Video & DVD Guide 2003

Rating:
Summary: Great guide
Review: What I have always liked about VDG/VMG is the fact that you can find movies by actors. This is something other books dont offer.

Rating:
Summary: An unreliable guide.
Review: When you are a big movie fan it's a good thing to get yourself a reference book to keep track of all things film. Although this particular volume is not bad to have around it has some major flaws, especially in the review department. There seems to be no continuity from review to review. Because there are so many different people writing reviews there is no general opinion of what makes a good movie. How is it possible that the same source gives a thrown together mess like ARMAGEDDON three and a half stars and a superb satire like FIGHT CLUB a 'turkey' rating? The review of FIGHT CLUB is so far off it really seems that the author didn't even see the movie. There are more examples as well that induce some head scratching. With a guide such as this you need to have a kind of general opinion that gives you an idea of when to buy into the reviewers advice. I've bought the last five or six volumes of this guide and found the VIDEOHOUND GOLDEN MOVIE RETREIVER book to be far superior and chock full of extras that, over the years, this book didn't have or had to get rid of to put in more questionable movie reviews. I've actually rented movies based on highly recommended reviews within the VIDEO AND DVD GUIDE that were bad calls. Not bad if kept in the bathroom for quick reference but definitely not for coffee table presentation if you are a hard core movie buff.

Rating:
Summary: An unreliable guide.
Review: When you are a big movie fan it's a good thing to get yourself a reference book to keep track of all things film. Although this particular volume is not bad to have around it has some major flaws, especially in the review department. There seems to be no continuity from review to review. Because there are so many different people writing reviews there is no general opinion of what makes a good movie. How is it possible that the same source gives a thrown together mess like ARMAGEDDON three and a half stars and a superb satire like FIGHT CLUB a 'turkey' rating? The review of FIGHT CLUB is so far off it really seems that the author didn't even see the movie. There are more examples as well that induce some head scratching. With a guide such as this you need to have a kind of general opinion that gives you an idea of when to buy into the reviewers advice. I've bought the last five or six volumes of this guide and found the VIDEOHOUND GOLDEN MOVIE RETREIVER book to be far superior and chock full of extras that, over the years, this book didn't have or had to get rid of to put in more questionable movie reviews. I've actually rented movies based on highly recommended reviews within the VIDEO AND DVD GUIDE that were bad calls. Not bad if kept in the bathroom for quick reference but definitely not for coffee table presentation if you are a hard core movie buff.