Customer Reviews

Ultimate Guide To Lesbian & Gay Film and Video

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I picked up a second-hand copy of this book although useful for checking dates of films, directors etc I found it quite dry in tone and now very outdated. I found better books on amazon on this subject of gay and lesbian cinema.

101 Must See Gay Movies is quite good but the best overall guide and history of gay cinema as a genre is "Out at the Movies" by Steven Paul Davies. Much more of an authoritative guide, it is beautifully produced too, from the full cover gloss cover to the many full-colour pictures included throughout. Olson's book has no pics, tiny reviews and tries to cram everything in, anything gay or lesbian, even the most obscure entries you could imagine.

The 'story' of gay cinema plus more detailed reviews of individual films is told better, and decade by decade, in Out at the Movies. Plus Davies' book is an easy read, well researched, informative and revealing. I hope this is useful for anyone out there needing texts on this subject.

Although now a little out of date, this gem by "The Queer Movie Poster Book" (2004) and "Homo Promo" (DVD, 2004) documents the explosion of gay and lesbian films large and small since Stonewall. Particular notice has been afforded small films and shorts which before the Internet and DVD were nearly impossible to find outside Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Film Festivals. This book served as the foundation for PopcornQ, now part of PlanetOut.com, the indispensable online resource for those who love Queer movies. Belongs on the shelf of both serious students of Queer filmmaking, and the interested filmgoer alike. The only downside, I suspect due to an academic publisher: no photogaphs from the films. Recommended.