Rating: 
Summary: Good but padded and filled with mistakes
Review:
I love books on Cult and Trash films. So, naturally, I bought VideoHound's Cult Flicks & Trash Pics. After perusing through it for a while, I thought that the book was good but it's woefully incomplete, padded and many reviews are filled with mistakes. The package is great and the inclusion of movie quotes is a great idea but those things aren't enough to compensate for the bad aspects of this hefty book.The first obvious mistake is that it's incomplete. For example, there are only 6 William Castle movies listed in the book, such as I SAW WHAT YOU DID or HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL, but it doesn't have HOMICIDAL, Mr SARDONICUS or PROJECT X. A lot of Russ Meyer films are listed but UP! is not. Also, there's a lot of obscure but well-known B-movies that are missing from the book. Titles like TERROR IN THE JUNGLE, SILENT NIGHT BLOODY NIGHT, THE BOOGEYMAN or even VISITING HOURS aren't listed. A major point of these types of Cult movie guides is to list the extremely obscure titles, titles that would never be listed in standard movie guides, so we can track them down with the provided information. And the fact that a wide range of titles that have a cult following, from big studio oddities like XANADU to low-budget obscurities like HORROR HIGH are missing from the bunch makes the book look seriously incomplete. Second, many of the review I've checked from my first reading contain errors. The review for BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMAGE says that the movie starts with a murder. It doesn't start with a murder but an attempted murder. If you know the movie, this is a significant detail to the story-line. The review for another Dario Argento film, SUSPIRIA, states that Udo Kier plays the blind man when in fact Udo plays a psychiatrist in a brief role. These mistakes are so obvious that I wonder if they actually saw the movies. In another example of errorneous information, this time about the technical aspect of the film, the book says that ILSA SHE-WOLF OF THE SS is only 45 minutes long. Huh? The book points out that ILSA is available on DVD, which it is (distributed by Anchor Bay) but the version of ILSA on the DVD is 96 minutes long, not 45 minutes. And third mistake, the 800+ pages book is remarkably padded. 40% of the book is just filled with a series of indexes. That's something like 300+ pages just for indexes. I could have used more reviews of missing titles than having such a voluminous index. Still, the guide is good and some reviews are well written, even if I don't agree with all of them. It makes for a great starting point for those who are new to Cult movies. But if you want remarkable guides on B-movies and trash films, buy the two Psychotronic guides by Michael Weldon, which are much better and more complete than this and don't contain as many errors.
Rating: 
Summary: Film lover? You'll have a hard time putting this down.
Review: About 5 years ago, I stumbled upon the first edition of this 'Cult Bible' at a local booksellers and quickly snatched it up. At the time I was just getting into strange and bizarre cinema. I soon found this book to be a great resource in finding out about which film to see next. Enter 2002, and the newly expanded and 'revised' edition of this fine bible. I found it one day at work and started thumbing through it. Although I was happy to see some more recent films added like: Memento and Happiness, I was a bit disappointed that none of the old reviews had been re-written or updated aside from the DVD availability. I was also a bit peeved that there were some really important cult films missing still. I totally understand that you can't put *every* cult film in this book, but there were a few such as: Boggy Creek, Powaaqatsi & Nadja. Personaly gripes aside, this is a wonderful read if you are at all interested in obscure, strange or cult cinema. It is one of those books that you'll throw on your coffee table and when friends come over they'll pick it up and you'll have to shout at them before they put it back.
Rating: 
Summary: Some Movies Deserve To Be Remembered...
Review: as trash. I, for one, enjoy a movie just as much if it's bizarre and offbeat, as I do the classics. If you too have an affinity for midnite sleaze (which you obviously do or you wouldn't have looked up this book) then this is a must for your shelf. It doesn't purpose to cover them all, but as a primer for good "pics" to watch late at night, it excels.
Rating:
Summary: Some Movies Deserve To Be Remembered...
Review: as trash. I, for one, enjoy a movie just as much if it's bizarre and offbeat, as I do the classics. If you too have an affinity for midnite sleaze (which you obviously do or you wouldn't have looked up this book) then this is a must for your shelf. It doesn't purpose to cover them all, but as a primer for good "pics" to watch late at night, it excels.
Rating:
Summary: Look Again at Some B's You Passed Up
Review: I am a big lover of B Movies. This book provides good insight into some of those I had once looked over. The reviews are done from a Cult/B Movie fan's point of view. They gave "Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!" top marks if that tells you anything. Now, not all of them are unknowns. The works of Kubrick and other legends are here, but it is riddled with good commentary on drive-in titles long forgotten. One great feature is the category index. You like movies with flatulence, there is a listing. Women in Prison? Nurseploitation? Worst Ape Costumes? They are all here. There are a few I felt were forgotten. "H.O.T.S." and "The Swinging Cheerleaders" are great entries in their genres. Blaxploitation entries are a bit low as well. Probably some others. Worth the purchase. Take it with you to the video store when mainstream is not an option :-)
Rating:
Summary: Great guide that every Cult Movie fan should own
Review: I bought this baby back in 1999 when I lived in Texas. I'm now 19 yrs old and living back in the place I love: The San Fernando Valley, and for the past 2 yrs, I've been checking out this book over and over. It helps by letting me know about movies I could have passed up if i didn't know about them. Every cult movie I can think of is in this book. It's a great guide to have in your book collection (mine include such books as bios on David Lynch, Tim Burton, A Clockwork Orange, etc.). Also, it's great to have this book by your side on those boring Fall nights. Gotta get it!
Rating:
Summary: An essential part of any bad movie buff's library...
Review: I can't recommend this book enough. If you're a fan of odd movies or downright terrible ones, this book is for you. While this book is not the most comprehensive one on "cult movies," it is wonderfully written by people with a good sense of what camp value is all about. The sidebars are insightful and the reviews are almost always dead on. It is done alphabetically and has many wonderful indexes so a William Castle fan can look up all of his movies or somebody with a vampire fetish can easily find any films of the genre. The only problems are that some reviews are rather short and uninformative and some very important movies are not included. However, in the foreward of the book they tell you that there might be a sequal and they encourage people to write to them and give their opinions. The book even lists other cult movie publications and websites, along with the distributors so one can track down a specific title. It is an invaluable tool for seeking out obscure films and an all around pleasure to read.
Rating:
Summary: An essential part of any bad movie buff's library...
Review: I can't recommend this book enough. If you're a fan of odd movies or downright terrible ones, this book is for you. While this book is not the most comprehensive one on "cult movies," it is wonderfully written by people with a good sense of what camp value is all about. The sidebars are insightful and the reviews are almost always dead on. It is done alphabetically and has many wonderful indexes so a William Castle fan can look up all of his movies or somebody with a vampire fetish can easily find any films of the genre. The only problems are that some reviews are rather short and uninformative and some very important movies are not included. However, in the foreward of the book they tell you that there might be a sequal and they encourage people to write to them and give their opinions. The book even lists other cult movie publications and websites, along with the distributors so one can track down a specific title. It is an invaluable tool for seeking out obscure films and an all around pleasure to read.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book for Midnite Trash
Review: If your taste in movies run in the vein of the type that crop up during midnight showings at the theater, then this is the book for you. Whether you use it simply as a reference, or, as I did, read it from cover-to-cover, it is witty and interesting. Of course, until there is a revised edition, there will be some more recent offerings that don't show up in here, and I have trouble giving it the full five stars for leaving out "Big Trouble in Little China", but there are plent of entries here. If the movies here fit your tastes, I would venture that you'd be hard-pressed to find your favorites missing. You should take the time to read the sidebars that are interspersed throughout the book, as you will find tidbits of interesting information in them. There are no anime' enties here, curse the luck, but maybe Videohound will put out an anime' guide.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book for Midnite Trash
Review: If your taste in movies run in the vein of the type that crop up during midnight showings at the theater, then this is the book for you. Whether you use it simply as a reference, or, as I did, read it from cover-to-cover, it is witty and interesting. Of course, until there is a revised edition, there will be some more recent offerings that don't show up in here, and I have trouble giving it the full five stars for leaving out "Big Trouble in Little China", but there are plent of entries here. If the movies here fit your tastes, I would venture that you'd be hard-pressed to find your favorites missing. You should take the time to read the sidebars that are interspersed throughout the book, as you will find tidbits of interesting information in them. There are no anime' enties here, curse the luck, but maybe Videohound will put out an anime' guide.
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