Video & DVD Guide 2003

by Mick Martin, Marsha Porter

Wondering what video to rent tonight? This bestselling, fact-packed guide is the only sourcebook you and your family will ever need. Mick Martin and Marsha Porter steer you toward the winners and warn you about the losers. Video & DVD Guide 2003 covers it all—more films than any other guide, plus your favorite serials, B-Westerns, made-for-TV movies, and old television programs! Each entry, conveniently alphabetized for easy access, includes a summary, fresh commentary, the director, major cast members, the year of release, and the MPAA rating, plus a reliable Martin and Porter rating—from Five Stars to Turkey—so you'll never get caught with a clunker again!
THE BEST IN THE FIELD FOR 18 YEARS!
Including
• BRAND-NEW DVD LISTINGS
• DIRECTOR AND STAR INDEXES
• COMPLETE ACADEMY AWARD LISTINGS
• WHERE TO BUY THOSE HARD-TO-FIND VIDEOS

About the Author: Mick Martin, a lifelong film fan, has been reviewing movies professionally for thirty-one years in all forms of media. He worked for The Sacramento Union from 1976 until its demise in 1993. His other passion is blues music, which has resulted in ongoing tours of Europe and twelve CDs with his band, Mick Martin and the Blues Rockers. Their latest releases are In One Ear and Blues Rock, USA.
Marsha Porter, author of numerous short stories, articles, and a teacher's handbook, holds a master's degree in educational administration. She's taught a foreign-films class and written a monthly column. Currently, she does freelance writing and editing and teaches English.

Genres: Reference, Film

1632 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

At one time, guides of this nature were all-but-essential to serious film buffs. Before the imdb, one needed a reference work that would give you access to as much of the scope of existing rental materials as possible. Even as late as the mid-2000's, it was still more convenient to carry a paperback book than a computer, as you walked around the store and checked out the wares. Today, mobile devices have made that unnecessary for most people, and of course, the imdb can give you far more information in less physical space than any book.
This edition of the book reflects that coming shift, the print is tiny, smaller than any previous edition, because they were trying to cram in too much in order to stay competitive. It has handy indexes at the back for actors and directors (listing the movie entry, not the page, so they are very useful), and also brief lists of major academy-award-winners, and alternate titles (the latter far from complete). Earlier editions had broken the movies into genres, which was actually a pretty bad idea for accessibility and required them to include a third index of all movie titles (wasting space), but sometime around 1997 they corrected that and simply made an encyclopedic listing of the movies in alphabetical order.
The reviews are targeted to a lowest-common-denominator mainstream audience, but the reviewers are for the most part pretty respectable critics. It is done by committee, with different reviewers reviewing films from genres that they watch a lot, and each review is checked over by others on the committee who have seen the movie. I think this sort of film guide works better, actually, than the one-man guides produced by Leonard Maltin and Roger Ebert, because the autocratic approach invariably leads to idiosyncratic reviews. These reviews are not the insightful you might find, but they tend to be functional and fair.
I don't even know if there are newer editions of this book - I stopped buying new updates with the 2005 edition. However, if for some reason a print review guide appeals to you, and you need a general guide rather than something that targets your favorite materials, this one is pretty reliable.

[Takipsilim · Rating 5 out of 5]

A personal favorite from way back. Long after Mr. Martin and Ms. Porter have passed on, the series which they authored should be continued for as long as possible, maintaining an institution in it's field. Still the best.

[Asghar Abbas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most Exalted
Most Excellent
Most Entertaining
Truly electrifying
complying
comprehensive
edible

Hidden or not, half-eaten half-forgotten doesn't matter. But before all those swirling galaxies, colder spaces, chilled black holes, glimmering constellations, rogue planets, all the dying stars were collapsing in the palms of your hands, everything almost within grasp. This was the ultimate go-to for anything movie-related, all that knowledge that you could hold in your hand.

Before you could look up your own reflection online, this guide was the perennial tool, just wonder. Best thing ever.

This tome or tomes are nothing but pure childhood nostalgia, no regrets, just simple respect.

[KK Celine · Rating 4 out of 5]

With the advent of the internet making the point of a film guide moot, going back and re-reading Mick Martin's yearly guide is more of a nostalgia trip than anything else. That said, not even Maltins guide was as thorough, as egalitarian, or as much fun to read. Algorithms and embedded advertising are the wave of the future, which makes me miss these guides even more.

[John Orman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Has more than 19,000 movies, with 400 of them new since 2005 edition.
Also has indices of cast and director.