Entertainment > Film, television, theatre

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There are distinct qualities that make a movie a cult: a devoted and niche following, popularity based on word-of-mouth enthusiasm, and a tendency to remain in fans memories years after release, as well as many other intricacies, often hotly debated by film buffs. "500 Essential Cult Movies" sifts through the greatest movies ever made, to bring together a list of the best cult classics that ever graced the cinema screens or didn't, in some cases! From Carpenter to Lucas, Cronenberg to Lynch, Scorsese to Spielberg the big names in c... read more

Alfred Hitchcock (UK, 1899-1980) is undeniably the world's most famous film director. His name has become synonymous with the cinema, and each new generation takes the same pleasure in rediscovering his films, which are now treasures of our artistic heritage. Hitchcock started out in the British silent cinema of the 1920s, which reached its peak with successful thrillers such as "The Man Who Knew Too Much" (1934), "Sabotage" (1936) and "The Lady Vanishes" (1938). Recognized as a 'young genius', Hitchcock moved to Hollywood and set ... read more

Celluloid canvas: film as artistic medium. Debate over film's credibility as an art form is as old as the medium itself, and largely defined in terms of formalist and realist approaches. This book explores how artists have used the medium to explode cinematic conventions and convey a truly expressive cinema - one that uses rhythm, color, structure, and content to express a staggering array of ideas and feelings. Broken down into ten subgenres, including collage, appropriation, lyricism, structuralism, parody, and installation, "Art... read more

Clint Eastwood (USA, b. 1930) is a veteran among the grand masters of contemporary American cinema, whose rise through the system took a highly unusual form. After playing iconic roles in Sergio Leone's spaghetti westerns of the 1960s, he returned to Hollywood and underwent a controversial reincarnation as the ultraviolent cop Harry. In the 1970s Eastwood began to direct and,in the style of the great directors of the past, made masterpieces in genres ranging from the western ("Unforgiven", 1992) to film noir ("Mystic River", 2003),... read more

River Song still a riddle? Stumped by the stolen planets in the Medusa Cascade? Forgotten what happened in the Timelines That Never Happened? Look no further...Completely revised and updated, this is the ultimate guide to everything and everyone that's ever happened, un-happened and happened again in the worlds and times of the Doctor. The "Doctor Who Encyclopedia" now covers the Eleventh Doctor's first two seasons, plus every Ninth and Tenth Doctor story, and is packed with photographs and artwork from seven stunning years of adve... read more

Packed with unseen photographs and original artwork and illustrations, "The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2012" is your indispensable guide to Series 6 of "Doctor Who". Weaving fact and fiction, interviews and information, the "Brilliant Book" boasts brand new material from the writers of the TV show, including Mark Gatiss, Gareth Roberts, Matthew Graham, Tom Macrae and Steve Thompson, plus exclusive extras from Neil Gaiman. Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill and Alex Kingston take us behind the scenes in revealing new intervi... read more

Who is the Eleventh Doctor? How did he get the part? And what's it like stepping into some of the biggest shoes on television? Find out all about Matt Smith's first year as the Doctor, with exclusive interviews about life in the TARDIS, his adventures, co-stars and behind the scenes, as well as all the essential facts about Matt himself! It is packed with gorgeous pictures and fascinating facts, as well as a pull-out poster of Matt for your bedroom wall!

"Harry Potter: Page to Screen" opens the doors to Hogwarts castle and the wizarding world of Harry Potter to reveal the complete behind-the-scenes secrets, techniques, and over-the-top artistry that brought J.K. Rowling's acclaimed novels to cinematic life. Developed in collaboration with the creative team behind the celebrated movie series, this deluxe, 500-plus page compendium features exclusive stories from the cast and crew, hundreds of never-before-seen photographs and concept illustrations sourced from the closed film sets, a... read more

Ingmar Bergman (Sweden, 1918-2007) is, in the world of cinema, a giant whose stature is comparable to that of Beethoven or Dostoyevsky. He made around fifty feature films that caught the spirit of his times, while endlessly reworking his private obsessions and anguish in the face of a silent God. In Summer with Monika (1953), Harriet Andersson plays a scandalously unconventional and sensual young woman, a breath of freedom epitomizing a new modernity in film. The 1960s saw Bergman in experimental mode with Persona (1966), one of th... read more

The prospect of dinner and a movie is always an enticing one. Whether it is a date early on in a relationship with all the apprehension and barely contained frisson that that entails or an opportunity for a child free evening and the chance to watch a full length film of your choice without having to keep your finger on the remote to pause for toilet breaks, the combination of food and cinema is a winning one. Food is inextricably linked to all aspects of our lives, food for feasts, food to comfort, food to harm and always food to ... read more

Our groundbreaking movies by decade series continues with this new volume dedicated to the most interesting and important films made in the decade since the turn of the millennium. A decade characterized the rise of a new era in global politics and technology, the 2000s were most notably marked by September 11, 2001 and the ensuing wars in the Middle East, as well as the explosion of social networking and mobile computing. This comprehensive volume covers an inspiringly broad range of titles made during a unique period in history, ... read more

The age of cinema began in Paris in 1895. Within a year New Zealanders saw their first films and in fewer than five they were making their own. In the years since, New Zealand has produced almost every conceivable type of film, from home movies to arthouse flicks to Oscar-winning wide-screen epics, building a rich and varied screen culture and launching the careers of hundreds of directors, actors and behind-the-scenes professionals. New Zealand Film: An Illustrated History is the first book to provide a comprehensive overview o... read more

"The next best thing to working with Frank Hauser is to read his book" Sir Ian McKellen "Compulsory reading for every aspiring director" Dame Judi Dench "A straight forward glimpse into the art of play making" Backstage "Likely to find itself in many directors' essential reading lists" UK Theatre Web The book is based on the notes of director Frank Hauser who had a distinguished career working alongside a host of theatrical and cinematic figures, including Sir Alec Guiness, Richard Burton, Sir Ian McKellen etc and many others who ... read more

Welles began his direting career in 1940, at the age of twenty-five, with Citizen Kane, an undisputed, ground-breaking masterpiece of cinema history. Welles' satture as a baroque, impetuous and profoundly free artist made the sudios uncomfortable. He had control of every detail on the twelve feature films he was able to make, including Lady from Shanghai with Rita Hayworth (1947), Touch of Evil with Charlton Heston (1958), adaptations of Shakespeare's plays including Macbeth (1948), Othello (1952) and Kafka's The Trial (1962). Orso... read more

Pedro Almodovar (Spain, b. 1951) single-handedly represents the revival of Spanish cinema as part of the cultural flowering of the Movida Madrilena in the 1980s. New York was first to hail the unbridled imagination of this provocative director, whose films are filled with transsexuals, neurotics ("Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown", 1988) and even drug-addicted nuns ("The Law of Desire", 1987). In his maturity, Almodovar has continued to draw inspiration from his underprivileged childhood in a remote corner of La Mancha, ma... read more

Queen: On Camera, Off Guard includes a fantastic selection of rare images from one of the world's best-loved supergroups. Featuring pictures from 1969 to 1991, the images include the first ever photographs of Freddie Mercury as a performer with Ibex in Bolton in June 1969 taken by songwriter Chris Smith who recounts his experiences of the night. Further early images of Mercury include pictures taken at Ealing Art College and outside his flat in Shepherd's Bush where Queen's first official photo session took place in 1973. Images fr... read more

The first of its kind, this comprehensive look at the art of 'Animation Layout' takes readers on a tour through this essential and beautiful, but often forgotten, art form, from animation's earliest pioneers through to the digital world of video games and contemporary cinema. It features never-before-seen art from major studios' archives and interviews with the biggest names in animation.

Look what you get in this cromulent compendium! Comprehensive episode synopses for 20 seasons of Simpsons, including 128 new gut-busting episodes never before covered! Stuff you may have missed! More screen shots than ever before! Over four hundred character profiles! Every chalkboard phrase Bart has ever written! Nifty new art throughout! Quotes and quips from all your favorite characters! Two or more jam-packed pages devoted to every episode! As well as: Every couch gag, A complete filmography of "Itchy & Scratchy" Every "D'o... read more

Stanley Kubrick (USA, 1928-99) was a master who took the art of filmmaking further than any other contemporary director, a creative perfectionist whose work now fascinates new generations. He started out as a photographer before moving into film noir aged barely 25, after which the power and originality of his work soon brought him box-office success. In the 1960s, he lived and worked in London, away from the scandal caused by his adaptation of Lolita (1962) and from the major studios, from which, uniquely, he was able to wrest tot... read more