Hollywood Babylon: The Legendary Underground Classic of Hollywood's Darkest and Best Kept Secrets

Customer Reviews:

a very interesting book to page through.......2007-07-18

Kenneth Anger's hollywood babylon is the kind of book you can pick up and put down at any time.. I find it interesting to page through before or after I watch one of the older movies of hollywood's golden age.. I can't get enough of this sort of look into the dumpster of tinseltown.. the scandals and episodes that have been brushed under the carpet or just are no longer known about.. The list of characters that populate these pages are as colorful as they were glamorous.. and also at times hideous..
This is not very heavy reading but it is endlessly fascinating..

Thumbs down on the (myth-ridden) text, thumbs up on (some of) the pictures.......2007-07-12

What saves the sensationalistic - not to say trashy and in many places inaccurate - _Hollywood Babylon_ from being a total failure is the huge number of pictures, many shocking and some downright grisly (as in the picture of poor Thelma Todd lying done to death in her car), but mostly fascinating if sometimes nauseating (I'll talk about one of the worst offenders shortly). Which is a good thing, because frankly I want to take a bath every time I read the text to wash off the grime. We all know that Hollywood in its "Golden Age" was a long way removed from the image of saintly morality painted by its self-appointed guardians, the studio moguls - very many of whom had guilty secrets among them - chief among them, but Kenneth Anger seems to take a little too much delight in the sordidity and scandal for my own taste. What makes it worse is that he passes on a number of urban legends rather than do the boring work of get at the truth.

One of the most objectionable myths he fosters in this book, in my view, is the story that Jayne Mansfield was decapitated in the auto accident that took her life in 1967. This is simply not true. There is a ghastly photo in circulation on the web - I won't link to it but those who really want to know can Google for it - that makes it clear that her injuries, while fatal, did not result in the removal of her head. What you see on the car's crumpled hood in that photo (that Anger claims was Mansfield's noggin) is actually her wig. (And did we really need to see that photo of her dead Chihuahua? Ugh.)

If people want a really good book on Hollywood scandals, I strongly suggest they go find James Robert Parish's well-researched, evenhanded, brightly-written _The Hollywood Book of Scandal_ instead. (And that book doesn't contain any photos likely to make you lose your lunch, either!)

Juicy delicious!.......2007-05-19

If you think today's stars are misbehaved, wait til you read this! I couldn't put it down and read it in few days. Anger's style of writing is witty, sarcastic, and will compltely put you back into another era. The book focuses mainly on early, pre-code Hollywood up until Jayne Mansfield's death in 1967. There are so many juicy stories and even morbid details in this book, and tons of awesome pictures. (Although be warned- picture of Jayne Mansfield's car crash and dead dog are depressing and bloody). Includes everyone who was ever anyone- Clara Bow, Carole Landis, Carole Lombard, Marilyn Monroe, Valentino, Novarro, Judy Garland (who died on the toilet), Gary Cooper, William Randolph Hurst, Jayne Mansfield, Charlie Chaplin, etc. etc. etc. All the old legends are in here. Completely worth the price. I just wish there was a newer version.

great book and wonderful gossip.......2007-02-18

if your the type that is intrigued by anna nichole , michael jackson, brittney spears and paris hilton then get this book these people were the real hollywood deal the stars from the 20s 30s and 40s make todays stars seem like cub scouts. this book has it all sex , glamor , drugs all the stuff that will make you not put this book down . you couldnt make this stuff up if you tried .

VERY ENTERTAINING.......2007-01-12

I love reading the trash & gossip about the stars and this book provided it all. It was hard to put down and I was sorry when I finished it.
Great reading!

Average customer rating:

Not Free SF Reader
the magic of holy wood
Mediocre Discworld book, cinema is a hard topic to write about
Discworld
In which the character of alchemists and 'Cut Me Own Throat' Dibbler is illuminated

Moving Pictures
Terry Pratchett
Manufacturer: HarperTorch
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Action & Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Fiction & Fantasy Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 006102063X
Release Date: 2002-02-05

Book Description

Discworld's pesky alchemists are up to their old tricks again. This time, they've discovered how to get gold from silver -- the silver screen that is. Hearing the siren call of Holy Wood is one Victor Tugelbend, a would-be wizard turned extra. He can't sing, he can't dance, but he can handle a sword (sort of), and now he wants to be a star. So does Theda Withel, an ambitious ingénue from a little town (where else?) you've probably never heard of.

But the click click of moving pictures isn't just stirring up dreams inside Discworld. Holy Wood's magic is drifting out into the boundaries of the universes, where raw realities, the could-have-beens, the might-bes, the never-weres, the wild ideas are beginning to ferment into a really stinky brew. It's up to Victor and Gaspode the Wonder Dog (a star if ever one was born!) to rein in the chaos and bring order back to a starstruck Discworld. And they're definitely not ready for their close-up!

Customer Reviews:

Not Free SF Reader.......2007-09-03

Pratchett chooses yet another industry to satirise, and Hollywood and the whole movie business isn't a bad choice.

A fledgling industry starts up, complete with producers, stars, and all the other hangers-on, until it is discovered that actually doing this movie thing is really, really bad for the discworld.

the magic of holy wood.......2007-01-12

The tenth Discworld novel is Moving Pictures by Terry Pratchett. Pratchett takes on Hollywood, here called Holy Wood, and the movies as the death of the guardian of a particular door and the lack of a replacement begins to cause reality, our silver screen reality, to seep into the Discworld. People begin to have these Big Ideas about making moving pictures and Pratchett, with his usual wit and humor, gives us references to movie classics as citizens of the Disc begin to make movies...in their own twisted Discworld sort of way.

Moving Pictures took quite a few pages to really begin to engage me in the story and the humor, but once it did I thoroughly enjoyed this Discworld novel. While not as good as, say, Mort, or one of the early witch novels, Moving Pictures is a decently good story and far more enjoyable than that dolt Rincewind (who, granted, has started to grow on me. Must be the luggage).

Nothing really critical here to say or examine because I find it almost impossible to discuss the plot of a Discworld novel as Pratchett is all over the place in a way that would cause most novels to fail. Yet Discworld succeeds.

Favorite Character Here: Gaspode the Wonder Dog.

Second Fav Character: Laddie (a idiotic Lassie like dog who has not been gifted the power of speech and intelligence through the magic of Holy Wood).

Good boy, Laddie!

-Joe Sherry

Mediocre Discworld book, cinema is a hard topic to write about.......2006-10-25

I've read all the Discworld novels up until this one, and this was one of the worst of the bunch. I think the problem with this book is that there's not enough things you can make funny about film. The end parts of the books are the best, with some funny mock scenes, but that doesn't make the whole book worth it. I usually am laughing many times in a Discworld novel, but this one did not do that for me.

Discworld.......2006-08-27

I've decided he's too good and too prolific for me to write a brand new review every single time I read one of his books. Discworld currently has 34 titles and every one of them will probably knock your socks off. His mind bubbles and flashes like a boiling pot of electric eels, and I simply can't get enough of his writing.

A reviewer has compared him to Geoffrey Chaucer. He reminds me more of Douglas Adams, or perhaps S Morgenstern. Great company, isn't it? He's an extremely skillful and imaginative writer, damn funny, clever and observant to boot. He's also very easy to read. A master of characterization, and if there's anything else you like about reading that I didn't mention here, assume I simply forgot. He's awesome.

Another reviewer mentioned Jonathan Swift and PG Wodehouse. Why such hallowed company? Because Pratchett belongs there! Truly, I'm enjoying my quest to read every book in the series. You should do the same, and begin your quest at the library because he's got to be there. He's awesome!

Yet another reviewer said Jerome K Jerome meets Lord of the Rings. Yeah, that works too.

Why do we, as reviewers, compare authors to other authors? Because it's easier than thinking. In the case of Terry Pratchett, it's probably because we'd otherwise wind up quoting the guy. He's so unique that we just don't know how else to cope with his greatness. Even this paragraph sounds like foamy drool raving, doesn't it? That's how all readers react to Pratchett. Reviewers simply don't have the good sense to keep it to themselves.

I could call his writing fantasy, but I could likewise call what Douglas Adams wrote science fiction. In both cases, I wouldn't be wrong, but I'd be neglecting so much and just totally missing the point. A rare few authors transcend a genre to such a degree that you know they're shouting out, loud and proud, a big fat "Bite me!"

I love Terry Pratchett's writing, and I completely understand why some folks refer to him as their favorite author. Or favourite, I should say, since we're being British. He's one of those authors that makes you want to grab whoever's in hearing range and start reading passages aloud. I'm simply thrilled that there's such an extremely talented and prolific author who's been working for years without me being aware of him. Now I have much catching up to do, and I will love it.

In which the character of alchemists and 'Cut Me Own Throat' Dibbler is illuminated.......2006-07-16

An ancient curse bursts forth from the ruins of Holy Wood, alchemists discover the secret of octocellulose, Detritus the Troll is unchained and madly in love with Ruby, CMOT Dibbler moves up from suspect sausages, Gaspode is introduced, and the Librarian and a blonde... never mind, this is getting too weird...

An on-going came of 'spot the cinematic reference' wrapped around a passable plot with a fair number of twists. One of Pratchett's better pieces, but not quite at the top of his form. The Librarian and Lord Vetinari, two of my three favorite Discworld characters, have small but significant parts in this one, which of course grants it a certain degree of merit from the start (the third favorite is Greebo).

Cinematic references abound, from the days of silent film right up to fairly modern stuff, and I'm certain I've missed some of the references. But it does become an enjoyable game, trying to identify the sources, though frustrating when you feel that some bit is a reference, but can't identify the source.

I enjoyed this one, a strong four stars, but only four.

Yay, You! : Moving Out, Moving Up, Moving On

Average customer rating:

Great Graduation Gift!
Fun graduation gift!
Perfect Graduation Gift
Closing one chapter, opening another.....
A Trip to the Past for Mom and Kids

Yay, You! : Moving Out, Moving Up, Moving On

Manufacturer: Little Simon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Picture Books | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Children's Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 068984283X

Amazon.com

On the occasion of her son's graduation from high school, Sandra Boynton, the well-loved creator of books and cards featuring hippos, dinosaurs, and sheep, has written a celebratory book for "onwardly mobile" readers. Everyone on the planet will compare this title to Dr. Seuss's Oh, the Places You'll Go, and we will, too. Yes, they're both delightful, silly picture books with vaguely unidentifiable critters as the emcees, rejoicing in the reader's recent graduation or other success. Festive exclamation points abound, along with rhyming, and alternating cheering and questioning ("Now what will you do?"). But Sandra Boynton is Sandra Boynton, and Dr. Seuss is Dr. Seuss, and ne'er the twain shall meet. Boynton's more contemporary text and illustrations feature a cow doing yoga ("OOM") and a headphone-clad fellow listening to "great rock-and-roll," among her other trademark characters flying away under balloons, partaking of chocolate, and scrambling up mountains. A box on the first page with "CONGRATULATIONS" across the top and "To" and "From" below make it perfectly clear that this is a book for giving. Behind all the goofy faces and simple rhymes is a very real, very sweet sentiment of pride and support that any loving friend or family member will be glad to share with that special successful person, young or old. Boynton's style can be recognized a mile away in such classics as Dinos to Go, Hippos Go Berserk!, and Moo, Baa, La La La!. (All ages) --Emilie Coulter

Book Description

Moving Out, Moving Up, Moving On

For new graduates, or for anyone facing imminent change, here is profound insight, bold inspiration, and truly ensloxifying advice. Also an occasional hippo. No wombats.

What's more, Yay,You! will not overstress the weary mind. It's nice and short, with lots of pictures, no chapters, no index, no graphs, no study questions, and not a single Suggestion for Further Reading.

Portable, colorful, and low in saturated fats, this is truly the perfect gift for that special onwardly-mobile someone.

There are so many choices. The world is immense. Take a good look around and decide what makes sense...

Customer Reviews:

Great Graduation Gift!.......2006-07-06

I have bought multiple copies of this book for my kids' friends for graduation gifts. I also bought it for my aunt when she recieved her doctorate degree. I decorated the inside of the kids' books with pictures throughout their kindergarten and Pre-K years at school. It has the best ending telling the person that no matter what they do in life they are special!

Fun graduation gift!.......2006-07-05

I purchased this book as a high school graduation gift for my neice's boy friend, and the kids loved passing it around. It may be a children's book, but you're never too old for the message or to enjoy Boynton's artwork.

Perfect Graduation Gift.......2006-06-25

I'm a high school teacher and have found this book to be the perfect gift for my graduating seniors. The carefree illustrations and silly rhymes ease anxiety and nerves at a time when graduates are forced to consider their world with excessive seriousness. It's also a terrific gift for acknowledging promotions or career moves.

Closing one chapter, opening another............2004-05-06

I am an elementary guidance counselor, responsible for planning our promotion program yearly for our fifth grade students as they move to middle school. I'm always looking for meaningful things to add to the ceremony, traditions the kids will look back on with happy memories. We do a lot in my school with "Oh the Places You'll Go..." so I was looking for something of this genre to use. "Yay, You" is just the right length. I read it to the kids just before the ceremony and then include a quick reading as a prelude to the processional out of the gym. Because the kids have heard it already, they know what is coming. The parents and guests absorb the meaning of the "moving up, moving out" very well. It's WONDERFUL and a number of parents have purchased it for their children to commemorate the event. It is indeed now a tradition.

A Trip to the Past for Mom and Kids.......2003-02-18

When my children were small we read the Boynton board books so many times that we had to replace them for kid #3. They are one of my favorite baby shower gifts. Yay, You is a terrific book for both parents and kids (young adults?) as they enter the next life journey. Even if you have never experienced a Sandra Boynton book, you will enjoy this and smile as you realize that life goes on for all. This makes a fun grduation gift too!!

Average customer rating:

Don't Let The Cover Sketch Scare You Away
A Visual Feast !
The Art of Howl's Moving Castle
Excellent book
A great book

The Art of Howl's Moving Castle
Hayao Miyazaki
Manufacturer: VIZ Media LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Comics & Graphic Novels | Subjects | Books

General | Graphic Novels | Comics & Graphic Novels | Subjects | Books

General | Manga | Comics & Graphic Novels | Subjects | Books

General | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1421500493

Customer Reviews:

Don't Let The Cover Sketch Scare You Away.......2007-09-27

This book opens a world of anime art like none other. Primary characters & secondary characters are carefully drawn out and walk through a world & story created for them. As a professional artist, I found great interest in the prelimiary drawings straight through the setting concepts. This is also a great book for fans of the movie. If you loved the movie, you will love this book.

A Visual Feast !.......2007-06-16

I totally enjoyed the layout and discussion in this book. I have been a Miyazaki fan ever since, "My Neighbor Totoro" which I saw when I lived in Japan. If you relish animation and all the details of this art form, you'll like the format and attention this book gives.

Janine Bolon, Financial Coach, Radio Talk Show Host, author of "Money...It's Not Just for Rich People!" available on amazon. Money...It's Not Just for Rich People!

The Art of Howl's Moving Castle.......2007-04-06

If you loved the movie, you will love this book, The Art of Howl's Moving Castle it's hard cover, with original sketches, storyboards and the final screenplay!

The book explains every step of the complex story, from the original book adaptation to the final movie. Also have quotes and articles from creators of each process (designers, art directors, supervising animators, etc.) It's like seeing the movie scene by scene with artist commentaries.

Excellent book.......2007-03-24

Being a great Miyazaki fan I really love this book. Even though majority of the books is filled with movie stills, I love it. I revisit those pictures in the books and get myself lost in the beauty of colors. Also being a student of animation, I really get to learn a lot of things. Character concepts and other drawings are really helpful. I highly recommend this book for anybody who likes stories, animation and colors.

A great book.......2007-03-09

Hayao Miyazaki is a genious. This book is simply a must for all of the director's fans. The book is full of drawings, sketches and images from the actual movie.

Average customer rating:

Theories on Cinema
Film Form: Marxism, Montage and the Hegelian Dialectic
Montage, Marxism and the Hegelian Dialectic
THIS BOOK WILL NOT IMPROVE YOUR FILMMAKING
The montage explained

Film Form: Essays in Film Theory
Sergei Eisenstein
Manufacturer: Harvest Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

History & Criticism | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0156309203

Amazon.com

After D.W. Griffith, the most important figure in the history of the international cinema is Sergei Eisenstein. Both men died in 1948, but Eisenstein left a double legacy: not only was he one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, but he was also a magnificent film theorist, perhaps the most important one ever. This book of his essays, superbly translated and edited by Jay Leyda, reprints some of his most vital writings on the art of the cinema, including articles on the language and structure of the movies, the differences between theater and film, and the author's efforts to adapt Theodore Dreiser's An American Tragedy for the screen. In "The Cinematic Principle and the Ideogram," Eisenstein analyzes the written symbols of the Japanese language as a model for film editing. "Dickens, Griffith, and the Film Today," one of the author's most famous pieces, speaks of Griffith as a Dickensian director and then argues for a kind of filmmaking that transcends Griffith's literal style in order to touch its audience on an ideological and metaphorical level. This volume also includes the notorious "statement" on sound movies, which argues against the use of synchronous sound and in favor of jarring, contrapuntal audio that Eisenstein believed would add new dimensions to the talking picture. Idiosyncratic, engrossing, and brilliant, Eisenstein's essays will inspire you to reevaluate everything you thought you knew about the movies.

Book Description

Twelve essays written between 1928 and 1945 that demonstrate key points in the development of Eisenstein’s film theory and in particular his analysis of the sound-film medium. Edited, translated, and with an Introduction by Jay Leyda; Index; photographs and diagrams.

Customer Reviews:

Theories on Cinema.......2006-04-10

This is not a how to for wannabe movie directors, the essays revolve around the cinematic medium and its creation, and not so much on its content. Not unlike McLuhan, Eisenstein proposes to understand cinema as an extension of our senses ( hence, his following book, Film Sense ), and retraces the evolution from theather to cinema to sound cinema with a focus on Japanese influence ( Kabuki ) and a revolutionary ( for its time ) approach to montage. Cryptic at times, but a goldmine of insights into the nature of the silver screen.

Film Form: Marxism, Montage and the Hegelian Dialectic.......2002-07-10

As many of the early film theorists, Eisenstein has a tendency to propose as universals the principles of a specific school. The Soviet school of montage, whose heyday was in the late 20s, finds its most brilliant auteur here expounding not only upon its philosophy of cinema, but on ways in which this philosophy is in fitting with Marxism, the Hegelian dialectic and science. As such, it is a brilliant manifesto, a seminal work of greater value than any of those by Kuleshov, Pudovkin, Vertov, Dovzhenko or other montagists.

Nonetheless, it is problematic in several ways, and an understanding of the nature of its idiosyncrasies is extremely valuable. First, in an effort to "prove" his hypotheses, Eisenstein often attempts to reconcile film and physics in ways that are inappropriate and pseudo-scientific. He presents himself, in that sense, as both Eisenstein and amateur Einstein. Further, case studies are often chosen from his own work, in effect limiting the reader's freedom to disagree with his conclusions. Finally, the manner in which he expresses his thoughts is beyond elliptical. At times, it appears that one would have had to have been living in Russia at the time that these essays were written and to have been thinking about the same issues that Eisenstein was to comprehend what he is getting at. [On the other hand, for those who have had the joy of reading Wittgenstein, for example, this should be a good book to take to the beach.]

As indicated above, these problems can be explained. Communists have always had a complex relationship with the Social Darwinists. On one hand, Marxism was born out of progressive, evolutionary thinking; on the other hand, Marxists dismiss the idea of "survival of the fittest" as primitive and untenable. Soviet biologists often found themselves in the unique position of having to reconcile their theories with the party line, supported by hand selected data. In the end, of course, the value of art and science were measured by the rigid slide rule of the Communist Party. Science that did not promote its agenda was considered "anti-revolutionary."

Eisenstein is the Comrade Lysenko of cinema. He hoists high the myth of science (i.e., the systematic study of physical Truth), reduced essentially to propaganda, and borne along on the shoulders of dubious examples. The most convenient (and most incontrovertible) of these are taken from his own films, the full meanings of which belong to his own demesne. The language Eisenstein uses to construct his arguments is wisely selected: The more clearly one understands his propagandist averments and the less clearly the logic upon which they are based, the more likely one is to accept them as fact. Somewhat hypocritically, then, Eisenstein selects the voice of the intellectual elite to speak to the masses, hiding his true political intentions behind a veil of empty esotericism. Like the soothsayer, the illusionist and the ringleader, "Film Form" operates in the realm of baseless belief in which arguments gain validity relative not to WHAT they say but the WAY in which they say it. For this very reason, it is an important read... the very dogma of Bolshevik art.

Montage, Marxism and the Hegelian Dialectic.......2002-07-09

Eisenstein is the very Comrade Lysenko of cinema. He hoists high the myth of science (i.e., the systematic study of physical Truth), reduced essentially to propaganda, and borne along on the shoulders of dubious examples. The most convenient (most incontrovertible) of these are those taken from his own films, the full meaning of which belongs to his own demesne. The language Eisenstein uses to construct his arguments is wisely selected: The more clearly one understands his propagandist averments and the less clearly the logic upon which they are based, the more likely one is to accept them as fact. Somewhat hypocritically, then, Eisenstein selects the voice of the intellectual elite to speak to the masses, hiding his true political intentions behind a veil of empty esotericism. Like the soothsayer, the illusionist and the ringleader, "Film Form" operates in the realm of baseless belief in which arguments gain validity relative not to WHAT they say but the WAY in which they say it. For this very reason, it is an important read... the very dogma of Bolshevik art.

THIS BOOK WILL NOT IMPROVE YOUR FILMMAKING.......2000-02-28

This book will not improve your skills as a filmmaker (I doubt that any book would). If you can actually figure out what Eisenstein is trying to say, you will only find very vague and obscure theories. His ideas are interesting in what they reveal about his films and himself, but you cannot apply them to your filmmaking.

The montage explained.......1999-07-24

While it can be tough to read Film Form it is ultimately a more then worth while book to read. Eisenstein's theory of montage is a must read. Very inspiring and insightful

Death 24x a Second: Stillness and the Moving Image

Average customer rating:

uptodate

Death 24x a Second: Stillness and the Moving Image
Laura Mulvey
Manufacturer: Reaktion Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

History & Criticism | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Theory | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Entertainment | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1861892632

Book Description

Death 24x a Second is a fascinating exploration of the role new media technologies play in our experience of film. Addressing some of the key questions of film theory, spectatorship, and narrative, Laura Mulvey here argues that such technologies, including home DVD players, have fundamentally altered our relationship to the movies.

According to Mulvey, new media technologies give viewers the ability to control both image and story, so that movies meant to be seen collectively and followed in a linear fashion may be manipulated to contain unexpected and even unintended pleasures. The individual frame, the projected film’s best-kept secret, can now be revealed by anyone who hits pause. Easy access to repetition, slow motion, and the freeze-frame, Mulvey argues, may shift the spectator’s pleasure to a fetishistic rather than a voyeuristic investment in film.

By exploring how technology can give new life to old cinema, Death 24x a Second offers an original reevaluation of film’s history and its historical usefulness.

Customer Reviews:

uptodate.......2007-01-10

its a very good book on films. its uptodate, integrating lots of knowledge of the new technologies that have affected - good and bad - the film media. the articles however could have been more integrated with one another.

Carnal Thoughts: Embodiment and Moving Image Culture

Average customer rating:

Phenomenology and film

Carnal Thoughts: Embodiment and Moving Image Culture
Vivian Sobchack , and Univ of California Pr
Manufacturer: University of California Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

History & Criticism | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Americas | History | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Entertainment | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0520241290

Book Description

In these innovative essays, Vivian Sobchack considers the key role our bodies play in making sense of today's image-saturated culture. Emphasizing our corporeal rather than our intellectual engagements with film and other media, Carnal Thoughts shows how our experience always emerges through our senses and how our bodies are not just visible objects but also sense-making, visual subjects. Sobchack draws on both phenomenological philosophy and a broad range of popular sources to explore bodily experience in contemporary, moving-image culture. She examines how, through the conflation of cinema and surgery, we've all "had our eyes done"; why we are "moved" by the movies; and the different ways in which we inhabit photographic, cinematic, and electronic space. Carnal Thoughts provides a lively and engaging challenge to the mind/body split by demonstrating that the process of "making sense" requires an irreducible collaboration between our thoughts and our senses.

Customer Reviews:

Phenomenology and film.......2007-08-14

This book is part of the author's long theoretical project during which Vivian Sobchack tries to apply the assumptions and approach of philosophical phenomenology to film theory. Sobchack's theory is based mainly on the work of French philosopher Maurice Merleau-Ponty - for more details regarding Sobchack's theory, see her earlier book entitled "The Address of the Eye: A Phenomenology of Film Experience".
Beside it's marvulous theoretical performance this book is very intelligently written, full of creative language-use. However it could raise only the interest of film scholars interested deeply in film theory, and trained a little bit in philosophy.

Average customer rating:

Tell me Who are you...
The author chose Rachel as her name. What will Unhei do?
Should be read in every elem.school. What does yr name mean?
The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
A sweet story

The Name Jar

Manufacturer: Dragonfly Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Picture Books | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

School | Issues | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Children's Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0440417996
Release Date: 2003-10-14

Book Description

The new kid in school needs a new name! Or does she?

Being the new kid in school is hard enough, but what about when nobody can pronounce your name? Having just moved from Korea, Unhei is anxious that American kids will like her. So instead of introducing herself on the first day of school, she tells the class that she will choose a name by the following week. Her new classmates are fascinated by this no-name girl and decide to help out by filling a glass jar with names for her to pick from. But while Unhei practices being a Suzy, Laura, or Amanda, one of her classmates comes to her neighborhood and discovers her real name and its special meaning. On the day of her name choosing, the name jar has mysteriously disappeared. Encouraged by her new friends, Unhei chooses her own Korean name and helps everyone pronounce it—Yoon-Hey.

Customer Reviews:

Tell me Who are you..........2006-09-21

Today Room 10 in Oxnard, Sheltered Immersion First picked to hear "The Name Jar".
It's not the easiest pick for a second language learner one year into English. It's a longer text and not patterned and predictable. But what it offers is something very tangible, the experience of going into a new cultural context, experiencing school, having a name that is loved and chosen by family and then confronting others who tease you for it, also encounter those unable to pronounce your name and seem unable within their context to respect your name as who you are and value its meaning. At least at first.

So my class had the legs to listen as Unhei's story was told.They know the feeling. She comes from Korea with a block wrapped in silk that says her name(from Grandmother). She highly values this block and all it represents. On her first bus trip to school which she is doing alone(hum) she is teased about her name and feels the sting of total humiliation by students on the bus. At school she does not reveal her name and that piece where teacher assists and does reveal it oddly blanks out. I accept the need for this in the tale, but it's just not exactly what happens. In time students bring in a jar to hold suggested names for her, they are concerned about a nameless girl.She can't explain her fear of rejection of her name either of course.It's too complex and too personal. Meanwhile she is sharing at home that she wants an "American name" which is distressing to her mom. She considers the names and makes an American friend who eventually overhears her true name at the Korean Market. I suppose I expected the friend to out her, but he just takes her jar away and after an exhaustive search she shares her real name, how it looks from her chop and she and her friend are on their way to understanding. A few things about respect for school, writing systems are shared from the perspective of a Korean child, but not as much as I expected.
Why this story was appropriate today for our class was simple, my student teacher had shared the meaning of his name. Both parts of his name are to me hard to pronounce and they have interesting meanings. Unhei's name means "grace". That's an interesting concept to talk to children about all around. Anyway I felt I wanted to return to what he shared about the "meaning" of names and will follow up tomorrow by looking at the student names and what they mean, how they say them. Refining our ear and our respect for each person.Also I sent letters home for parents to explain why they chose their child's name. At the beginning of the year we learn to read and write all our names and this extends that into the part that allows me to personalize and help create respect for one another. I think the book is a quiet one, as relevant for dominant culture as those that experience name issues at the hands of those speaking in the dominant tongue but through good instruction it serves all students in consideration of the importance of respect for honoring the first gift we really are given after life, our name.

The author chose Rachel as her name. What will Unhei do?.......2004-05-06

Unhei is starting school in America. Although she has a lovely Korean name that means "grace," she thinks maybe she would like a more American sounding name. Her classmates make a name jar and offers suggestions. This story is affirming of the multicultural experience. When Unhei complains about her name, saying that she doesn't want to be different, her mother counters, "You are different, Unhei....That's a good thing!" Choi superbly illustrates her own story. The characters, though simply painted, have expressive faces.

Should be read in every elem.school. What does yr name mean?.......2002-10-27

Yangsook (Rachel) Choi has written AND illustrated another illuminating book. Unhei has moved from South Korea with her family to America; she has brought her clothes, bags, and a name "chop" stamp from her grandmother. Her schoolmates cannot pronounce her name on the bus, so she doesn't reveal her name to her classmates. Is it good to be different? Should she embrace her difference? In America she can still eat seaweed and kimchi; she can shop at Kim's Market and Fadil's Falafel. But maybe a name of Amanda, Miranda, Daisy, or Tamela would be better than Unhei (Yoon-hye). The kids at school put name suggestions in a jar on her desk, but on the day she will choose her name, the jar has disappeared. Who took it? What will Unhei decide to do? Did Mr. Cocotos her teacher have a hand in this? Will all the kids want to choose a new name? A must read for every elementary school.

The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi.......2002-02-08

Excellent piece of literature that addresses the emotional impact of change. The Name Jar pulls at the core of American assimilation and a loss of individuality to appease the intolerance of differences. Unhei must adjust to a new country, culture, school, and classmates, while she finds the transition from Korea to America difficult.

A sweet story.......2001-10-19

I picked this book up in the library yesterday and loved it. The pictures and the story are engaging, and work well together. This would be a great picture book for teachers in diverse district. I predict this book will win some awards this year!

What Is Cinema? (Vol 1) (What is Cinema?)

Average customer rating:

A must for any lover cinema!
Significant work - atrocious translation
What Is Cinema?

What Is Cinema? (Vol 1) (What is Cinema?)
Andre Bazin
Manufacturer: University of California Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

History & Criticism | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0520000927

Amazon.com

André Bazin is a great film critic and essayist, arguably the best France ever produced. His impact on the international cinema was monumental and continues to be felt today. He popularized the auteur theory, the idea that directors were the authors of their films. He was one of the first to take American "B"" movie genres, such as Westerns and films noir, seriously. He waxed eloquently on the Italian neorealist movement of the late '40s and '50s and inspired the "New Wave" of French directors, many of whom wrote for the journal he founded and edited, the legendary Cahiers du Cinema. François Truffaut dedicated The 400 Blows to him.

Bazin had a keen eye for cinematic detail and technique, but was also one of the cinema's great sociologists, psychologists, and historians. Volume two of What Is Cinema? collects some of his most characteristic writings. It contains essays on the aesthetic of neorealism; individual neorealist films by Vittorio De Sica, Roberto Rossellini, and Federico Fellini; the brilliance of Charlie Chaplin; and the mythmaking qualities of the Western. The volume ends with an appreciation of the great Jean Gabin and three essays on sex in the movies, including the delightful "Entomology of the Pin-Up Girl." Bazin's essays are short, smoothly written, revelatory, and filled with remarkable insights and a profound love for his subject.

Book Description

André Bazin's What Is Cinema? (volumes I and II) have been classics of film studies for as long as they've been available and are considered the gold standard in the field of film criticism. Although Bazin made no films, his name has been one of the most important in French cinema since World War II. He was co-founder of the influential Cahiers du Cinéma, which under his leadership became one of the world's most distinguished publications. Championing the films of Jean Renoir (who contributed a short foreword to Volume I), Orson Welles, and Roberto Rossellini, he became the protégé of François Truffaut, who honors him touchingly in his forword to Volume II. This new edition includes graceful forewords to each volume by Bazin scholar and biographer Dudley Andrew, who reconsiders Bazin and his place in contemporary film study. The essays themselves are erudite but always accessible, intellectual, and stimulating. As Renoir puts it, the essays of Bazin "will survive even if the cinema does not."

Customer Reviews:

A must for any lover cinema!.......2004-08-25

Andre Bazin was the most powerful mind and one of the deepest thinkers , creator of the famous Cahiers du cinema , these were passionate and interesting digest who meet to famous and youth film makers and very valuable people related with this art.
Bazin goes to the origins of the cinema his meaning and implications in the psiquis and its mythical roots , Bazin death (40) was a painful loss for the raising french directors in 1957 .
When you get The 400 blows of Francois Truffaut (The quintessential New Wave film) in the initial titles you will watch the special hommage to Bazin in memoriam .
You may consider several mistakes in the traduction , when this happens remember the chinese statement: All traduction is a betray.
Try to get a spanish edition . I have both of them since I have not been able to get the french edition.

Significant work - atrocious translation.......2000-12-04

André Bazin was one of the most important writers on film. His views have been influential worldwide. The term Bazinian realism has become one of the major theoretical categories in film studies. The impact of Bazin's work on English-language film studies has been generated, to a large degree, by this two-volume collection of essays. A number of major debates that have been going round for years now (decades actually) in English language works center on issues arising from these essays; e.g. the relation between objects and their photographs. However it must be stressed that these English language essays are re-workings by their "translator" rather than faithful renderings of the originals. Hugh Gray, the translator, not only chose some of the essays from the original French editions but also treated them with great liberty. Sentences and footnotes are missing, others are combined without reason; expressions are made more "flowery"; and meanings are changed. I cannot tell whether the translator was not up to the task of doing this job properly or he decided to mistreat his subject to such a degree consciously. In any case it is a great pity that Bazin's work is available in English only in this unfortunate form.

The original woks deserve 5 stars; it is impossible to decide how to rate this particular version.

What Is Cinema?.......2000-06-29

What is Cinema? Volume One and What is Cinema Volume 2 are English translations drawn from the original French four-volume work. They are not the entire four-volume work, but include some of the more important essays. In France itself, the four-volume work was later boiled to a one-volume set of selections. This French version was later used for the selections in the Spanish and Portuguese versions. The Italian version is different from the others, but also drawn from the four-volume work. Much of the four-volume original French work that has been omitted from the English What is Cinema? volumes I and II can be found in Cardullo's more recent collection "Bazin at Work."

Since Bazin's passing, film theory ventured more deeply into such things as semiotics, Freudian and Lacanian analyses, and sociological/Marxist perspectives. However, Bazin was one of the first and arguably most important writers to take film discourse beyond the "funny" "sexy" "scary" level. Some of the places film discourse has gone since the time of Bazin would be difficult or impossible for an unitiated person to comprehend. This is not so with Bazin, a man who also did such things as take Charlie Chaplin films to show at factories during lunch hour.

Although Bazin passed away more than 40 years ago, he remains relevant even if his writings have been subject to some critical analysis from writers like Brian Henderson and Noel Carroll. Moreover, in reading Bazin, one often has moments of recognition that are applicable to more recent things in the theatres; for example, a remark Bazin makes about Marilyn Monroe's skirt flying up is pertinent to discussion of the Austin Powers films, Bazin's remarks about such things as films about arctic expeditions, bullfighting documentaries, or films of Chinese executions may have a certain relevance in talking about the phenomenon of "The Blair Witch Project" . . .

Average customer rating:

Wonderful, well-imagined picturebook series

very cute

My Kids Adore Ella!

Ella the elephant is ELEGANT!

DON'T READ THE EDITORIAL REVIEW

Ella The Elegant Elephant
Carmela D'amico , and Steve D'amico
Manufacturer: Arthur A. Levine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Fiction | Emotions & Feelings | Social Situations | People & Places | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Fiction | Friendship | Social Situations | People & Places | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Fiction | Self-Esteem & Self-Respect | Social Situations | People & Places | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Picture Books | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Moving | Issues | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
School | Issues | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Ella Takes The Cake

Ella Sets The Stage

Ella the Elephant Doll

Ella Ella

Poppy & Ella

ASIN: 0439627923

Book Description

Ella's counting the days until the first day of school ... but not because she's eager to start! On the contrary, as the littlest elephant on Elephant Island, she's terribly nervous about the other kids she'll meet. Then she receives a beautiful red hat that belonged to her grandmother -- her new lucky charm. Big mean Belinda at school teases her for it, calling her "Ella the Elegant Elephant." But Ella's brave enough to hold on to her hat, and in the end, the hat (and her heart) save the day. With warm, rich pictures and a charming main character, ELLA is sure to be a new favorite.

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful, well-imagined picturebook series.......2007-09-13

I really love the "Ella" series... The books are nice and sweet, and presents a marvelously imagined, self-contained world that will strongly appeal to little kids. It has a similar feel to the "Curious George" and "Babar" books, except without all the weird, disturbing undertones that make those classics a bit troublesome. A great choice for some fun books that you don't have to worry about. (ReadThatAgain)

very cute.......2006-08-23

This is a very cute story and I look forward to reading it to my daughter.

My Kids Adore Ella!.......2006-08-13

I have a five and a seven year old and they love everything ELLA. The best part is, so do I. This story, as well as ELLA TAKES THE CAKE is a gem. The message really resonates with both my children and me...I get teary at the end. So many children's books are just silly or entertaining. This one is both but also very literary. I love the allusion to the golden rule and the lesson about staying true to yourself. The illustrations are gorgeous, too! I highly reccommend this book.

Ella the elephant is ELEGANT!.......2006-01-16

Originally, my daughter borrowed this book from the library. She likes elephants and thought Ella was cute. We fell in love with Ella and her story, so we purchased our own copy...well Santa Claus did. My girls are 4 & 6, they both love the story.

DON'T READ THE EDITORIAL REVIEW.......2005-09-15

Hopefully it's not too late and you haven't read the review above as it gives away the sweet, tear-inducing ending to a beautifully illustrated tale described so well by the other "amateur" reviewers. I read this to my almost-2 year old and my 4 year old, and they both love the pictures and the story. There are quite a few lessons to be learned from this story - I appreciate the fact that even though she is made fun of for her hat, she continues to wear it to school because it means so much to her. I still tear-up a little at the end. It's really a hopeful story - it makes me hopeful that my own children see results/appreciation when they do their best to do the right thing. I have purchased 3 copies and will continue to do so as friends have babies.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books