150 Movies You Should (Die Before You) See Release Date: November 18, 2010 / Suggested Retail Price: $14.95 Publisher: Adams Media 290 Pages, Paperback Also available in Kindle Edition ($14.95 List Price)

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I've got to admit that I had this book in my possession for nearly a week before I realized its title was 150 Movies You Should Die Before You See and not the more expected 150 Movies You Should See Before You Die. The title, of course, is ironic. This new book by Steve Miller (not the singer-songwriter but a freelance film reviewer and creator of role-playing games) celebrates bad movies and is intended for those who derive pleasure from them. And really who cannot derive pleasure and amusement from bad movies, especially the campy old horror and sci-fi ones that prominently feature here? Though they occupy the entire cover, yesteryear B-movies are not the only ones addressed here. We also get modern day misfires and some fairly high-profile duds from the 1970s, '80s and '90s. Chances are you won't have seen many of the movies discussed here. It's been years since I've gone more than a few days without watching a movie and still, I can only claim to have fully seen twelve of the 150 that made the cut. I'm impressed that four of them have actually been reviewed on this site (see which ones at the bottom of this article). The canon is broken down into fifteen groups. For every qualifying movie, there are leading credits, a synopsis, an assessment, a thumbs down rating (from one to five), some facts, a telling quote, a trivia question, and some specific observations that only a viewer could make (presented as "The Crappies" awards). There are the usual targets (Santa Claus Conquers the Martians, Battlefield Earth, Troll 2, Ishtar, Howard the Duck, Freddy Got Fingered, and Ed Wood's Plan 9 from Outer Space). There are recent movies whose admission here cements their wide critical derision (The Love Guru, The Spirit). And there are plenty of obscure selections whose ridiculous titles alone suggest they're fitting picks (Monsturd, Evil Bong, Buttcrack). Though there aren't likely to be many egos crushed or filmmakers blindsided by inclusions (fans of Kung Fu Hustle and Suspiria might be offended), even directors as celebrated as Francis Ford Coppola (Dementia 13) and Steven Spielberg (1941) make the cut. Besides a nice, easy-to-read layout, the text is joined by the occasional black & white poster image and rare film still. A book beating up on bad movies could easily come across as mean-spirited or pretentious. Miller's is neither of these things, as he displays a clear taste for trash and says as much in his introduction. I enjoyed this and if you've gotten kicks out of bad movies on more than one occasion, you probably will too. It's a quick read and also fun to just page through. More on the Book / Buy from Amazon.com / Download e-book for Amazon Kindle