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Reviews & Commentary by Adam Groves
SWEETIE
Those who doubt the truth of Jean-Luc Godard’s claim that Jane Campion “was better when she had no money” need only check out her debut feature SWEETIE
THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE
A surrealist prank of a movie from the incomparable Luis Buñuel
RAMPAGE (1987/92)
From the sometimes-great William Friedkin, a so-so serial killer drama
THE SADNESS
An insanity plague, a Taiwan hospital and lots of gore–a fun film!
DOGMA
Angels, demons, Catholicism and Skee Ball, courtesy of Kevin Smith
DOORWAYS TO THE DEADEYE
This is the first novel by Eric J. Guignard, of 2018’s excellent short story collection THAT WHICH GROWS WILD
LUCIO FULCI’S THE GATES OF HELL
I’ve been interested in this comic series, adapted from Lucio Fulci’s anti-classic CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD, ever since first hearing about it in the late nineties
HASHISH
Germany’s premiere example of “drug writing,” 1902’s HASHISH by Oscar A.H. Schmitz appears here in its first ever English translation
EDITH’S DIARY
A late period novel by the great Patricia Highsmith that showcases its author’s past-her-prime pedigree all too well
SAMALIO PARDULUS
A most fascinating excavation, this long-forgotten early twentieth century gothic novella by a German poet appears here in its first-ever English version
PLATES OF MEMORY
This beautifully designed art book is as powerful a testimonial to the work of Poland’s Marian Kolodziej (1921-2009), a Holocaust survivor and renowned stage designer, as anyone could possibly desire
BEYOND HORROR HOLOCAUST: A DEEPER SHADE OF RED
The final book by one of my favorite horror movie commentators
BATMAN: THE COMPLETE HISTORY
This 1999 publication is obviously a bit out of date, but is otherwise an admirably exhaustive recounting of the exploits of the Caped Crusader, a.k.a. Batman
STANLEY KUBRICK AND ME
For Stanley Kubrick buffs this memoir, written by Kubrick’s longtime personal assistant, can be classified as one of the few truly essential print resources on the great man
IRON MAN–THE CINEMA OF SHINYA TSUKAMOTO
Japan’s Shinya Tsukamoto is one of the world’s most vital living filmmakers, and this exhaustive study of his life and films is an essential reference, ideal both for Tsukamoto fanatics like myself and those new to the filmmaker’s work
Four Films Called ADAM
ADAM: a good title, I’d say, and one in which, needless to add, I have a more-than-passing interest
DEMON SEED–Novel, Movie and Rewrite
DEMON SEED began life as a 1973 paperback original, written by a young Dean Koontz, that was adapted into a 1977 movie and heavily revised in ’97
The Curious Case of Jonathan Demme
The untimely demise of film director Jonathan Demme on April 26, 2017 has inspired a number of obituaries. All, unsurprisingly, have been downright orgasmic about his accomplishments.
Remembering that which is Better Forgotten: ILL-GOTTEN GAINS and CLAUDE’S CRIB
What do ILL-GOTTEN GAINS, a little-seen black and white indie, and CLAUDE’S CRIB, a short-lived USA Network sitcom, have in common?
On GHOST IN THE SHELL, Whitewashing and the Way Things Are
The big movie-related controversy right now? The alleged “whitewashing” of the currently-in-release high-profiler GHOST IN THE SHELL