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Sang pour sang #3
Son of Celluloid
From the wicked imagination of Clive Barker comes a horrific tale of a theatre stalked by the most famous movie stars of our time!
When an escaped convict commits murder and finds his way to a decaying movie palace, he cannot know that his own life is about to end, while the dreams of a half decade's moviegoers are just beginning. for this convict's cancerous tumor refuses to die, and the angels of the cinema can greant mirages--and nightmares--of their own.
In a world that has given up God for Garbo, life may be nothing more than an endless series of flickering images--and death the only refuge from the...Son of Celluloid.
When an escaped convict commits murder and finds his way to a decaying movie palace, he cannot know that his own life is about to end, while the dreams of a half decade's moviegoers are just beginning. for this convict's cancerous tumor refuses to die, and the angels of the cinema can greant mirages--and nightmares--of their own.
In a world that has given up God for Garbo, life may be nothing more than an endless series of flickering images--and death the only refuge from the...Son of Celluloid.
59 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1991
About the author
Clive Barker
684 books15.3k followersClive Barker was born in Liverpool, England, the son of Joan Rubie (née Revill), a painter and school welfare officer, and Leonard Barker, a personnel director for an industrial relations firm. Educated at Dovedale Primary School and Quarry Bank High School, he studied English and Philosophy at Liverpool University and his picture now hangs in the entrance hallway to the Philosophy Department. It was in Liverpool in 1975 that he met his first partner, John Gregson, with whom he lived until 1986. Barker's second long-term relationship, with photographer David Armstrong, ended in 2009.
In 2003, Clive Barker received The Davidson/Valentini Award at the 15th GLAAD Media Awards. This award is presented "to an openly lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender individual who has made a significant difference in promoting equal rights for any of those communities". While Barker is critical of organized religion, he has stated that he is a believer in both God and the afterlife, and that the Bible influences his work.
Fans have noticed of late that Barker's voice has become gravelly and coarse. He says in a December 2008 online interview that this is due to polyps in his throat which were so severe that a doctor told him he was taking in ten percent of the air he was supposed to have been getting. He has had two surgeries to remove them and believes his resultant voice is an improvement over how it was prior to the surgeries. He said he did not have cancer and has given up cigars. On August 27, 2010, Barker underwent surgery yet again to remove new polyp growths from his throat. In early February 2012 Barker fell into a coma after a dentist visit led to blood poisoning. Barker remained in a coma for eleven days but eventually came out of it. Fans were notified on his Twitter page about some of the experience and that Barker was recovering after the ordeal, but left with many strange visions.
Barker is one of the leading authors of contemporary horror/fantasy, writing in the horror genre early in his career, mostly in the form of short stories (collected in Books of Blood 1 – 6), and the Faustian novel The Damnation Game (1985). Later he moved towards modern-day fantasy and urban fantasy with horror elements in Weaveworld (1987), The Great and Secret Show (1989), the world-spanning Imajica (1991) and Sacrament (1996), bringing in the deeper, richer concepts of reality, the nature of the mind and dreams, and the power of words and memories.
Barker has a keen interest in movie production, although his films have received mixed receptions. He wrote the screenplays for Underworld (aka Transmutations – 1985) and Rawhead Rex (1986), both directed by George Pavlou. Displeased by how his material was handled, he moved to directing with Hellraiser (1987), based on his novella The Hellbound Heart. His early movies, the shorts The Forbidden and Salome, are experimental art movies with surrealist elements, which have been re-released together to moderate critical acclaim. After his film Nightbreed (Cabal), which was widely considered to be a flop, Barker returned to write and direct Lord of Illusions. Barker was an executive producer of the film Gods and Monsters, which received major critical acclaim.
Barker is a prolific visual artist working in a variety of media, often illustrating his own books. His paintings have been seen first on the covers of his official fan club magazine, Dread, published by Fantaco in the early Nineties, as well on the covers of the collections of his plays, Incarnations (1995) and Forms of Heaven (1996), as well as on the second printing of the original UK publications of his Books of Blood series.
A longtime comics fan, Barker achieved his dream of publishing his own superhero books when Marvel Comics launched the Razorline imprint in 1993. Based on detailed premises, titles and lead characters he created specifically for this, the four interrelated titles — set outside the Marvel universe — were Ectokid,
In 2003, Clive Barker received The Davidson/Valentini Award at the 15th GLAAD Media Awards. This award is presented "to an openly lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender individual who has made a significant difference in promoting equal rights for any of those communities". While Barker is critical of organized religion, he has stated that he is a believer in both God and the afterlife, and that the Bible influences his work.
Fans have noticed of late that Barker's voice has become gravelly and coarse. He says in a December 2008 online interview that this is due to polyps in his throat which were so severe that a doctor told him he was taking in ten percent of the air he was supposed to have been getting. He has had two surgeries to remove them and believes his resultant voice is an improvement over how it was prior to the surgeries. He said he did not have cancer and has given up cigars. On August 27, 2010, Barker underwent surgery yet again to remove new polyp growths from his throat. In early February 2012 Barker fell into a coma after a dentist visit led to blood poisoning. Barker remained in a coma for eleven days but eventually came out of it. Fans were notified on his Twitter page about some of the experience and that Barker was recovering after the ordeal, but left with many strange visions.
Barker is one of the leading authors of contemporary horror/fantasy, writing in the horror genre early in his career, mostly in the form of short stories (collected in Books of Blood 1 – 6), and the Faustian novel The Damnation Game (1985). Later he moved towards modern-day fantasy and urban fantasy with horror elements in Weaveworld (1987), The Great and Secret Show (1989), the world-spanning Imajica (1991) and Sacrament (1996), bringing in the deeper, richer concepts of reality, the nature of the mind and dreams, and the power of words and memories.
Barker has a keen interest in movie production, although his films have received mixed receptions. He wrote the screenplays for Underworld (aka Transmutations – 1985) and Rawhead Rex (1986), both directed by George Pavlou. Displeased by how his material was handled, he moved to directing with Hellraiser (1987), based on his novella The Hellbound Heart. His early movies, the shorts The Forbidden and Salome, are experimental art movies with surrealist elements, which have been re-released together to moderate critical acclaim. After his film Nightbreed (Cabal), which was widely considered to be a flop, Barker returned to write and direct Lord of Illusions. Barker was an executive producer of the film Gods and Monsters, which received major critical acclaim.
Barker is a prolific visual artist working in a variety of media, often illustrating his own books. His paintings have been seen first on the covers of his official fan club magazine, Dread, published by Fantaco in the early Nineties, as well on the covers of the collections of his plays, Incarnations (1995) and Forms of Heaven (1996), as well as on the second printing of the original UK publications of his Books of Blood series.
A longtime comics fan, Barker achieved his dream of publishing his own superhero books when Marvel Comics launched the Razorline imprint in 1993. Based on detailed premises, titles and lead characters he created specifically for this, the four interrelated titles — set outside the Marvel universe — were Ectokid,
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
November 29, 2020
3.5*
Son of Celluloid/ Hijo del celuluide (relato)
"El recinto, su aire, habían vivido una vida propia durante esos cincuenta años. Como un receptáculo, había almacenado las miradas electrizadas de miles de ojos, de decenas de millares de ojos. Durante medio siglo los aficionados habían vivido indirectamente a través de la pantalla del Movie Palace, proyectando sus simpatías y pasiones sobre la pantalla parpadeante, y la energía de sus emociones se concentró como un coñac olvidado en ese recóndito paso de aire. Tarde o temprano tenía que descargarse. Sólo requería un catalizador"
"—Nadie muere en las películas. Lo sabes tan bien como yo. Siempre se puede volver a rebobinar el celuloide…
… eso era lo que le recordaba el parpadeo; era el parpadeo del celuloide a través de la puerta de un proyector, una cálida imagen detrás de otra, la creación de la ilusión de vida gracias a una secuencia perfecta de pequeñas muertes"
En un cine de antaño, tras una muerte en sus inmediaciones,Una entidad que cobra vida. Y su catalizador y materialización tiene relación directa con las películas,actores, actrices a través de la historia y se alimenta de las sensaciones de los espectadores.
Es muy difícil hacer una sinopsis ... lo que diga suena a una locura, de hecho lo es
Esta estructurado en 3 actos: "Avance/trailer", "La película"(la parte de mayor extensión) y "Escenas censuradas"( a modo de conclusión)
Tiene algunas analogías y metáforas bastante interesantes, Esta repleto de referencias al cine .
El final: escenas censuradas" flaquea un poco.
No es de mis favoritos de los libros de sangre, pero tampoco esta dentro de los mas prescindibles. Lo mas valorable es el imaginativo por sobre lo demás en esta historia .
Son of Celluloid/ Hijo del celuluide (relato)
"El recinto, su aire, habían vivido una vida propia durante esos cincuenta años. Como un receptáculo, había almacenado las miradas electrizadas de miles de ojos, de decenas de millares de ojos. Durante medio siglo los aficionados habían vivido indirectamente a través de la pantalla del Movie Palace, proyectando sus simpatías y pasiones sobre la pantalla parpadeante, y la energía de sus emociones se concentró como un coñac olvidado en ese recóndito paso de aire. Tarde o temprano tenía que descargarse. Sólo requería un catalizador"
"—Nadie muere en las películas. Lo sabes tan bien como yo. Siempre se puede volver a rebobinar el celuloide…
… eso era lo que le recordaba el parpadeo; era el parpadeo del celuloide a través de la puerta de un proyector, una cálida imagen detrás de otra, la creación de la ilusión de vida gracias a una secuencia perfecta de pequeñas muertes"
En un cine de antaño, tras una muerte en sus inmediaciones,Una entidad que cobra vida. Y su catalizador y materialización tiene relación directa con las películas,actores, actrices a través de la historia y se alimenta de las sensaciones de los espectadores.
Es muy difícil hacer una sinopsis ... lo que diga suena a una locura, de hecho lo es
Esta estructurado en 3 actos: "Avance/trailer", "La película"(la parte de mayor extensión) y "Escenas censuradas"( a modo de conclusión)
Tiene algunas analogías y metáforas bastante interesantes, Esta repleto de referencias al cine .
El final: escenas censuradas" flaquea un poco.
No es de mis favoritos de los libros de sangre, pero tampoco esta dentro de los mas prescindibles. Lo mas valorable es el imaginativo por sobre lo demás en esta historia .
June 25, 2013
“Son of Celluloid” from Clive Barker is a guilty-favorite of mine. It's the story of an escaped convict that dies behind a movie screen, where his cancerous tumor grows sapient from the emotions and thoughts of the viewing audience. Eight months later, the cancer begins to kill the workers and visitors to the theater to sustain itself.
The main reason I like this story is because it gets to the heart of why watching movies can be such a powerful experience. A really good film can make its audience laugh, cry, scream, or any other variety of emotions. We live vicariously through film, and it’s that “life” that the cancer wants. Just as our imaginations make movies real, the cancer uses images of old movie stars to seduce and kill its victims.
Most of the horror comes from the concept of “body horror,” where the body is ruined in some way – the concept of a piece of you becoming sentient and consuming others certainly qualifies. Barker has written other stories that deal with the twisting of flesh: “Jacqueline Ess” and “The Hellbound Heart” are some examples.
He has this weird talent for intertwining the sexual with the grotesque – it’s not for everybody, but I like it.
The main reason I like this story is because it gets to the heart of why watching movies can be such a powerful experience. A really good film can make its audience laugh, cry, scream, or any other variety of emotions. We live vicariously through film, and it’s that “life” that the cancer wants. Just as our imaginations make movies real, the cancer uses images of old movie stars to seduce and kill its victims.
Most of the horror comes from the concept of “body horror,” where the body is ruined in some way – the concept of a piece of you becoming sentient and consuming others certainly qualifies. Barker has written other stories that deal with the twisting of flesh: “Jacqueline Ess” and “The Hellbound Heart” are some examples.
He has this weird talent for intertwining the sexual with the grotesque – it’s not for everybody, but I like it.
February 14, 2021
This was a very quick and enjoyable graphic novel, which focuses around movies.
It begins showing us a criminal who has recently escaped from prison. But a close encounter with a police officer leaves him with a bullet in the leg. He soon hides out in a movie theater, where he dies from his injury. Many years later, we are introduced to Birdy and Ricky who are employees for the same movie theater. They both witness strange events throughout the night, where movie stars appear in front of them, wanting to be loved and admired again but with deadly consequences.
This story is very bloody and gory, with a very interesting story and characters who you love.
It begins showing us a criminal who has recently escaped from prison. But a close encounter with a police officer leaves him with a bullet in the leg. He soon hides out in a movie theater, where he dies from his injury. Many years later, we are introduced to Birdy and Ricky who are employees for the same movie theater. They both witness strange events throughout the night, where movie stars appear in front of them, wanting to be loved and admired again but with deadly consequences.
This story is very bloody and gory, with a very interesting story and characters who you love.
April 30, 2025
"Seen a film and felt it move her so deeply it was almost a physical pain when the end credits rolled and the illusion was broken, because she felt she'd left something of herself behind, a part of her inner being lost up there amongst her heroes and her heroines."
April 17, 2016
First of all, I haven't read a comic book since I was about ten years old. When I thought about comic books, I thought about superheroes, and it's just not my cup of tea anymore. However, Barker's previous work has always captured my attention, because you have to appreciate people who strive to be different; those who walk their own way in a genre that pays the least should be respected, if not revered. So, onto the book. I'm not going to give you any spoilers, but I will tell you a brief description of what it's about.
I'll just start by saying it's a fantastic comic book. The story is very well-done, a criminal who recently killed his first victim seeks shelter at an old abandoned theater. The owner of the building constructed the theater where behind the screen was a false wall, the criminal ends up crawling into this hidden area behind the screen and dying. The guy had cancer (although that's not what took him) and the cancer ends up feeding off of moviegoers' emotions as they watch films in the theater, evolving into a maniacal killer; one that uses imagery from famous films along with character dialogue to seduce or intimidate it's victims. It can get inside the mind of a human being and make one assume that one is in a film, rather than in a bathroom stall, for instance. That brings me to another interesting point about Barker's work, there's always some form of unexpected, weird seduction involved which makes it extremely weird, since it's horror. In this case, it's from a famous actress from ages gone by. The ending is not as epic as the beginning and middle of the book, but it made me laugh. I couldn't have thought of a better ending for the comic.
Check it out. You won't be disappointed.
Sincerely,
Norman
I'll just start by saying it's a fantastic comic book. The story is very well-done, a criminal who recently killed his first victim seeks shelter at an old abandoned theater. The owner of the building constructed the theater where behind the screen was a false wall, the criminal ends up crawling into this hidden area behind the screen and dying. The guy had cancer (although that's not what took him) and the cancer ends up feeding off of moviegoers' emotions as they watch films in the theater, evolving into a maniacal killer; one that uses imagery from famous films along with character dialogue to seduce or intimidate it's victims. It can get inside the mind of a human being and make one assume that one is in a film, rather than in a bathroom stall, for instance. That brings me to another interesting point about Barker's work, there's always some form of unexpected, weird seduction involved which makes it extremely weird, since it's horror. In this case, it's from a famous actress from ages gone by. The ending is not as epic as the beginning and middle of the book, but it made me laugh. I couldn't have thought of a better ending for the comic.
Check it out. You won't be disappointed.
Sincerely,
Norman
April 19, 2024
“Nobody dies in the movies. You can always thread the celluloid up again.”
Well, thank goodness the “fat” girl was here to save the day (at a whopping 225 lbs, give me a break). I really liked parts of this story, but it was undeniably fatphobic, and I’m very over the horror industry needing to rape young virgin girls.
Well, thank goodness the “fat” girl was here to save the day (at a whopping 225 lbs, give me a break). I really liked parts of this story, but it was undeniably fatphobic, and I’m very over the horror industry needing to rape young virgin girls.
May 31, 2016
This is one of my favourite Clive Barker stories from Books of Blood. The story is about a convict who died in a movie theatre and terrorizes the patron in his new found spiritual form. The artwork by Steve Nile was perfect, it made it all the funnier than I imagined in my mind.
November 12, 2010
Good story, great art.
January 23, 2026
No puedo expresar con palabras lo fantástico que es ver cómo esta historia de guiños cinéfilos cobra vida después de haberla leído hace décadas. He tardado en descubrir la existencia de estas adaptaciones que hizo Steve Niles sobre la gloriosa y sangrienta obra de Clive Barker, pero he cobrado la recompensa con creces, he disfrutado una barbaridad con cada página de 'Son of Celluloid', tal y como hice con los dos volúmenes de 'Tapping the vein'. Las ilustraciones de estas obras y el texto que las componen son como un matrimonio perfecto de lo macabro, encajan a la perfección. La idea de este relato ya era bastante loca de por sí, pero poder apreciarla encima con esas imágenes, con el estilo que había en las portadas a finales de los 80 y principios de los 90, es un viaje único de los que ya no pueden hacerse en el mundo del cómic.
Advierto que no es una historia típica de terror con la que uno pueda sentirse cómodo, es rara de c******. Por resumir y explicar un poco la obra, estamos ante tres partes entrelazadas, una que adopta el estilo de una novela negra, otra que se ambienta en la sesión nocturna de un cine "embrujado" y una última que sirve de epílogo y que parece sacada de una escena perdida de 'The Thing'. A pesar de esta mezcla, yo diría que puede leerse como un cuento de fantasmas, uno que incluye también una criatura madre responsable de esas apariciones. Los lectores pueden encontrar aquí juegos mentales, humor negro y bastante horror corporal, eso y unas cuantas estrellas de Hollywood ansiosas por aparecer fuera de la pantalla.
ENGLISH
I can't put into words how fantastic it is to see this story, full of cinematic references, come to life after having read it decades ago. It took me a while to discover these adaptations that Steve Niles made of Clive Barker's glorious and bloody work, but it was more than worth it, thoroughly enjoying every page of 'Son of Celluloid,' just as I did with the two volumes of 'Tapping the Vein.' The illustrations and the text in these works are like a perfect marriage of the macabre; they fit together flawlessly. The idea for this story was already pretty crazy, but to be able to appreciate it with those images, with the style of the covers from the late '80s and early '90s, is a unique journey, one that can no longer be experienced in the world of comics.
I should warn you that this isn't your typical horror story, the kind you can get comfortable with; it's freakish. To summarize and explain the work a bit, it's divided into three interwoven parts: one that adopts the style of a noir novel, another set during a late-night showing at a "haunted" movie theater, and a final one that serves as an epilogue and seems lifted from a lost scene of 'The Thing'. Despite this mix, I'd say it can be read as a ghost story, one that also includes a mother creature responsible for these apparitions. Readers can expect to find mind games, dark humor, and plenty of body horror, along with a few Hollywood stars eager to make an appearance off-screen.
Advierto que no es una historia típica de terror con la que uno pueda sentirse cómodo, es rara de c******. Por resumir y explicar un poco la obra, estamos ante tres partes entrelazadas, una que adopta el estilo de una novela negra, otra que se ambienta en la sesión nocturna de un cine "embrujado" y una última que sirve de epílogo y que parece sacada de una escena perdida de 'The Thing'. A pesar de esta mezcla, yo diría que puede leerse como un cuento de fantasmas, uno que incluye también una criatura madre responsable de esas apariciones. Los lectores pueden encontrar aquí juegos mentales, humor negro y bastante horror corporal, eso y unas cuantas estrellas de Hollywood ansiosas por aparecer fuera de la pantalla.
ENGLISH
I can't put into words how fantastic it is to see this story, full of cinematic references, come to life after having read it decades ago. It took me a while to discover these adaptations that Steve Niles made of Clive Barker's glorious and bloody work, but it was more than worth it, thoroughly enjoying every page of 'Son of Celluloid,' just as I did with the two volumes of 'Tapping the Vein.' The illustrations and the text in these works are like a perfect marriage of the macabre; they fit together flawlessly. The idea for this story was already pretty crazy, but to be able to appreciate it with those images, with the style of the covers from the late '80s and early '90s, is a unique journey, one that can no longer be experienced in the world of comics.
I should warn you that this isn't your typical horror story, the kind you can get comfortable with; it's freakish. To summarize and explain the work a bit, it's divided into three interwoven parts: one that adopts the style of a noir novel, another set during a late-night showing at a "haunted" movie theater, and a final one that serves as an epilogue and seems lifted from a lost scene of 'The Thing'. Despite this mix, I'd say it can be read as a ghost story, one that also includes a mother creature responsible for these apparitions. Readers can expect to find mind games, dark humor, and plenty of body horror, along with a few Hollywood stars eager to make an appearance off-screen.
September 13, 2019
4¼⭐
A beautifully macabre and gruesome story. With each Clive Barker story I read, I grow to love him more and more, the man is quickly becoming my favourite author. This is so well told, and it has been fantastically adapted and illustrated by Steve Niles and Les Edwards. The story flows beautifully and the illustrations are so gruesome and grizzly. Thoroughly enjoyed this short story, would recommend to any horror and/or graphic novel fan!
A beautifully macabre and gruesome story. With each Clive Barker story I read, I grow to love him more and more, the man is quickly becoming my favourite author. This is so well told, and it has been fantastically adapted and illustrated by Steve Niles and Les Edwards. The story flows beautifully and the illustrations are so gruesome and grizzly. Thoroughly enjoyed this short story, would recommend to any horror and/or graphic novel fan!
December 30, 2024
I would give 1.5 stars. The first story is connected to a second part that ends with an epilogue. The first part bored me a bit. It had that old money-gangster atmosphere. The second part was more like a bl.o.ody, wild fever dream. Actually, I liked it because it was creative and intense, but it was also a bit like a storyline that came out of nowhere. So it surprised me for a while until the climax. It's kinda a metaphorical story.
December 17, 2018
Despite the otherworldly disturbing and gross-out contents rendered in extreme detail, and a couple of moments where the text doesn’t reflect the imagery (for instance, a character in sweats is described as wearing “a blouse and skirt”), it’s a really great, short graphic novel with a gorgeous painterly art style.
December 19, 2021
Sin duda una de las mejores adaptaciones en Novela Gráfica que se han hecho de la Obra de Barker.
La historia es de las más atractivas de sus Libros de Sangre y es llevada al mundo de la Novela Gráfica de una manera excepcional.
La historia es de las más atractivas de sus Libros de Sangre y es llevada al mundo de la Novela Gráfica de una manera excepcional.
August 18, 2021
Steve Niles and Les Edwards knock this adaptation out of the park.
Faultless.
The scenes featuring Marilyn Monroe were both beautiful and grotesque.
A brilliant story, brilliantly adapted.
Faultless.
The scenes featuring Marilyn Monroe were both beautiful and grotesque.
A brilliant story, brilliantly adapted.
May 23, 2023
A surreal and hallucinatory horror story being vividly manifested by the illustrators.
January 7, 2025
Bro said Fellini is gay he deserved to die.
January 20, 2026
“Stories don’t die—they find new ways to bleed.”
A sharp, unsettling story that blends horror with a love of old movies and forgotten icons. The imagery is vivid and strange, and the idea of obsession bleeding into reality is classic Barker in the best way.
It’s short but effective, packed with atmosphere and dark creativity. Not his most emotional work, but imaginative, eerie, and memorable.
A sharp, unsettling story that blends horror with a love of old movies and forgotten icons. The imagery is vivid and strange, and the idea of obsession bleeding into reality is classic Barker in the best way.
It’s short but effective, packed with atmosphere and dark creativity. Not his most emotional work, but imaginative, eerie, and memorable.
March 15, 2019
i'll always remember this one, for some reason... just worked.
July 30, 2019
amazing story
amazing artwork
a masterpiece
amazing artwork
a masterpiece
December 2, 2023
Very funny. Barker's getting at it again.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews