Profoundly Disturbing: The Shocking Movies That Changed History

Joe Bob Briggs, the erstwhile host of such gone-but-not-forgotten programs as Joe Bob’s Drive-In Theater and Monstervision hasn’t released a book in nearly ten years. Readers hoping that his new book will be a throwback to his usual Joe Bob Goes to the Drive-In style may be disappointed. Profoundly Disturbing: The Shocking Movies That Changed History proves a slight adjustment of expectations is in order. There are no "breast counts" or descriptions of various "fus"("fu" was Briggs’s shorthand for use of objects as weapons, hence you would have "machete fu," "spatula fu," "toenail clipper fu," etc.) Instead, what Briggs has done is finely straddled that line between being informative and being entertaining.

Joe Bob is as irreverent as ever as he explores the films that, as the title implies, were received by critics and public alike as "profoundly disturbing." When movies depicting teens getting slaughtered or consenting adults in overly carnal situations were limited to Times Square grindhouses or drive-in theaters, most folks didn’t notice them. But, when these movies broke out of the commercial ghetto, and made their way into the public consciousness questions got asked and beliefs were challenged. Critics were polarized into either defending or defaming movies that, for the average viewer, represented some difficult viewing. In the end, these films created ripples that are felt in many of the mainstream movies of today.

Profoundly Disturbing represents a wonderful balance -- it’s scholarly without being dry, casual without being juvenile, informative without being preachy. The movies he chooses to examine span the history of the medium and range from cheap movies made to sell tickets in seedy theaters (Ilsa She-Wolf of the S.S.) to big studio prestige projects (The Exorcist). No matter which film he’s writing about, Briggs successfully conveys to the reader the cultural zeitgeist surrounding its release and the continuing influence it has on contemporary filmmakers.

Too often, film scholarship has a set mission to either convince you that "you need to like this picture and here’s why" or "that movie you enjoy is pure drivel and here’s why." Briggs's best quality is that while he is opinionated, he comes across as an everyman. There is no assumption that the reader lacks the critical apparatus needed to appreciate the movies he is discussing. And, as all good books about film do, Briggs makes you want to see some of the movies he’s profiling, while also freeing you of an unspoken obligation to see others. Personally, his essay on The Creature from the Black Lagoon compelled me to watch this movie that I hadn't seen in twenty years; alternately his essay on Deep Throat reassured me that while it may be influential, I’m really not missing much if I don’t ever get around to watching it.

If I had to lodge one complaint about the book, it would be that I would have appreciated a final, unifying essay to serve as a sort of "what have we learned today?" function. But, perhaps Briggs isn’t interested in being didactic. Perhaps he just wants to tell a few stories about a few movies and maybe, if he can’t make you like them, at least he can make you reevaluate your opinion. Regardless of this minor quibble, Profoundly Disturbing is the perfect read for film buffs who tire of the academic, but still appreciate engaging discussions about movies.

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