Book Review: THE FILMS OF MARLENE DIETRICH by Homer Dickens

Marlene Dietrich is one of the most celebrated and influential German actresses in the history of cinema.  She not only changed the face of cinema, but fashion, and the way in which female stars were perceived by the media with her take no prisoners attitude of living life to its fullest and showing a purity in her personal life and cinematic choices that influenced future generations.  In Homer Dickens book The Films of Marlene Dietrich audiences are given an overlook of Dietrich’s entire career from its humble beginnings when she first got started in her home country of Germany to how she eventually made her way to the United States where she had a long lasting and illustrious career not only in cinema but as a performer with the USO during the war. 

Dietrich was not just an actress and performer but she was socially conscious and wanted to change the world in any way that she can.  She spent three years performing for US troops throughout the world and repeatedly mentioned that period of time in her life as the most pivotal.  She even received several awards and accommodations for her selfless sacrifice during this time.  The book not only goes into details about this but spends a lot of time going through each and every film that she was ever in (no matter how small the role).

There is a treasure trove of posters and production stills from all of her films as well as behind the scenes still in order to give readers a look at the many films that she starred in.  Some films were more profitable than others but they all had an impact.  Fans of Dietrich will revel at the amount of details spent on the films and enjoy the stories in how she became the person she was.  There are even many family portraits contained in the book as well.

For Dietrich fans this is a must have book and for others this is a great book that will shed light on one of the most famous and influential actresses in cinema history.

Book Review: CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST AND THE SAVAGE CINEMA OF RUGGERO DEODATO Edited by Harvey Fenton

The name Ruggero Deodato is most recognizable because of his infamous film Cannibal Holocaust (1980) but he is a director that had a profound impact on Italian cinema and the horror genre itself.  In the book Cannibal Holocaust & the Savage Cinema of Ruggero Deodato Editor Harvey Fenton puts together a collection of interviews, photographs, posters and other memorabilia to represent director Deodato’s long career in film making.  Deodato’s entire career in films represents a response to not being predictable and complacent with his place in Italian cinema. 

He may be most famous for his horror films such as House on the Edge of the Park (1980), Last Cannibal World (1976), and Bodycount (1986), but he has also dabbled in post apocalyptic (The Lone Runner – 1986), fantasy (The Barbarians – 1987), disaster film (Concorde Affair – 1979), and even several television series (of which Italians are most familiar with him and where he has made a huge impact).  This book not only celebrates the Cannibal Holocaust, widely considered the best cannibal movie ever crafted as well as the fore runner for the found footage style of film making, but all of Deodato’s films and their place in his career and the impact of those films not only in Italian cinema but in film making as a whole.

Contained within the book are two separate interviews with Deodato that allow him to discuss how his films have impacted his career for both the good and the bad as well as a synopsis and brief look at all of his films and television series.  A huge chunk of the book focuses on Cannibal Holocaust’s impact but the book is also an eye opener on all of Deodato’s other films.  There is a huge collection of posters and production stills from his films (including some from other countries).  This is a book not only for people wanting to know more about Cannibal Holocaust but also and incite on Deodato and his many films and his own personal outlook.

Book Review: THE G.O.R.E. SCORE: Vol. 1 by Tony Schaab

Writer Tony Schaab has made a career or reviewing everything zombie through his website The G.O.R.E. Score (www.TheGOREScore.com) and his book The G.O.R.E. Score: Vol. 1, A Review Guide to All Things Zombie which is a collection of some of these articles that appeared on his site plus a few that are exclusive to this book.  Zombie fans should rejoice as Schaab touches upon not only zombie related films but games, comics, television shows, and various other media.  Now, there are a ton of books out there dedicated to horror films and probably just as many dedicated to zombie films but Schaab doesn’t just review films he rates them in a way that fans of these films can decide whether or not it is worth their time to watch some of the films he’s listed. 

The way in which he rates the films is known as his “G.O.R.E. “score.   The “G” is for General Entertainment; “O” is for Original Content; “R” is for Realism; “E” is for Effects and Editing; the average of the score makes up the film’s “G.O.R.E. Score.”  Schaab doesn’t spend time on zombie films most horror fans have already become fans of.  Instead, the majority of the films reviewed are independent films or films that have been overlooked over the years or become cult favorites.  Some of the favorites are Dead Snow (2009), Undead (2005), Planet Terror (2007), and Verses (2000).  He even touches upon the not-so-good such as Night of the Living Dead 3D (2007), Plan 9 From Outer Space (1959), House of the Dead (2003), and Zombie Strippers (2008).  Only half of the book focuses on zombie films.

The second half of the book focuses on games, comics, books, and music.  Schaab wants zombie fans to have the chance to open up to everything else out there that fans may have missed but would be interested in.  He does a great job with presentation of the material and his G.O.R.E. score for each reviewed item is very even giving you the impression that he isn’t biased for or against any type of item reviewed.  Schaab’s writing is also highly entertaining which is what you would expect from a fan of zombie films writing a book for zombie fans.

This is one of the better books of this kind that will appeal to both zombie fans and general horror enthusiasts as well.

Graphic Novel Review: THE LOVECRAFT ANTHOLOGY: Volume 1

If you are a lover of horror fiction than the name H.P. Lovecraft is a name you are very familiar with.  If you read comics and graphic novels then you’ve probably heard about the publisher Self Made Hero which has a history of producing some of the best adaptations of Lovecraft’s work as you will see in the anthology graphic novel The Lovecraft Anthology Volume 1 edited by Dan Lockwood.  

 

In this volume are adaptations of “The Call of Cthulhu,” “The Hunter in the Dark,” “The Dunwich Horror,” “The Colour Out of Space,” “The Shadow Over Innsmouth,” “The Rats in the Walls” and “Dagon.”  This is a good sampling of some of Lovecraft’s most beloved short stories (which have also been adapted to film). 

“The Dunwich Horror” is a personal favorite adapted by Rob Davis and illustrated by I.N.J. Culbard (who also worked on full length adaptations of Lovecraft’s “The Case of Charles Dexter Ward,” “The Shadow Out of Time,” and “At The Mountains of Madness).  This one is richly brought to life by Davis and Culbard.  The pacing is perfect for the story which cannot be said for all the pieces in this volume especially “The Shadow Over Innsmouth” (adapted by Leah Moore & John Reppion and illustrated by Leigh Gallagher), which has great artwork but is bogged down by over explanation.

I love Shane Ivan Oakley’s artwork for “The Hunter of the Dark” (adapted by Dan Lockwood himself) which makes me feel as though I’m in the middle of a black & white noir film.  I would love to see Oakley tackle a Hellboy story sometime or a longer Lovecraft story.

Another piece I love the artwork for is “Dagon” illustrated by Alice Duke and adapted by Lockwood (again).  This story has some of the most beautiful artwork in the entire book but unfortunately the story of “Dagon” is probably the weakest of the bunch.  The same cannot be said for “The Rats in the Walls” (adapted by Lockwood and illustrated by David Hartman) in which the artwork, story, and pacing work in tandem with each other and allowed me to greater appreciate a story I’ve always considered one of Lovecraft’s minor efforts.

Overall, this is a very handsome addition of Lovecraft’s stories in which any fan will be appreciative of.  Self Made Hero has made it their priority to produce some of the best adaptations of Lovecraft’s work and they continue to do so whether it is in short form (such as these stories) or as full length graphic novels such as the ones Culbard has done (all those previously mentioned).

Book Review: DON’T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK: BLACKWOOD’S GUIDE TO DANGEROUS FAIRIES by Guillermo del Toro and Christopher Golden and Troy Nixey

For those of you who know a little about director Guillermo del Toro’s fascination with the original TV movie Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (1973) then you’ll understand his passion for the story and his eventual remake of that very film in 2010 (which he produced and co-wrote).  The book Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark: Blackwood’s Guide to Dangerous Fairies is an extension with his fascination with that film and with fairies and monsters in general.  Co-written with Christopher Golden and illustrations by Troy Nixey, del Toro’s book is an extension of his film and the world of fairies as seen through the eyes of the character of Emerson Blackwood whose home is the one in which the tooth breakers (or tooth fairies in the film) nest. 

This book is a catalogue of Emerson Blackwood’s life in documenting all the dangerous fairies across the globe.  After an incident that caused his best friend to be killed (and he believes a tooth breaker was the cause) Blackwood dedicates his life to documenting all the dangerous fairy cultures for what he thinks is an altruistic reason which is to educate the world about the “hidden people” that co-habitat our realm.  Intermixed with Blackwood’s list of fairies are his personal journal entries which include his romantic relationship with Annelise (daughter to his friend that was killed).  

What makes the book so fascinating is not just the large list of fairies documented in the book from all over the world as depicted through Blackwood’s interviews and adventures with the people all over the world but also his journal entries where he depicts how his growing obsession with the tooth breakers that killed his friend threatens his whole way of life when he gets too close to seeing the truth and discovers that the most dangerous fairies in the world may also be the most intelligent and they can hold a grudge.   

To add to the allure of the book are Nixey’s amazing illustrations of all the different fairy folk and hidden people.  You have to give it to del Toro, Golden and Nixey who have crafted a beautiful book not only to read but to look at as well since many of the pages are designed so that readers can see Blackwood’s actual handwriting.  This is one of the better books to tie-in to a film since it doesn’t require knowledge of the film nor having had seen the film as it survives on its own and even if you have seen the film then it adds to the richness and enjoyment of the film.