Our Sunday Visitor's Family Guide to Movies and Videos [Paperback]

Henry Herx (Editor)

Product Details

• Paperback: 912 pages
• Publisher: Our Sunday Visitor (November 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879733691
• ISBN-13: 978-0879733698
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,029,891 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not the Last word in Catholic reviews, June 10, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Our Sunday Visitor's Family Guide to Movies and Videos (Paperback)

This source generally accomplishes what it tries to acheive by rating many movies from a somewhat Catholic perspective and can be useful in screening out some obviously offensive films. It may also help you to identify some good films you where previously unaware of.
It has three weeknesses from my perspective. 1: It is generally week in reviewing many foriegn classics. Even several important works of Kurosawa and C. Theodore Drieser and others are not reviewed in this book. So as a guide to findings foriegn classics, you may be dissapointed.
2: The reviews are often taken from a very superficial viewpoint, I suspect many of the reviews where done by someone given an assignment to review a set number of films and that person may have lacked the insight or experience to review the film adequately. For example, in reviewing the various Mutiny on the Bounty films, all reviews predictably laud those films which portray Fletcher Christian as the hero and Captain Bligh as the villian. 'The Bounty'(Mel Gibson) is panned for not being true to this pattern. Those who truly know the full story of the Bounty know that Chritian was far from perfect and that the unfortunate Bligh had his good points. Not to mention that Chritian's subversion of authourity led to the Deaths of many. Is he really a hero? Another Example, this guide predictably pans 'Tombstone', largely for its violence. However a review of the true history of this event shows that the film was not far from the truth of events, including the ugly but real violence. Doc Holiday's deathbed conversion to Catholicism is portrayed and did happen. Why not point out these positives? Just because violence is in a film should not discredit it (all to often in this book). It is the context and use of violence which matters. Anyone familiar with just war theory knows that the Church does not condemn all use of force.
3: At times supports films that a Catholic should outright reject. Example, this book does not pan the film 'Dirty Dancing'. A silly movie in which the heroine tries to help finance an abortion for Patrick Swayze's dance partner. This is shown as a real selfless act. In addition the multitude of dance scene's in which the couples are generally grinding their midsections with one another can only send one message to impressionable youth about where happiness comes from. Hello!~ someone wants an abortion as a result of this behavior!

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great guide...., January 24, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Our Sunday Visitor's Family Guide to Movies and Videos (Paperback)

This book follows the USCC movie rating system. Each movie and video entry covers a synopsis of the movie and then rates it based on issues that would be of concern when viewing the show in a family setting. Excellent!