Videohound's Golden Movie Retriever [Paperback]

Jim Craddock (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Videohound's Golden Movie Retriever | Publication Date: July 9, 2004

It doesn't get any better than this! The new 2005 edition of VideoHound reviews more than 26,000 movies that are available on DVD or tape. Alphabetically arranged by film title, each entry includes title, alternate title, one-to four-bone rating, year released, MPAA rating, brief (often hilarious) review, length, format, country of origin, cast, technical personnel, awards and made-for-television/cable/video designations.

The feature that regularly pushes this guide to the top of the movie guide heap, is it series of indexes, which include alternate title, awards, cast, director, writer, cinematographer, composer, categories, (from Adpotion to Zombies) and a Series Index.

Extremely browasable, it is a wonderful introduction for casual viewers and a goldmine for film buffs.

Editorial Reviews

Review

It simply doesn't get any better than this. -- Library Journal, January 2003, Anthony Adam reviewer

The best of its breed. -- Judith Crist

VideoHound includes... releases Maltin ignores. -- Boston Sunday Herald

From the Inside Flap

"You are what you watch. So watch smart." -- Mom (actually she said "eat" not watch, but this is a movie review guide, not a cookbook.)

Making the smart choice in movie watching isn't always easy. Help stamp out movie illiteracy and pick up the smartest movie guide going today--VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever 2005. Unless you want to end up like your weird uncle (apparently he watched a lot of Ishtar; Dude, Where's My Car?; and Dummy), make your mom proud and take home VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever 2005, the guide to all that is good (and bad) in films available on video and DVD.

This year the 'Hound is offering up reviews on more than 26,000 movies. Smart and smart-alecky, each review delivers the goods-- synopsis, rating, cast--and will have you grabbing all the cool movies from your video store shelves while leaving behind the "Oh-my-gawd-I-can't-believe-I-watche-this" movies (like From Justin to Kelly) for the less-infomred watcher.

If you're looking for a movie or just the information about the movie, make VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever your smart choice. And talk about smart...this edition of the 'Hound comes fortified with our popular indexes that make movie trivia and crosswords simpler to figure out than Scooby-Doo 2. Updated, then updated some more, these indexes cover everything from actors and awards to writers and composers. There's also a helpful Web guide to further movie viewing nirvana.

So don't get Lost in the Translation and be all that you can be with a steady diet of only the best movies. Try a main course of Big Fish with a side of Lord of the Rings but avoid the junk food that is 2 Fast 2 Furious and Club Dread. The 'Hound won't let you down. Anit's very low in carbs. But high in fiber.

Product Details

• Paperback: 1655 pages
• Publisher: Thomson Gale; 1 edition (July 9, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787674702
• ISBN-13: 978-0787674700
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.6 x 2.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,428,897 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Still the best, despite some quibbles, September 8, 2004

By 

Lleu Christopher "www.liminalworlds.com" (Hudson Valley, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Videohound's Golden Movie Retriever (Paperback)

Videohound's Golden Movie Retriever has been around for a while now, and it has emerged as the most complete resource for looking up any movie available on VHS or DVD. It is practically indispensable for movie lovers. These days you can, of course, look up movies online, but there is no substitute to having a huge book on your desk that you can leaf through at any time.

Browsing through the 2005 edition, I looked up some notable films from the last few years (I missed buying the last few editions; they simply take up too much space to get one every year!) and found myself a little annoyed at some of the reviews. I don't know if this is a change from earlier editions, but I feel that the reviewers seem to be catering to a mass audience and overrating some popular but ordinary films while giving short shrift to some very good films that don't appeal to a wide audience. In the latter category I'd include the brilliant animated Waking Life ("might not appeal to many people except philosophy majors, computer geeks, or chemically altered college students"), Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas ("It's most definitely a one-of-a-kind trip, but not one that most people will be willing to make") and Luc Besson's The Professional ("a little too Lolita-ish for comfort"). These reviews to me display an almost patronizing tone, warning mall audiences away from potentially off-color material. This is, perhaps, one of the drawbacks of being too popular.

Despite my disagreement with some of Videohound's reviewers, I still have to rate the book highly. It's a superb and unmatched reference book. You can look up movies by title, cast, director, writer or category. It's also fun to browse through the many sub-categories they've identified; just turning to a page at random, I find "Red Scare," Reefer Madness," "Renegade Body Parts," "Repressed Men" and "Rescue Mission," and that's just a small sampling of the "R's." I recommend Videohound's to anyone who watches, writes, directs or reviews movies --just don't take their opinions as gospel.

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the Bible for all video fans...HALLELUJAH!!!, September 21, 2004

By 

Deanokat (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Videohound's Golden Movie Retriever (Paperback)

I've tried a lot of video guides over the years--including Mr. Maltin's--but VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever is consistently the best (and biggest) of its breed. VideoHound has all the information any video fan could possibly want about any movie any video fan could possibly want to watch...and then some! The incredible indexing is also unmatched by any other guide: Look up a movie by title, actor, director, category, etc. This book makes finding the perfect video a breeze. It's also an incredible tool for answering trivia questions and settling bar bets. Believe me when I tell you that this book belongs in EVERY home that has a VCR, DVD player, or human beings residing within it's four walls. It's 1,655 pages worth of movie magic. Buy this book. NOW. You won't regret it!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Tons of material, but. . ., April 13, 2005

By 

Jeremy Whitman (Lafayette, Louisiana United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Videohound's Golden Movie Retriever (Paperback)

With the Videohound, it's easy to look up information on your favorite director, who won the Golden Raspberry for Worst Song last year, or even that obscure film that came out in 1967 that no one saw. Yes, there's tons of film information, but all too often, the reviewer tends to give lots of credit to smaller films and mainstream cinema, while midcard classics (Bonfire of the Vanities, i.e.) are slammed relentlessly. I also would prefer more wit put into the average review, which Videohound seems to promise but doesn't live up to.

Cult fanatics be warned, there are still many newer underground or "lesser" flicks that are not even given a nudge in this pulication, and although there may be 26,000+ reviews included, who on Earth wants to see another 4-star Citizen Kane review that reeks of conformity? Regardless, this is still the most thorough out of the competition.