Review by Choice Review
Both Hoberman and Natoli focus on pre-9/11 contemporary film, shaping their books in the shadow of that event. Hoberman uses it to muse on the imagining of and the desire for disasters, viewing the disaster film cycles of the 1970s (Airport, Poseidon Adventure) and 1990s (Independence Day, Titanic, Armageddon) as Hollywood fantasies turned back against viewers. Hoberman's book contains excellent overviews of disaster films, the Western, the religion of Star Wars, and 1950s television and Quiz Show, along with think pieces on seminal directors (Wong Kar-Wai, Abbas Kiarostami, Chantal Akerman, Lars von Trier, Beat Takeshi, Atom Egoyan, Guy Madden, Michael Snow, Todd Haynes, and others). Though Hoberman engages in political journalism, it is film related--i.e., movies about the presidency, Clinton's image consciousness. Natoli uses 9/11 as an apocalyptic millennial marker for a postmodern self-portrait that combines different times and spaces from the last 25 years of his life. Natoli's book is part political journalism, part autobiography, and part musings on individual films (The Matrix, Sleepy Hollow, American Beauty, Being John Malkovich). A critic of global market capitalism, Natoli views films as part of the American cultural imaginary that stimulates desires for accelerated consumption and produces a winner (as opposed to loser) mentality. Of the two books, Hoberman's is preferable for film collections. ^BSumming Up: Both recommended. Large film collections serving undergraduates and general readers. J. Belton Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
Hoberman's collection assesses the cinematic output of the 1990s, a period he characterizes as being bracketed by the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the World Trade Center towers. That sociopolitical approach is telling, because Hoberman casts his critical gaze beyond the world of film; besides weekly movie reviews, he publishes on politics and culture in the Village Voice, where most of these essays first appeared. The mostly brief reviews of individual films gain substance from being thematically grouped, especially those in a section juxtaposing movies on politics, such as The American President and The Contender, and the presidencies of the first Bush and Clinton: here Hoberman's political and cinematic agendas coalesce perfectly. Elsewhere, there are straightforward write-ups of films ranging from Spielberg's '90s product to masterworks from Iran, Russia, and Hong Kong; ultimately, these pieces prove to be the most satisfying. For while Hoberman's political commentary is lively and provocative, as such it is not so rare a commodity as his rigorous and thoughtfully insightful film criticism. --Gordon Flagg
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
Although it mostly covers films and personalities from the era between the fall of the Berlin Wall and the destruction of the Twin Towers, this collection of previously published essays and articles references numerous earlier motion pictures as well. The always readable Hoberman, film critic of the Village Voice, wittily discusses-and often skewers-a range of better- and lesser-known films, from Vertigo and Kiss Me Deadly to Schindler's List and Mulholland Drive. Of equal interest are his thoughts on the 1990s political scene, especially Bob Dole, George Bush Sr., and Bill Clinton, whom he dubs the "Show Biz President." He also writes insightfully on the cultural history of the final years of the 20th century, the future of the cinema, and the ongoing role of the film critic. Completing this interesting mlange are Hoberman's often quirky choices for the ten best films of each year between 1991 and 2000. Recommended for larger libraries and cinema collections.-Roy Liebman, California State Univ., Los Angeles (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Booklist Review
Review by Library Journal Review
