With so many possible cataclysms looming — World War III, eco-armageddon, and our personal fave, violent revolution — it's good to remember that whatever happens, you'll need reading material. We feel it's crucial, as the bombs rain down, or Alaska becomes Death Valley North, or you're hauled off at midnight to the reeducation camps, to have something to read. That's where Bright Lights comes in. Our civic duty demands we be there (wherever there is — gulag, garbage scow, dumpster, or dungeon) to keep a smile on your face as you lurch into oblivion.

This time we've carefully selected articles that will make you the most informed person on your block, even if there is no block! In the features foyer, you'll find three delightful diversions: John Minson continuing his porn history saga with a sideways trek to its exploitation sources; Dave Saunders playing warden in a variety of cinematic jails, literal and metaphorical; and BL newbie Kevin Ferguson guiding us through that everpresent yet oddly elusive movie motif: wallpaper!

The nearby articles antechamber highlights a variety of pieces sure to help you lose those end-of-the-world blues. Associate editor Alan Vanneman neatly profiles Mike Hammer and Aldrich's Kiss Me Deadly. Ian Johnston thoughtfully limns Jia Zhang-ke's masterful Still Life. Lesley Chow lays the lorgnette as only she can on the bittersweet Tony Leung vehicle Wait 'Til You're Older. And yours truly left the bomb shelter long enough to exhume his study of The Searchers from an ancient print edition of Bright Lights. This section includes three new writers, too. David Church fetes Guy Maddin's magical Brand Upon the Brain! Nick Goundry looks at some of the more problematic aspects of IMAX. Jason Mark Scott says a heartfelt hello to Welles' goodbye to Hollywood, The Lady from Shanghai.

Of course, Bright Lights is nothing if not modern, and so we make several forays into the now in the recent cinema roundabout. Vanneman leads the pack with a juicy take on Superbad; while recent arrivals Matthew Sorrento and Kristen Elizabeth Thompson check out, respectively, Travolta's Folly in Hairspray and the intoxicating whiff of Tom Twyker's sadly underrated Perfume: The Story of a Murderer.

Fassbinder's massive Berlin Alexanderplatz is finally getting its due in the form of a DVD release loaded with extras, and BL regular C. Jerry Kutner visited the vale of video to 'splain it all to us. Gordon Thomas expands the DVD fun with this issue's "Bright Sights" column, covering six worthy releases showcasing everybody from Rudolph Valentino to H. P. Lovecraft's pet, Cthulhu. Gordon also celebrates, with some reservations, the recent release of Pabst's moody Threepenny Opera.

Meanwhile, in the cellar of silence, Vanneman adds The Gold Rush to his exhaustive exegesis of Chaplin's career, and our Chicago-based buddy Robert Keser, examines a recently unearthed "lost film," the curiously titled Colleen Moore rarity Her Wild Oat. Keser also sat down in the documentary dormer to sling the dish on Man of Cinema: Pierre Rissient.

If silence is golden, what the hell is speech? we often ask ourselves. There's plenty of the latter in the interrogation alcove. The incomparable Bert Cardullo prompted Zhang Yimou to be at his most voluble. The estimable Damon Smith chatted up Jennifer Baichwal and Edward Burtynsky about Manufactured Landscapes. And the charming Damien Love spoke to the creator of Telos, Sinbad, Jason, and tragic Ymir, Ray Harryhausen. Meanwhile, the revival room yields two treasures this time: Dan Callahan's fresh take on Bergman's Autumn Sonata, and BL inductee Henry Midgely's explanation of why Luc Besson's Léon is far from the pedophilic horror some have claimed.

Finally, Lesley Chow and associate editor Megan Ratner attended, respectively, the Melbourne and New York Film Festivals — so you wouldn't have to. And they write them up with their usual panache. Now grab some cocoa, curl up in your favorite chair, cock your gun in case anybody knocks, and enjoy!