IT JUST STINKS TO HIGH HEAVEN! No not this book, but the Zapruder film. As for the book, it seems that Jim Fetzer is the 'Marmite' of JFK assassination research. People either go with him or reject his views outright, although in his publications he is merely the editor. 'Goodreads' reviews appear to confirm that view, either one star or five. I have now completed the Fetzer trilogy, 'Assassination Science' (1998), 'Murder in Dealey Plaza'(2000) and now 'The Great Zapruder Film Hoax'(2003).
The Zapruder film itself is also a nasty dark sticky jar of yuk...yet, what if old Abe wasn't in the Plaza that day? What if all we had were the dark and jerky Muchmore, Nix, Weigman, Bell, Hughes, Dorman and Bronson efforts? According to 'Life' magazine, "Of all the witnesses to the tragedy, the only unimpeachable one is the 8mm movie camera of Abraham Zapruder." Yes, that's what Napoleon wants you to believe down on Animal Farm.
On this subject I have read pro's and cons. Researchers whose books I have read like Walt Brown do not go with film alteration. Neither does Dr. David Wrone and certainly not Richard Trask. However, volume four of Doug Horne's excellent 'Inside the A.R.R.B.' picks some interesting bones out of the Zapruder films travels in November of 1963!
I have long had the MPI DVD 'Image of an Assassination' which I recommend to study along with this book. As most readers are not film technicians, the complexities of film jiggery pokery, such as traveling mattes, full flush left and Oxberry film printers cannot be described as delightful reading matter, and let us not forget that Napoleon does not want you to study such subjects.
However, it is the farmyard smell that indicates things unpleasant. Compare the Z film with still photographs taken just seconds apart, such as by press photographer Frank Cancellare to see that all is not right in the state of Texas. Jack White provides a whole host of anomalies. John Costella declares the film is a fabrication. It is some time since I have read David Lifton's 'Best Evidence' and remain on the fence with regard to his body theft and alteration scenario. Yet his contribution to TGZFH reminds me what a good writer he is and his 'Pig on a leash' chapter, which could be almost a separate publication in itself, provides a superb chronology of all things Zapruder that covers four decades and holds more startling and provocative suspicions of government malfeasance with the 'Life' unimpeachable witness.