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The emergence of the double-bill in the 1930s created a divide between A-pictures and B-pictures as theaters typically screened packages featuring one of each. With the former considered more prestigious because of their larger budgets and more popular actors, the lower-budgeted Bs served largely as a support mechanism to A-films of the major studios—most of which also owned the theater chains in which movies were shown. When a 1948 U.S. Supreme Court antitrust ruling severed ownership of theaters from the studios, the B-movie soon became a different entity in the wake of profound changes to the corporate organization and production methods of the major Hollywood studios. In The Battle for...
William Castle, for instance, was a master promoter. In one scheme involving The Tingler, Vincent Price warns in the movie that "the only way to stop the monster is to scream. That's the signal to the projectionist to throw the switch. Under ten or twelve seats were some electric motors, war surplus things that Castle got a bargain on. The motors vibrated the seat, in the hope of scaring a scream out of someone. Just in case it didn't Castle planted someone in the audience to get the screams rolling." This book is about flamboyant promotion, the con artist side of the movie world--everything the ballyhoo boys did to separate the customer from the price of a movie ticket--Emergo, HypnoVista, 3-D, Wide Screen, Cinemagic, Duo-Vision, Dynamation, Smell-O-Vision, plenty more. Supporting the text are 107 photos and illustrations, some never-before-published, and a filmography.
The Ritz Brothers were a popular comedy trio in vaudeville, nightclubs, movies and television for more than four decades. Today largely overlooked among the classic comedy pantheon, they have been acknowledged as inspirations by such comics as Mel Brooks, Milton Berle, Jerry Lewis and Sid Caesar. This first full-length study of their work examines all the Ritz Brothers' feature films and short subjects 1934-1976, and their television appearances, with background information from the 20th Century-Fox archives. Contemporaneous and modern-day reviews and critiques are included.
Stereoscopic cinema began in the early 19th century and exploded in the 1950s in Hollywood. Its status as an enduring genre was confirmed in 2009 by the success of 3-D movie 'Avatar'.
Author Christopher Tookey and a host of critics, from the celebrated to the obscure, provide feedback on some of the biggest films to have reached our screens, indexed by actor or actress and presented alphabetically.Many of the most famous people of the last 100 years are here, from Woody Allen to Will Ferrell and Andrew Lloyd Webber to Julia Roberts. No celebrity is left unscathed, with short one-liner comments to paragraph reviews, such as:“To my eye, [Daniel] Radcliffe still looks like the teenage offspring of Hitler and a gay owl.”(Robbie Collin, News of the World)Christoper takes inspiration from books including Diana Rigg’s No Turn Unstoned and Matthew Parris’ Scorn. Named & Shamed is guaranteed to make you laugh at least once per page and will appeal greatly to the general reader and in particular to all film fans.
In the late nineteenth century, the Texas Rangers and Canada?s North-West Mounted Police were formed to bring the resource-rich hinterlands at either end of the Great Plains under governmental control. Native and rural peoples often found themselves squarely in the path of this westward expansion and the law enforcement agents that led the way. Though separated by nearly two thousand miles, the Rangers and Mounties performed nearly identical functions, including subjugating Indigenous groups; dispossessing peoples of mixed ancestry; defending the property of big cattlemen; and policing industrial disputes. Yet the means by which the two forces achieved these ends sharply diverged;øwhile the Rangers often relied on violence, the Mounties usually exercised restraint, a fact that highlights some of the fundamental differences between the U.S. and Canadian Wests. Policing the Great Plains presents the first comparative history of the two most famous constabularies in the world.
One of the most controversial films of its time, The Wild Bunch is the epitome of the no-holds-barred filmmaking of the 1960s and 1970s. Since its 1969 release, it has come to be recognized not only as an iconic Western, but as one of the most important films in the American cinematic canon. Over the years a parade of filmmakers have tried to imitate its gut-punch effects but none have equaled it. The Wild Bunch revived the floundering career of volatile, self-destructive director Sam Peckinpah--it also hung on him the label "Bloody Sam." This book tells the complete story of the film's production, reception and legacy.
A must-have read for anyone looking to take their independently-produced film or video into the 3rd dimension. The text features technical, practical, and inspirational insight from the visionaries who've been producing 3D film and video for decades, not just in the recent past. They offer low-cost techniques and tricks they've been implementing themselves for years. A variety of styles are discussed, from full CG to time lapse - even a film made during a freefall skydive jump! The filmmakers discuss * Options for on-set playback * Preparing for final playback in various formats * Adapting existing technology to your needs * Post production software choices * Working with computer graphics in 3D This book includes 3D glasses and a companion YouTube channel featuring the work of the filmmakers featured in the book (which you can view in 3D with the glasses), as well as the opportunity for you to upload your own videos for critique and feedback from the author and others. 3D glasses are not included in the purchase of the e-book of 3-DIY. If you have purchased the e-book, and would like a pair of 3D glasses, please contact the publisher at Dennis.McGonagle@taylorandfrancis.com
Considers films that lurk on the boundaries of acceptability in taste, style, and politics. B Is for Bad Cinema continues and extends, but does not limit itself to, the trends in film scholarship that have made cult and exploitation films and other low genres increasingly acceptable objects for critical analysis. Springing from discussions of taste and value in film, these original essays mark out the broad contours of badthat is, aesthetically, morally, or commercially disreputablecinema. While some of the essays share a kinship with recent discussions of B movies and cult films, they do not describe a single aesthetic category or represent a single methodology or critical agend...
Long recognized for outstanding National Film Board documentaries and innovative animated movies, Canada has recently emerged from the considerable shadow of the Hollywood elephant with a series of feature films that have captured the attention of audiences around the world. This is the first anthology to focus on Canada's feature films - those acknowledged as its very best. With essays by senior academics and leading scholars from across the country as well as some fresh new voices, Canada's Best Features offers penetrating analyses of fifteen award-winning films. Internationally acclaimed directors David Cronenberg, Atom Egoyan, Denys Arcand, and Claude Jutra are represented here. Notewort...