John McCarty began his writing career as a film reviewer and interviewer for such cinema-oriented periodicals and “fanzines” as Cinefantastique, Take One, Film Heritage, Filmaker’s Newsletter, Today’s Filmmaker, Fangoria, Starlog, Filmfax and many others before he turned to writing books about his favorite subject since grade school – the movies. In Cinemusings, he has drawn from this output of more than 50 years to take us on a personal journey with him of the films and filmmakers he has come to cherish over a lifetime of obsessive movie-watching. They include favorite essays, reviews, profiles and interviews selected from these magazines (many of which are no longer in existence) and from several of his long out of print books (Splatter Movies, The Modern Horror Film, and Thrillers). They cover subjects here and abroad that span the history of cinema itself – from directors Alfred Hitchcock to Paul Morrissey, Fritz Lang to Frank LaLoggia, Charles Laughton to David Cronenberg, Sam Peckinpah to George A. Romero; and films ranging from The 39 Steps, Double Indemnity, and Heavenly Creatures to Orders to Kill, The Fly, The Wild Bunch, and much, much more.
Understand the shared story in which we all play a part. Connect human creativity with the impulse of our Creator. Explore the relationship between images and imaging God. Do you like movies? Are you a cinephile? Do your friends consult YOU instead of IMDB? Were you raised on television? Spend hours talking cinema? This book is definitely for you. If you're a casual consumer who thinks Hollywood exists simply for diversion, this book may change your life. ""I am a Junior film and Television student... your interpretations of the films have helped formed the kind of filmmaker I am becoming, and also the way I experience films."" Humans crave narrative and usually don't stop to question why. Are we perhaps created to consume story, to create story, because we're image bearers of a Master Storyteller? In this book, movies meet God at the multiplex as the author challenges readers to redefine entertainment, understand the story they're in, and experience a new integrated level of spirituality and entertainment. ""You actually look at the film aspects and see how the artist's worldview really comes through."" What can we learn about God from Doctor Who and Han Solo? What are people like Jon Stewart and even Michael Bay helping us understand about story, good and bad? Peppered with movie quotes and metaphors, journey through the incredible changes film and storytelling have had on 21st century culture. Instead of an overly-academic offering on film and faith, Cinemagogue weaves a narrative from the author's own pop culture saturated life to the Greatest Story Ever Told, from Superman to Citizen Kane, Bertrand Russell to John Frame, Kurt Vonnegut to the apostle Paul, from our favorite narrative to our shared meganarrative. .".".I grew up on television in the 80s and relate to the context you grew up in.... I thank God for you and your ability to glorify him in everything, no matter what."" Classic notions of story structure, "monomyth" and universally shared themes in both popular and classic tales are examined in light of ancient scripture. From there, readers can see the genesis of creativity and worldview distortions from which conversation can bring us back to the future. After a dirty dozen examples of popular film in chapter five (with questions for discussion) the book tackles common objections with genre and content: horror movies, foul language, violence, sexuality, magic and more... and how many traditional objections are overshadowed by incredible opportunities for those brave enough to overcome fear and wade into the culture stream, secure in their faith. ""Your talk was one of the final confirmations of our move to Los Angeles to re-engage the film business by getting upstream in culture and trying to influence from the top down. Worked as an assistant on a TV series for a year, and now I'm working at a digital marketing agency that does a ton of film/TV work, as well as writing/producing my own projects."" The book ends with a call and commission to those who consider themselves spiritual and religious to get their heads out of the sand, to start realizing and utilizing the power of narrative. .".".really convicted me in both the movie and gaming arena to analyze what I am watching/playing and why. I had almost zero discernment before stumbling onto your series..."" A requested resource by movie-goers, movie-makers, pastors and teachers, Cinemagogue is an extension of a website and podcast, providing a "how-to" for those who want to experience the transforming power inherent in all story. ""Listening to your podcasts... opened my eyes to examine what I watch even closer."" Take your entertainment seriously while simultaneously having more fun with it than ever before. Learn how to watch to glorify, to be edified, and possibly to evangelize. Even better, create to
Collecting the epic sci-fi series in one volume for the first time! A celestial race appears out of nowhere, drafting humanity into a galactic war. In an instant, the world is changed forever. Forcibly removed from their old lives and placed into battalions in which ethnicity, status, and gender have no meaning — and facing the common threat of extinction — the human race must unite as never before. Gabriel Contreras, a convenience store clerk, is placed in a unit that includes the former President of the United States. As he and his fellow soldiers struggle with their own emotional demons, they are thrust to the forefront of Earth’s defense against a terrifying enemy: the World-Eaters — a species of colossal, predatory worms who exist only to consume and destroy. After pursuing man’s benefactors across space, they have come to Earth in massive numbers. And they hunger…!
The Kaiju (strange monster or strange beast) film genre has a number of themes that go well beyond the "big monsters stomping on cities" motif. Since the seminal King Kong 1933) and the archetypal Godzilla (1954), kaiju has mined the subject matter of science run amok, militarism, capitalism, colonialism, consumerism and pollution. This critical examination of kaiju considers the entirety of the genre--the major franchises, along with less well known films like Kronos (1957), Monsters (2010) and Pacific Rim (2013). The author examines how kaiju has crossed cultures from its original folkloric inspirations in both the U.S. and Japan and how the genre continues to reflect national values to audiences.
An exhilaratingly subversive inside look at Hollywood from an award-winning playwright and screenwriter. Mamet is unafraid to offend as he provides a hilarious, surprising, and bracingly honest look at every aspect of film making.
This critical study traces the common origins of film noir and science fiction films, identifying the many instances in which the two have merged to form a distinctive subgenre known as Tech-Noir. From the German Expressionist cinema of the late 1920s to the present-day cyberpunk movement, the book examines more than 100 films in which the common noir elements of crime, mystery, surrealism, and human perversity intersect with the high technology of science fiction. The author also details the hybrid subgenre's considerable influences on contemporary music, fashion, and culture.
This book of essays looks at the multitude of texts and influences which converge in Ridley Scott's film Blade Runner, especially the film's relationship to its source novel, Philip K. Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? The film's implications as a thought experiment provide a starting point for important thinking about the moral issues implicit in a hypertechnological society. Yet its importance in the history of science fiction and science fiction film rests equally on it mythically and psychologically resonant creation of compelling characters and an exciting story within a credible science fiction setting. These essays consider political, moral and technological issues raised by the film, as well as literary, filmic, technical and aesthetic questions. Contributors discuss the film's psychological and mythic patterns, important political issues and the roots of the film in Paradise Lost, Frankenstein, detective fiction, and previous science fiction cinema.
What would happen if your girlfriend left you for your best friend and your boss gave your job away, then someone revealed that you were the next in line to join a secret society of super-villians that controlled the entire planet? Here is a look at one man who goes from being the world's biggest loser to the deadliest assassin alive. Ages 17 and up
