PROFONDO ARGENTO The Man, the Myths and the Magic Alan Jones FAB PRESS; UK ISBN 190325423X

This book has been a long time coming ... it was planned a long time ago as a follow up to MONDO ARGENTO, published in 1996 to tie in with the Argento retrospective at the National Film Theatre. However, various events transpired to delay it and now, after it's release I can only say that the result is the most comprehensive and upto date book on Argento ever produced.... truly FABulous! Not everyone agrees with Alan's opinions - there are just as many who disagree with his reviews - but they are the only place here where he offers his thoughts. The rest is just fact ... no analysis, you will read things here that you never knew before, not only about Argento but the Italian film industry as a whole. That is what makes this book essential, the gathering together of many years material, many peoples thoughts into one place to gives a unique insight into the Argento universe. As we have come to expect from FAB Press, it is beautiful to look at. A well bound hardback of 330 pages, very stylish, packed full of rarely or never before seen photographs and artwork. It is the most lavish book they have produced to date. There are more colour pages within than in any other FAB publication. It contains everything Alan has published about Argento over the years from the start of Dario's career to the THIRD MOTHER. This of course includes his produced films (DEMONS, LA CHIESA etc...) and a section on Asia. Don't think that this is just a rehash of old material though because it is much more than that. For a start it is augmented throughout with the interviews that Alan carried out for the EYE FOR HORROR documentary that were never included in the finished product - no-one has read those before. There are interviews with Dario, Asia, Claudio Argento, Michael Brandon, Dardano Sacchetti, Luigi Cozzi, Daria Nicolodi, Claudio Simonetti, Jessica Harper, Luciano Tovoli, George Romero, Keith Emerson, Franco Ferrini and many more. The layout works well - we read about Argento's early years and then straight into the films. Alan has inserted articles, reviews and interviews all relevant to that particular film. Each chapter ends with a panel detailing the films cast and crew, technical details etc... and is festooned with rare photos and artwork. Because of the large time span between when some of these interviews were originally written and now, he has kept everything in the present tense so as to not risk things being thought of differently. This means that there are some contradictions, however, this just goes to show how things are remembered differently depending on your perspective. All this and Alan's easy on the brain writing style makes for a great read. Overall then, this book is the finest FAB Press have released so far and an absolute must buy for any Argento fan who wants to know about the man and his career from those who are closest to him. Even if you think you know everything about Dario, you don't.

front cover artwork

buy the profondo argento book from www.fabpress.com

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