''The Motion Picture Guide'' is a film

reference work A reference work is a document, such as a Academic publishing#Scholarly paper, paper, book or periodical literature, periodical (or their electronic publishing, electronic equivalents), to which one can refer for information. The information ...

first published by Cinebooks in 1985. It was written by Jay Robert Nash,

Stanley Ralph Ross Stanley Ralph Ross (July 22, 1935 – March 16, 2000) was an American writer and actor. Born Stanley Ralph Rosenberg, he was raised in Brooklyn, New York, working at Nathan’s Famous and as a barker at the Coney Island freak show. His c ...

, and Robert B. Connelly. It was annually updated through new volumes and had a CD-ROM version, which was eventually incorporated into

Microsoft Cinemania Microsoft Cinemania was an interactive movie guide as part of the Microsoft Home series of reference and educational multimedia application CD-ROM titles produced by Microsoft and published annually beginning in 1992 until 1997. History The ...

Publication history

''The Motion Picture Guide'' was first published in 1985 through Cinebooks. From 1992 through 1997, it was also published in CD-ROM format. This data was later incorporated into

. ''The Motion Picture Guide'' series was discontinued after the 1999 Annual edition.

Reception

The

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cited it as an Outstanding Reference Source for 1985. Writing in the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'',

Charles Champlin Charles Davenport Champlin (March 23, 1926 – November 16, 2014) was an American film critic and writer. Life and career Champlin was born in Hammondsport, New York. He attended high school in Camden, New York, working as a columnist for the ...

called the 1986 edition "the film fan reference book to end all reference books". Dan Greenberg, in ''

Film Quarterly ''Film Quarterly'' (FQ), published by University of California Press, is a journal devoted to the study of film, television, and visual media. When FQ was launched in 1945 (then called ''Hollywood Quarterly''), it was considered "the first serious ...

'', criticized the 1987 volume's positive reviews, saying that reviewers had overlooked poor research and errors in favor of its marketing, which highlighted its scope. Howard H. Prouty, in the ''

Journal of Film and Video The ''Journal of Film and Video'' is the official academic journal of the University Film and Video Association. It features articles on film and video production, history, theory, criticism, and aesthetics. The journal is published by the Univers ...

'', wrote that the 1987 edition fails to live up to its hype as an authoritative source, instead synthesizing data from common

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. ...

and ending up with contradictory information. Emma Webster of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' called the 1995 CD-ROM version "a valuable tool for film buffs, students and industry people", criticizing its lack of comprehensiveness but praising its depth. Also reviewing the 1995 CD-ROM, Peter M. Nichols of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' highlighted its depth compared to competing discs from Blockbuster and Video Hound, though he said it lacks their features.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Motion Picture Guide, The Books about film Film guides 1980s books