Subversive Horror Cinema: Countercultural Messages of Films from Frankenstein to the PresentHorror cinema flourishes in times of ideological crisis and national trauma--the Great Depression, the Cold War, the Vietnam era, post-9/11--and this critical text argues that a succession of filmmakers working in horror--from James Whale to Jen and Sylvia Soska--have used the genre, and the shock value it affords, to challenge the status quo during these times. Spanning the decades from the 1930s onward it examines the work of producers and directors as varied as George A. Romero, Pete Walker, Michael Reeves, Herman Cohen, Wes Craven and Brian Yuzna and the ways in which films like Frankenstein (1931), Cat People (1942), The Woman (2011) and American Mary (2012) can be considered "subversive." |
Contents
Foreword by Jeff Lieberman | 1 |
Preface | 3 |
Introduction | 5 |
Frankenstein 1931 and Freaks 1932 | 21 |
Cat People 1942 and The Curse of the Cat People 1944 | 43 |
The Films of Herman Cohen | 62 |
The Films of Michael Reeves and Pete Walker | 80 |
Night of the Living Dead 1968 Deathdream 1972 and The Crazies 1973 | 104 |
Shivers 1975 Blue Sunshine 1978 and Dawn of the Dead 1978 | 151 |
HenryPortrait of a Serial Killer 1986 and American Psycho 2000 | 163 |
Brian Yuzna and Splatstick | 180 |
Teeth 2007 and American Mary 2012 | 197 |
AfterwordSubversive Horror Cinema Post911 | 211 |
Chapter Notes | 225 |
| 234 | |
| 239 | |
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Subversive Horror Cinema: Countercultural Messages of Films from ... Jon Towlson Limited preview - 2014 |
Common terms and phrases
American Mary American Psycho Andy apocalyptic audience authority Bateman becomes Blue Sunshine Brian Yuzna cannibalism Chain Saw Massacre characters Chibnall Cohen counterculture Craven Crazies created critics Cronenberg culture David David Cronenberg Dawn Deathdream depicts director DVD commentary eugenics father fear feels film's filmmakers Frankenstein Freaks Frightmare Henenlotter Henry Hills Have Eyes hippie Hooper horror cinema horror film horror genre House of Whipcord Ibid insanity Interview Irena James Whale juvenile delinquency killing Last House Leatherface Left Lewton Lichtenstein Lieberman Living Dead male McNaughton Michael Reeves modern horror Monster moral movie murder Night patriarchal Pete Walker plays political rape repression Robin Wood Romero scene script sense sequence serial killer sexual Sharrett shock social society soldiers splatstick story subversive horror taboo Teenage Werewolf Teeth Texas Chain Saw theme threat Tobe Hooper Tod Browning Tony vagina dentata victims violence Whale Witchfinder woman women youth zombie