From Library Journal
British-American film director Cox is best known for two 1980s cult films: Repo Man (1984) and Sid and Nancy (1986). He fell from Hollywood favor after directing the spaghetti Western spoof Straight to Hell (1987) and the political satire Walker (1988). Since then, Cox has worked outside the studio system. This is the first authorized study of Cox, who, according to London writer Davies, was one of the first artists to inject a new punk sensibility into films. Some actors have labeled him a Fascist, a "master of deflection," a director who will keep actors "starved and naked in a cage all day, let them out once to be kicked, humiliated and abused in front of a camera and then throw them back in the cage again." Cox discusses his controversial films, his hatred of Hollywood culture, his fondness for Mexican films, and his frustration in trying to mount the film version of Hunter Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Though it could use more biographical information and critical distance from the subject, this study is recommended for large collections on the independent film movement.-Stephen Rees, Levittown Regional Lib., PA Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Book Description
Few current British filmmakers have made their mark stateside as significantly as Alex Cox. Charting his development in cult favorites from Repo Man to Sid and Nancy, this exhaustive study reveals Cox's punk energy and the obsessions that haunt his work.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Alex Cox lives life on the edge. He is not totally anti-Hollywood but believes there is something fundamentally wrong with much of commercial film-making. A true maverick director, Cox is one of the few British film-makers of his generation to have made his reputation in the US. Injecting a punk sensibility into film-making, he has experienced both mainstream success and cult adulation, not to mention critical acclaim with films such as Repo Man and Sid & Nancy.

He is perhaps more famous in the UK for his presentation of the BBC2 series Moviedrome for seven years. His original and compelling Sunday night introductions to a variety of classic films were watched by millions and inspired a generation of cult film fans.

Alex Cox: Film Anarchist charts his development as a film-maker and reveals the obsessions that continue to dominate his increasingly rich and complex body of work. This fully authorised biography is the result of Cox's willingness to talk for the first time at length about his life and work and about his major influences. The book also unveils Cox's opinions on the punk scene and subsequent war of words with Johnny Rotten, as well as his troubled tenure as the original director of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and a crazed encounter with Hunter S Thompson.

SYNOPSIS

Director of , , and , Alex Cox has earned both cult and mainstream followings. Davies charts the director's development revealing the obsessions dominating Cox's oeuvre in this authorized biography. Offered are Cox's opinions on punkespecially his arguments with Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistolsand his problems as original director of including an encounter with Hunter S. Thompson. Includes numerous high-quality b&w photos and a filmography. No index. Distributed by Brassey's, Inc. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal