Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia: The Horror, Fantasy, and Sci Fi Films [Paperback]

Thomas Weisser (Author), Yuko Mihara Weisser (Author)

Book Description

Series: Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia, the Horror, Fantasy, and Sci Fi Films | Publication Date: September 28, 1997

Those familiar with the author's previous forays into the world of Hong Kong Cinema and Spaghetti Westerns will know pretty much what to expect here, and it falls far short of any dictionary definition of "essential". Short, cursory capsule reviews, short on insight, style and cultural context and high on typographical and factual errors, accompanied by an arbitrary star rating from one to four. The main virtue of Weisser's self-published book is its rigorously completist approach. Even though it states that it is not the aim to include every single film from Japan ever released, with separate editions available for a more complete look at Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy, and Sex Films, and one planned for animation ("pleae check our subsiquent books" [sic], Weisser writes in the intro for the fourth edition), this initial volume certainly covers a lot of films and does give quite a good indication as to how much is actually out there.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Thomas Weisser is extremely dedicated to Asian cult cinema, writing books such as The Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia.

Assistant author

Product Details

• Paperback: 325 pages
• Publisher: Vital Books, Inc.; 1st edition (September 28, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1889288519
• ISBN-13: 978-1889288512
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 1.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,972,122 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars good concept, but book too loaded with errors!, March 8, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia: The Horror, Fantasy, and Sci Fi Films (Paperback)

This would have been a very interesting book but there are simply too many factual and typographical errors to recommend it. As far as I'm concerned, the book's only redeeming value is in the cross-listings given in each entry, which allow basic navigation through this genre for those who are new to it.

18 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A great work of fiction!, February 6, 2003

By 

Michael L. White "impossiblefunky" (Westland, MI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia: The Horror, Fantasy, and Sci Fi Films (Paperback)

Did Thomas Weisser actually watch any of these movies before writing about them? I find that hard to believe as I've managed to track down a lot of these films, only to find them completely different than his reviews. Weisser's never had much credibility - this just continues to add to his legend.

5 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good reference, some gaps, June 28, 1999

By 

Witold Nowakowski (Warszawa, Poland) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia: The Horror, Fantasy, and Sci Fi Films (Paperback)

Here is a shining little star in the otherwise empty universe of the Japanese Cinema reference books. Why a "little" star? And who is the reader? For serious buffs ("otakus" of Japanese movies) it contains not enough infos, and has too many gaps (where, for example, is "Kujakuoh"?) On the other hand, in case of beginners of the genre, it is almost sealed by the red tape. Personally, I enjoyed it, but what about the others?