10 Essential Films About 20th Century Writers

It may not be the most outwardly dynamic of professions (I write this in a more or less supine position on the sofa from which I can't remember having stirred all day), but writing is not only one of the more mythologised pastimes —it's also a vital part of the filmmaking process. As a result, there are perhaps an inordinate number of films that place writers at the center of their narratives, as though screenwriters, casting around for a subject and being advised to "write what you know," can most readily identify with other writers. And a significant number of such films take real-life writers as their focus and their inspiration, as this week's release "The End of the Tour" (our very positive review is here) demonstrates.

Focussing on a series of conversations between a Rolling Stone journalist (Jesse Eisenberg) and David Foster Wallace (Jason Segel), James Ponsoldt's film is about many things, but one is the nature of artistic success and just how much...