The 20th century's pre-eminent journalist, Alistair Cooke moved permanently to America in 1937, where he became an observer of an entire continent's entertainment, politics, and ways of living. His fascination with cinema never faded, and in later broadcasts and writings he regularly returned to films and film stars. He also scattered his Letter from America broadcasts with shorter obituary tributes to Groucho Marx, Marilyn Monroe, Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Bob Hope, and others, always illuminating their special gifts and the way they reflected the American scene.

Alistair Cooke at the Movies includes a selection of the most sparkling of his criticism for the BBC and other British sources from the 1930s - including The Observer and the magazine Sight and Sound - much of which has never been republished. It also shows Cooke the memoirist, concentrating on the later writings on film personalities he came to know, including Charlie Chaplin and Humphrey Bogart, whom he first met on a train during the 1952 American Presidential campaign. A book for both devoted readers and listeners of Cooke's broadcasts and books and dedicated film fans.