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Title: Worthless
Review: I don't know why film critics think they can get away with this kind of thing. Imagine if somebody tried to "critique" a novel, a CD, or any other type of work by retelling the narrative (or lyrics, or whatever) in his own words. Dismissed without a second thought, needless to say. But film critics write 'em and get 'em published. To what end, I don't know.That said, this book plumbs new depths in that it's ALL the author does. There's no technical background or critical apparatus at all, merely scene by scene retellings of the films along with a bit of blather about "themes". The book's errors have been mentioned, but it should be reiterated that these are of a number and level of ignorance that's truly jaw-dropping. (My favorite is Kagan's identification of the drunken Shriners of "Killer's Kiss" as "some kind of street entertainers".)One of these days, Kubrick will get the film-by-film analysis he deserves. This one ain't even a beginning.
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