Thursday, December 31, 2009

Dark Gloves, Bleeding Hearts

Art of Darkness: The Cinema of Dario Argento is one of those books you have to have if you are an Argento fan. I have the oversized softcover, which is overflowing with beautiful color pictures and examinations of the man and his movies. I reviewed it on Amazon a couple of years ago, and I stick by that review. It's not light reading, and it's not meant for the casual Argento fan.

Film books are a bit hit and miss with me. I have a section of my library devoted to them, but I'm fairly picky about what I keep. I'll read just about any one, but if I don't think I'll reference it or read it again, I put it on eBay. I've never put a FAB Press book up for auction, and don't think I ever will. Art of Darkness is why.

When you read this book (and most of the FAB books are much the same in this regard), you don't just read about the films being covered. You relive them. You see them in a brand new light. You learn things, and those newly discovered tidbits make you want to go out and see the movies all over again. And this time you will view them with new, but educated eyes. Few film books can do that. FAB books almost always do.

I can't recommend these tomes enough to fans of cinema. The price and depth of the books means you have to enjoy the director or films being covered, but if you do you will get your money's worth and then some. More importantly, you'll get an education on par with a college course.

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