Horror Film Reader

Rating:
Summary: An excellent collection
Review: HORROR FILM READER is an extensive collection of articles and essays combined to further our understanding of horror film's allure and impact upon the viewer. Divided into two sections, the first contains early works dating from 1952 up through 1975 while the second half delves into the more current arguments to date.

Part One: Seminal Essays contains:

"Ghoulies and Ghosties" by Curtis Harrington (1952)

"Horror Films" by William K. Everson (1954)

"The Subconscious: From Pleasure Castle to Libido Hotel" by Raymond Durgnat (1958)

"The Face of Horror" by Derek Hill (1958)

"A Bloody New Wave in the United States" by Jean-Claude Romer (1964)

"Horror Is My Business" by Terence Fisher (1964)

"The Horror Film: Polanski and REPULSION" by Ivan Butler (1967)

"From Voyeurism to Infinity" by Raymond Lefevre (1968)

"Mario Bava: the Illusion of Reality" by Alain Silver and James Ursini (1975)

Part Two: New Perspectives contains:

"Neglected Nightmares" by Robin Wood (1980)

"Is the Devil American? William Dieterle's THE DEVIL AND DANIEL WEBSTER" by Tony Williams (1999)

"Violence, Women, and Disability in Tod Brownings's FREAKS and THE DEVIL DOLL" by Martin F. Norden and Madeleine Cahill (1998)

"Monsters as (Uncanny) Metaphors: Freud, Lakoff, and the Representation of Monstrosity in Cinematic Horror" by Steven Schneider (1997)

"The Anxiety of Influence: George Franju and the Medical Horror Shows of Jess Franco" by Joan Hawkins (1999)

"Seducing the Subject: Freddy Krueger" by Ian Conrich (1997)

"What Rough Beast? Insect Politics and THE FLY" by Linda Brookover and Alain Silver (1999)

"Demon Daddies: Gender, Ecstasy and Terror in the Possession Film" by Tanya Krzywinska (1999)

"Women on the Verge of a Gothic Breakdown: Sex, Drugs and Corpses in THE HORRIBLE DR. HICHCOCK" by Glenn Erickson (1997)

"CANDYMAN: Urban Space, Fear, and Entitlement" by Aviva Briefel and Sianne Ngai (1996)

"THE HAUNTING and the Power of Suggestion: Why Robert Wise's Film Continues to "Deliver the Goods" to Modern Audiences" by Pam Keesey (1999)

There is too much between the covers of this Silver-Ursini collection to pass up. Not every article takes a fresh stance, but there are a number of moments when you may just say, "Gee, I hadn't thought of that." Also, on a comparative level, this collection's variety of perspectives lends a chance to juggle different views without the clutter of film books, journals, and magazines that would otherwise be needed.

This one is worth the buy.

Rating:
Summary: Great overview of the horror genre
Review: This is a very interesting portrait of a much abused genre. The essays a quite wonderful, with the essay on Polanski's Repulsion worth the price of the book alone.

I discovered many movies from reading this book, and I am still on the hunt for some of them. But the hunt is a pleasure.

Rating:
Summary: Great overview of the horror genre
Review: This is a very interesting portrait of a much abused genre. The essays a quite wonderful, with the essay on Polanski's Repulsion worth the price of the book alone.

I discovered many movies from reading this book, and I am still on the hunt for some of them. But the hunt is a pleasure.