Russ Meyer--the life and films Book

This book is not about the X-Rated films familiar since the 70s, but the tame precursors that promised a bit of skin, told stories about naughty girls, and sent the Legion of Decency into conniptions long before they had a reason to connip. Anyone who studies cinema becomes aware of these back-room romps, flirty stories, burlesque showcases, and fake documentaries, but real information is hard to come by. The authors did me a service by surveying this dreary field, writing about the better-known titles, discussing the distribution system, interviewing the people who made and showed the films to a mostly-male public. I now know more about these films that I really want to, but that is a kind of praise.

In truth, the subject is not very important so the authors put a lot of energy into something that does not matter (which explains the number of stars given in this review), but I am glad to be informed about this usually hidden corner of cinema history.