I was given this book for Christmas, and it's already getting dog-eared. Unlike most movie guides, it's not just about reviews. It's great fun. Tucked in among the reviews are wonderful little side-bars , such as "15 Great Titles, Shame About the Show" ("Bella Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla" and "A Nymphoid Barbarian from Dinosaur Hell" are two of my favourites), or "13 Truly Terrible Films or Camp Classics" ("The Astro-Zombies", "The Attack of the Killer Tomatoes and "Cat-Women of the Moon" are one, two and three). There's also a running scifi trivia quiz (I didn't do badly. Shows how I spend my days!) and really good photos. I loved the photo-captions, too - witty, slick and informative.
The reviews were just what I needed, with useful ratings and informative summaries. Of course, these aren't in-depth critiques. In a guide of this kind, there's only so much space for any one review, but it's amazing how much information they pack in.
I've been a science fiction fan most of my life, and I've never come across a guide half as good as this. But I can see it's not for everyone. There's a mischievous sense of humour running through it, which I loved, but if you're a very serious sci-fi nerd, you might find it a bit flippant. It's also not a detailed study of every science fiction film and video ever made, but hey, how much space do you have on your bookshelf? And how many years in your life?
In short, I thought it was great. I'm just sorry that it stopped short at science fiction. I would have loved to see fantasy and horror included, though that would have to be a pretty heavy book.As it is, it's 500 pages of really useful information, plus stacks of entertainment.
