Violent Screen

November 15, 1995
Since long before Robert Dole's condemnation of Hollywood, on-screen sex and violence as well as their companion issue, censorship, have been the focus of hot debate. Critics' views on these issues are often enlightening, and these two books present many thought-provoking perspectives on the artistic, historic, social, and cultural aspects of the subject-ultimately proving that there are no simple criteria on the cinematic front. Reviews and essays on individual films from such top-notch critics as Andrew Sarris and Judith Crist appear in Flesh and Blood. Representative of 25-plus years of film, scores of articles are grouped into various subtopics under the headings of "Flesh," "Blood," and "Censorship." A broad spectrum of opinions, linked by editor Keough's articles, examine some tough issues (AIDS, senseless brutality, exploitation of women, blasphemy, graphic sex, etc.) with approaches that range from scholarly to humanistic to satiric. Violent Screen, on the other hand, offers pithy reviews and articles solely from the engaging pen of Hunter (Dirty White Boys, LJ 10/15/94). He categorizes by genre, thus creatively organizing a virtual laundry list of sex and violence: film noir, outlaws, sexual obsession, horror, westerns, war, action-adventure, race, and domestic violence, to name a few. And many of the summary articles have provocative social/historical angles (e.g., "Changing Film Images of Vietnam"). Covering the gamut from Philadelphia to Rambo to Blue Velvet, both these works will delight cineaste and casual browser alike and either contains enough grist for several years of debate on the subject. Both are well recommended for circulating libraries with cinema collections.-Carol J. Binkowski, Bloomfield, N.J.