From Library Journal
Academic publishers are under duress, it seems. Where Indiana University Press once promoted rarefied monographs concerning film theory and European auteurs, they are now targeting a mainstream readership with these two genre film references. Julius, a reviewer for What's On in London, here reviews 250 key action films and offers concise biographies of such testosterone-pumped icons as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, and Dolph Lundgren. Quotations, trivia lists, and quizzes supplement the vivacious commentary. While Julius's reviews are admittedly fun to skim, they lack any semblance of depth. The coverage is likewise superficial, with just 250 films representing a smattering of action cinema. Even so, aficionados of psychotic cops, maximum ammo, and car chases might well appreciate the treatment. Maxford's (Hammer: House of Horror, Overlook, 1996) volume is simultaneously more comprehensive in scope and less lively. Succinct reviews cover the spectrum of horror cinema, from contemporary slasher pix and European independent productions to classic Hollywood movies. While Maxford's comments lack Julius's panache, they are bolstered by impressive credit lists. Here, too, salient biographies accompany the film reviews. The volume is liberally illustrated and amounts to a solid reference work, akin to a specialized Leonard Maltin's Movie and Video Guide. It is bound to please both schlock connoisseurs and reference librarians in all types of institutions.?Neal Baker, Dickinson Coll. Lib., Carlisle, Pa.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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- The Vampire Film: From Nosferatu to Bram Stoker's Dracula - Third Edition by Alain Silver in Back Matter
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