Profoundly Erotic: Sexy Movies that Changed History [Paperback]

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It’s the last book from Joe Bob Briggs, and for his final outing in the publishing world, he follows up “Profoundly Disturbing” with the equally excellent “Profoundly Erotic.” The final book reviews a series of erotic movies, all of which aren’t exactly pornographic or erotica per se. They’re instead very adult films that deal with sexual politics and the undertones of sexual repression. As usual Joe Bob Briggs is as insightful and informative as ever, and it was ultimately a breezy read to finish.

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Everything I Know about Filmmaking I Learned Watching Seven Samurai [Paperback]

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Akira Kurosawa’s “Seven Samurai” is one of the most influential, if not the most influential movies ever made. It’s a masterpiece of epic cinema that not only helped usher in foreign cinema, but also displayed a talent for storytelling that went beyond the reaches of ninety minutes. Kurosawa inspired many American directors, as well as his own contemporaries to try for their own cinematic epics, and to this day, the template for “Seven Samurai” has given influence to the creation of many great films like “Galaxy Quest,” and “The Magnificent Seven.” You can feel author Richard D. Pepperman’s love for Kurosawa’s film pulsating in every page of his book.

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Mail-Order Mysteries: Delightful Treasures from Vintage Comic Book Ads [Hardcover]

Kirk Demarais takes a novel idea and turns it in to an original book about—well—novelties! I grew up an avid comic book reader, and in almost every comic book from the eighties I read, there was a humongous page of novelties, gadgets, and tricks that the company in the ads offered to buyers. These seemingly magical prizes ranged in prices of anywhere between five cents, to five dollars, tops. Often times, these massive ads could also be found in hobby magazines, youth oriented magazines, and their promises were huge.

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DK Level 2 Reader: WWE John Cena Second Edition [Hard Cover]

At thirty two pages in length, early readers looking to educate themselves in pro wrestling, or have a school assignment, will find this second edition of the John Cena biography entertaining. Aside from the easy to read pages, and large colorful illustrations, the Second Edition covers most of the Cena’s life and career, from his beginnings with performance, his work in football, and his eventual transformation in to a wrestler.

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Hidden Horror: A Celebration of 101 Underrated and Overlooked Fright Flicks [Paperback]

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There’s nothing more annoying than books and lists that promise movie fans movies they’ve never seen or should see, only for you to find a list of the same old titles. The good thing about “Hidden Horror” is that it promises 101 movies you likely never saw, and surely enough as someone whose seen it all, I found some interesting gems in this book. To make things better, the underrated films really are some of the most under appreciated films I’ve seen in a long time.

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Diabolique Magazine No. 19 (Jan/Feb 2014) [Magazine]

Diabolique is back with issue 19 of their truly entertaining horror magazine that makes great strides in breaking out of the doldrums of mainstream horror in favor of indie and underground. Max Weinstein ushers in the issue with another really insightful editorial and profiles many modern and contemporary masters of horror cinema. “The Old, The New, and the In Between” is a great look at the modern works of Dario Argento and Vincenzo Natali, two cinematic juggernauts that offered fans their own unique genre entries in 2013. Argento, of course gave us “Dracula,” while Natali released the very good “Haunter.” I don’t know if I’m a fan of the directors bemoaning the new generation of horror, but I do enjoy the consideration that there are some great auteurs out there, working to deliver some great genre titles, like Jason Eisener, or Ti West.

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Spineless Classics: Robert Bloch’s “Psycho”

PsychoIf you ever wanted to own your favorite books, or perhaps classic books but didn’t have the shelf space, Spineless Classics has you covered. They’ve managed to compile entire books on to one giant poster with the text from said book transformed in to a piece of art. Though the concept sounds unusual, it’s actually a very genius and entertaining idea that will surely bring in literary buffs that want some wall decoration, but lack the space for novels.

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