My thanks to NetGalley and University Press of Kentucky for an advance copy of this biography and film guide to a director who was always driven to try something new, something that interested him, a drive that won him numerous awards, and the respect and love of filmgoers and his fellow professionals.

Hollywood loves to put the people who create in boxes. To many in Hollywood that would be ideal, keep all the creatives in a box, take them out, get some sun, let them work, reap the rewards, and back into the box one goes. Studio executives box their talent, she's too old, he's not trending, neither have enough followers. This director can do horror, this director is good at quirky, this one can do music. Very few can push out the sides of their box, and make a career in entertainment doing what they want to do. What interests them. Succeeding in some ways, failing in others, but always doing films that mean something to the creator. Even fewer are willing to give up the glitz of Hollywood, to work on smaller films, that again might not make box office, but enrich in many other ways. The director Jonathan Demme was one of this people. His movies are all different, but all have one thing in common, a creator who cared about the art, and the message, even when his characters were eating people with a nice chianti. There's No Going Back: The Life and Work of Jonathan Demme by film lover and journalist David M. Stewart is a look at this exceptional director, a man of many interests and skills, and one who kept creating right to the end.

Jonathan Demme was born in New York to a mother who was an artist at heart and a father who started in public relations, with a strong love of travel. Demme was addicted to film early, going when he could to see anything and everything playing. Demme kept notes on various films, always trying to figure out why this scene worked, why that worked, and why the audience cared. Demme moved to Florida with his father, who secured a job for young Demme working in film at an internship, where he met his first wife and got his taste for film. After a few moves and a trip to England, Demme interested the independent film producer and exploitation drive-in king Roger Corman into a job writing and producing a couple of movies. Soon Demme was working on his own works, including the classic Caged Heat. Demme never forgot Corman, using him and the actor Charles Napier in many of his early movies. Other films followed, smaller films that gained an appreciation, but not much in the way of box office. Until a movie about young FBI agent and a clever man with a love for cooking hit the big screen.

A book that really gets to the heart of the man, explaining his movies, his life and in a way his beliefs. The book is not long, but is very comprehensive, covering Demme's life, and his works. Stewart looks at how Demme tried to keep the same people, working with those he trusted and making the movie set a welcoming place to work. Unless an actor wanted to see the dailies, then all bets were off. Stewart looks at the studio interference in various movies that made Demme leave the bigger studios, working more on music and documentaries, films that were personal, and didn't come with studio notes. The book covers disputes with actors and studios, and looks at projects that were planned and yet went nowhere. The writing is very good, and really gets at the man, his love of social issues, and his real love of people who fought for what the believed in.

A book for fans of movies, and for those who love to read about decent people creating art. A very well written biography, with lots of stories, and lots of information about Demme and his work. I look forward to more books by David M. Stewart.

This is one of those books that as soon as I saw the cover I thought, "This was a book I wanted without ever realizing it!" I am a fan of Jonathan Demme's films, but unlike Tarantino or Spielberg, I didn't know much about him. This is a wonderful biography that illuminated his fascinating life. You learn about all his great accomplishments-- Silence of the Lambs, Philadelphia, Stop Making Sense, Married to the Mom etc.

I was also interested in learning what a decent, lovely person he is. He devoted so much time to causes he carried about, often by making documentaries about them. He covered topics like Haiti, those suffering from Hurrican Katrina, Black Lives Matter, the plight of Native Americans. Just a great, great person. It makes sense that he did a documentary with Jimmy Carter, because the two shared a moral code.

A great biography worth of a great man.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me an e-galley of this book in return for an honest review.

There’s No Going Back is a thoughtful, well-researched tribute to Jonathan Demme’s eclectic career. David M. Stewart balances biography with critical analysis, offering insight into both Demme’s mainstream successes and his more personal, offbeat projects. While not a flashy page-turner, it’s a rewarding read for fans of film history and auteur-driven cinema.