Review by Choice Review
The career of experimental filmmaker Barbara Hammer (1939--2019) stretched from the 1960s until shortly before her death. From the beginning, her films celebrated her feminism, her lesbianism, and--above all--her body and the bodies of her lovers. As she developed her craft, she became increasingly fascinated by the technology itself, and as she attracted more notice at festivals and on campuses, she was awarded enough grant money to enable her to invest in the latest cameras and editing devices. She was thus constantly pushing at the boundaries of her art, always seeking, though never quite succeeding, to transform feelings and sensations into filmic visuals. In the final decade of her life, she branched out into installations and carefully curated her own archives. She had gone from a little-known experimenter who was lucky to place her films in occasional festivals to an icon, with retrospectives all over the globe. Keller's book is a celebration of Hammer's work, both comprehensive and incisive. The book includes many stills from the films, but readers will want to turn to YouTube for her films and many interviews. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers. --William A. Vincent, Michigan State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review