Filmish #1 by Edward Ross

This nifty little comic is something of a labour of love by writer/artist Edward Ross. It presents 3 lectures by him on film theory in graphic form, and in this it resembles Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics. Ross’s essays are on the cultural meaning of monsters, the significance of point of view, and a small essay about food on film. Ross depicts himself as unshaven and with large clunky spectacles, which immediately makes him seem engaging, in a quirky sort of way. This is a fair description of the essays themselves, which benefit greatly from being illustrated, since Ross can show exactly what it is he’s talking about (his panels depicting The Conversation are a favourite).

It’s a small book, which means drawings and text are constantly vying for space – Ross’s arguments are quite wordy. They’re informative though – hands up who knew that Charlie Chaplin used to have recipes published – and quite complex in places. It’s also a nice touch that he follows each one with little bibliographies, of books to read and films to watch. If you can get your hands on it, this little volume is a very entertaining way to educate yourself in a bit of film theory. [Johnny Tyronne]