationships with three wives but also looks in detail at McQueen's penchant for negotiating every last detail on his contract & showing how his paranoia & fear of Hollywood systems made him keep studios at a safe distance. It is particularly effective as it details the last years of McQueen's life & his retreat from the mainstream, but also reveals his generosity to needy children & his closest friends. I found the sections on his early years as a film actor less compelling, although the details about his troubled childhood make his achievement alll the greater.
A very confusing biography/novel? - By: confused person, 12 May 2008 
At times I felt as though I was reading a novel & not a biography. The first two chapters were interesting & well written but then it became wishy washy repetitive & self contradictory. By the time I finished reading I felt that I knew less than when I started. A lot of it was written as though Sandford was in Mqueen's bedroom or house the whole time, at one point he describes him looking out from the porch onto the beach & tells us what he could see & hear in great detail. How on earth can he describe it as a biography?
Two different books in one. - By: Jonny Ramon, 27 Mar 2008 
This is a very interesting read up until fame broke for McQueen. His childhood & teenage years were disturbing & dark but it is fascinating none the less. Sandford explains well why he wanted to become an actor & what drove him as an artist. However I got the opinion I was reading a different book when he became a star. Too much emphasis on money & business deals. I finished the book feeling like I didn't know McQueen any better & surely biographies are written to bridge that gap. Overalll an interesting introduction to Steve McQueen..
Candyass - By: bibliobiblio, 10 Jun 2007 A rambling biography loosely based on the chronology of his films. If you prefer a traditional biography, with chapters on parents, schooling, formative years etc, then this is not for you. If you prefer a biography full of stories then you'll like this.
Be aware of American terms such as "candyass" & "twisting his melon" because the book is littered with them.
Another caveat - if you like McQueen & have a notion that he is a nice guy then don't read this book, you'll be sadly disappointed.
Overalll a reasonable book.
Don't waste your time - By: , 13 Jan 2003 This book, I am afraid to say is awful. There's no disputing the facts which have obviously been deeply researched, including little insights which nobody could possibly have known (see the scene where he visits his mothers corpse, & mouths 'I love you' with damp eyes. This was a private visit, so who saw that?).
The writer fails to give the book any pace or structure, jumping between times & facts almost randomly & constantly repeating the authors own opinion on what a contradictory character McQueen reallly was. Half way through I have had to give up on this book. The ultimate icon of american celluloid cool does not deserve so tedious a re-telling of his life.
