MBR: The Theatre/Cinema Shelf
Midwest Book Review
Cinema Studies
Susan Hayward
Routledge
270 Madison Avenue, NY, NY 10016
www.routledge.com
0415367824 $23.95 1-800-634-7064
Now in its revised, updated, and expanded third edition Cinema Studies:
The Key Concepts is an encyclopedia-style A to Z guide of critical
cinematic concepts, from "action movies" and "art direction" to
"Italian neo-realism", "lap- dissolve", "30-degree rule", "widescreen"
and much more. Each accessibly-written entry summarizes the concept in
an amount of text ranging from half a page to several pages, and a
thorough bibliography, name index, and subject index encourage quick
reference. Enthusiastically recommended for students of film, anyone
seeking a career in the movie industry, and even seasoned professionals
looking for an easy-to-use refresher reference.
Prime-Time Television
Barbara Moore, et al.
Praeger Publishers
88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881
0275981428 $44.95 www.praeger.com
Prime-Time Television: A Concise History collectively co-authored by
the team of academicians Barbara Moore (College of Communications,
University of Tennessee), Marvin R. Bensman (University of Memphis),
and Jim Van Dyke (Marian College, Milwaukee) provides a complete and
accessible understanding of the media medium of television through the
historical and modern study of sitcoms, dramas, and other prime-time
television particulars. Delving deep into the intricacies of American
popular culture and the influential role played by many television
shows, Prime-Time Television features a scholarly analysis of the
shows, producers, genres, trends, and ideals behind various influential
televisions productions. A seminal contribution to university level
Popular Culture reference collections, Prime-Time Television is very
strongly recommended reading, especially for students of the
sociological and cultural implications of ever-popular prime-time
television, from its earliest roots and developments, and the
psychological structuring behind so many television programs.
China On Screen
Chris Berry & Mary Farquhar
Columbia University Press
61 West 62nd Street, NY, NY 10023-7015
www.columbiaedu/cu/cup
0231137079 $24.50 1-800-944-8648
Chinese film studies experts Chris Berry and Mary Farquhar present
China On Screen: Cinema And Nation, an exploration of more than one
hundred years of Chinese cinema and nation. Revealing how movies from
China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the Chinese diaspora create different
ideas of Chinese nation, whether empire, republic, or ethnically based,
China On Screen touches on such issues as male and female star images,
transnational production, the image of the "good foreigner" among
others. A quite thought-provoking and extensively researched academic
study.
And Now For Something Completely Digital
Alan Parker & Mick O'Shea
The Disinformations Company
220 East 23rd Street, Suite 500, New York, NY 10010
1932857311 $17.95 www.disinfo.com
Collectively authored by Alan Parker and Mick O'Shea, And Now For
Something Completely Digital: The Complete Illustrated Guide To Monty
Python CDs And DVDs is a trivia worthy collection of intriguing facts,
background information and entertaining insights into the timeless and
enduringly popular television, movie, book, and album series by the
British comedy troupe known world wide as Monty Python. Deftly
compiling a wealth of fun and useless information from the diverse
Monty Python productions, And Now For Something Completely Digital
immediately captivates readers total attention through the zany wit and
improbable wisdom of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Eric
Idle, Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones. And Now For Something Completely
Digital is a "must" for the legions of Monty Python fans and will serve
as an excellent guide to collecting all of the Monty Python television
and movie comedy routines and performances (including the Flying Circus
and chart singles) now available on CD and DVD.
The Films Of Peter Greenaway
Douglas Keesey
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
0786425172 $45.00 1-800-253-2187
Written by professor of film and literature Douglas Keesey, The Films
Of Peter Greenaway: Sex, Death And Provocation takes its title from a
quote by controversial British filmmaker Peter Greenaway, who claimed
that life offers only two subjects: sex and death. Greenaway's films
use both subjects without any illusions of romanticism, sentiment, or
other sanitizing trappings. Whether exploring the sociopathic
objectification of others that promotes violence, or the potentially
devastating and inhuman fallout of predatory capitalism, Greenaway's
films are unsettling yet forceful in their depiction of the evils of
human nature. They have also been severely attacked for their
portrayals of women and the sometimes sensationalistic turn of their
violence; The Films Of Peter Greenaway fully acknowledges the negative
as well as the positive critiques of Greenaway's more controversial
works. The Films Of Peter Greenaway especially focuses upon nine of
Greenaway's feature films: The Draughtsman's Contract; A Zed and Two
Noughts; The Belly of an Architect; Drowning by Numbers; The Cook, the
Thief, His Wife and Her Lover; Prospero's Books; The Baby of Macon; The
Pillow Book; and 8 1/2 Women. An excellently documented and reasoned
dissection of Greenaway's films.
Applause Books
19 West 21st St, Suite 201, NY NY 10010
www.applausepub.com
Film fans eagerly await the annual updates of John Willis & Barry
Monush's Screen World (Volume 56, 2005 = 155783668X, $24.95), and it's
no wonder: it documents all major American and foreign films released
in the prior year of its publication, including film credits,
biographical notes, photos, and critical analysis. Pages packed with
detail survey full casts, detail producers, provide ratings, and more.
Any college-level film library - and many a public holding - must
have this as an essential industry reference. Lehman Engel's Words With
Music: Creating The Broadway Musical Libretto (1557835543, $17.95)
considers how the book, music and lyrics work to create hits, analyzing
the history of musical theatre and its evolution. Engel's is a classic
work which originally appeared in 1972: it's updated here with a new
background commentary of Howard Kissel, chief theatre critics for the
New York Daily News, and revises details to provide new audiences with
essential background.
Tools And Techniques For Character Interpretation
Robert Blumenfeld
Limelight Editions
512 Newark Pompton Turnpike, Pompton Plains, NJ 97444
0879103264 $24.95 limelighteditions.com
Theatre and film artists will enjoy a fine guide to creating and
analyzing fictional characters using psychology, from typing characters
to understanding acting exercises based on these theories. Tools And
Techniques For Character Interpretation: A Handbook Of Psychology For
Actors, Writers And Directors covers all the basics; from interpreting
the underlying psychology of scenes and approaches to analyzing
character sets and scope. There's plenty of depth and detail here: it's
no light reading - but it's an essential reference tool for any
aspiring actor.
Surviving James Dean
William Bast
Barricade Books
185 Bridge Plaza North, Suite 308-A, Fort Lee, NJ 07024
156980298X $24.95 www.barricadebooks.com
To hear the name of actor James Dean today, with its instant
recognition, one would think he must have made many films: not so, he
made only three - and it was primarily his last film which made him a
Hollywood star. SURVIVING JAMES DEAN surveys the authors' own five-year
relationship with Dean, chronicling his life and including
clarifications of the homosexual undertones of their relationship. Any
who would understand Dean - including elements of his personality -
will want to read this eye-opening analysis.
History in the Media: Film and Television
Robert Niemi
ABC-CLIO
Box 1911, Santa Barbara, CA 93116-1911
157607952X $90.00 www.abc-clio.com
It may surprise even avid movie-goers to realize nearly a third of all
Oscar nominations have been for films based on historical fact. This
fact alone will make HISTORY IN THE MEDIA: FILM AND TELEVISION of
interest not just to college-level film library holdings, but to public
libraries who want to provide patrons with an in-depth survey. From
analysis of historical accuracy and political and cultural influences
on movies to a detailed survey of over three hundred films from early
to modern times, this history shows how historical films have shaped
American minds and image, and makes for a fine survey of historical
movie changes over the decades.
Filmmaking for Teens: Pulling off Your Shorts
Troy Lanier & Clay Nichols
Michael Wiese Productions
11288 Ventura Blvd., #621, Studio City, CA 91604
1932907041 $18.95 www.mwp.com
Young filmmakers will relish the opportunity to turn their dreams into
reality - the reality of a finished short film - using the tips and
insights of FILMMAKING FOR TEENS: PULLING OFF YOUR SHORTS. Chapter
packed with insights on everything from brainstorming a solid, workable
plot and setting to producing a first film, scheduling, shooting, and
then marketing the finished results. Teens - and many a post-teen -
will find all the passion of the new filmmaker translated into a series
of practical chapters covering all aspects of one's first film endeavor
- and should make this book a 'bible' of introductory steps to
turning such a dream into reality.
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Midwest Book Review
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