For this edition of her classic study of the feminine role in film Molly Haskell has written a new chapter addressing recent developments in the appearance & perception of women in the movies. An incisive exceedingly thoughtful look at the distorted lens through which Hollywood has historically viewed women. It is a valuable contribution not just of film criticism but to a society in which the vital role of women is just beginning to emerge."--" Christian Science Monitor" " Haskell is interested in women--how they are used in movies how they use movies & how the parts they play function as projections & verifications of our myths about women's lot & woman's psyche & even lately women's lib."--Jane Kramer " Village Voice" " In examining the goddesses worshipped by an entire nation Molly Haskell reveals a good deal about our national character & our most cherished sexual myths.... Concerned with the deeply ingrained belief of women's inferiority she analyzes movies as a social product as well as a social arbiter & she effectively demonstrates how women are encouraged to impose limitations on themselves by fashioning those selves after flickering shadows in a darkened auditorium--sexual creatures who possess neither ability nor ambition beyond their bodies.... Both as an examination of film & as sociology " From Reverence to Rape" is excellent."--Harriet Kriegel " The Nation""