Book Review: Asian Pop Cinema: Bombay to Tokyo by Lee Server

 Asian cinema makes up a huge amount of the films produced every year (on average India alone produces over 300 films a year) and countries such as South Korea and the Philippines have been producing more films now than ever before in history while Hong Kong and Japan continue to set new trends in the market place and International cinema.  In Lee Server’s book Asian Pop Cinema: Bombay to Tokyo all of the film industries of these countries are given a historic overview.

Server allows each of the countries their own chapter (which includes all those previously mentioned as well as Taiwan and China) which recounts the history of the cinema and how it developed to its current state.  Hong Kong and Japan have some of the richest history in the cinema arts despite some years of no film production at all (especially during war times).  Some of the chapters also focus on key personnel within the industry such as an interview with film makers John Woo, Tomoaki Hosoyama, Eddie Romero, Jose Lacaba, and several others.

Server’s book is not a definitive book on any of these countries’ film industries but it is rather an overview of key events and people involved in the industry.  It is very useful for people who have very little or no previous knowledge about Asian cinema and can help differentiate between all the different countries and their industries.  Server also provides a plethora of production stills and posters from many of the films discussed which is extremely helpful if you have not seen the films that he has mentioned.

Book Review: Asian Horror by Andy Richards

There are a thousand books out there about the horror film genre so what makes author Andy Richards book Asian Horror (from Kamera Books) so different?  Well, its focus is on Asian horror films and their impact with other countries especially in the way they have influenced the still growing trend of American remakes of popular Asian films.  This is but one of many books focusing on specific film genres as published through Kamera Books.

In this book Richards focuses on the horror film and its influences on everywhere from Thailand to Japan to Korea to Hong Kong and more starting off with a chapter on how culture has influenced the different types of creatures and supernatural horrors prevalent in their films (which would be different from our own).  The book takes its time touching upon the classics of each culture - such as Tales of Ugetsu (1953) or Kwaidan (1964) and Hell (1960).  Every film of significance is given a thorough breakdown those that those interested in going out and finding them will know everything they need to about the film from the synopsis of the film and the cast and crew involved to background about the film and his “verdict” on the film which is how it has influenced culture and the horror genre as a whole.

There is plenty of space spent on the now classic modern films from these countries including Suicide Circle (2002), Ringu (1998), Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1988), A Tale of Two Sisters (2003), Mr. Vampire (1985), Dumplings (2004), Nang Nak (1999), Shutter (2004), Death Note (2006),  Kairo (2001), and Battle Royale (2000), to name a few.  There are tons of films discussed in the book along with the directors that made the films.  There is also a section with pictures from many of the films as well.

Like other Kamera Books this book is put together very well and gives readers a good understanding of Asian horror films and their influence on the genre.  Richards even goes briefly into how their modern day films have been influenced by the American horror film culture and he briefly touches upon the American remakes that have flooded the market (and continue to do so).   This is a good book for beginners and one for those who want a grand overview of some of the most important horror films from these cultures.