Aesthetic Deviations: A Critical View of American Shot-on-Video Horror, 1984-1994

by Vincent A. Albarano

Long considered the dead-end of genre cinema, Shot-On-Video (SOV) horror finally gets its due as a serious filmmaking practice.

Using classic fanzines, promotional materials, and especially the theories of several important film scholars, Vincent Albarano brings SOV horror into critical focus for the first time in print. Prior to this moment, Video Violence , Twisted Issues , Alien Beasts , and more have never been mentioned in the same breath as André Bazin and Siegfried Kracauer, despite their common ground.

AESTHETIC DEVIATIONS delves deep into several of the most famous SOV horror titles to give credit for their unique and singular contributions to independent genre cinema. Informed equally by a fan’s passion and the studied approaches of scholarly analysis, Albarano offers the first-ever detailed examination of the SOV horror cycle, proving that this strain of amateur filmmaking is deserving of proper appraisal. Sure to enlighten and provoke thought among fans and converts to the unique charms of SOV cinema, as well as inspire newcomers, Albarano’s book proves an invaluable resource for a neglected area of cinematic inquiry.

Genres: Nonfiction, Horror, Film

196 pages, Paperback

Published August 3, 2023

Reviews

[Dalton Gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the most loving and comprehensive study of SOV films that I have ever read.

The author approaches these films from a legitimate, downright scholarly angle and views them in the same lens as you would view any other "professional" film.

Shot on Video horror is a legitimate and sometimes challenging art form, and I couldn't be happier to see an author give them the respect they so deserve.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

“When Angell’s character, Larry, is killed midway through the film, it represents a significant moment, one met with grief and actual consideration of his and his family’s lives. His wife and children are shown in shock, delusional and devastated to the best of the actors’ abilities. The film slows for several minutes to express their agony; Larry’s death is not just another gory thrill. Incredibly, this all occurs despite the fact that his intestines are ripped out through his anus …” - Vincent A. Albarano on Todd Sheets’s Goblin (1993)

The kind of nonfiction work so steeped in its subject’s galaxy that it takes you about three times as long to read as you would expect; nearly every page, I encountered movies, zines and books to add to my watchlist and to-read shelf. I doubt Albarano’s book will make fans of people new to SOV horror, but this is a measured, admirable and, as you can tell by the above quote, funny analysis that will please the already converted.

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

SOV horror is one of those subjects that defies all conventional attempts at academic analysis, as even the author himself notes, so points for making an attempt, I guess. This is handy as an overview of the challenges and preoccupations of SOV movies, but I don’t feel like I gained any insight into the style beyond that. However, I do appreciate that this addresses SOV horror in context of its place in the video rental marketplace of the 1980s and in horror fandom in general. I never knew the wild west Mom-&-Pop-shop era of video rental stores so it’s nice to have contextual/historical information on the SOV phenomenon.

Also, it’s funny how much importance the author places on “Blood Cult” in the video marketplace. He makes a good case for its commercial significance (even if he dismisses the film and non-amateur SOV works altogether), but it’s just funny to learn that it was apparently a big deal at the time when I have never heard it discussed in any horror circles whatsoever. The only time I’ve even heard it mentioned (and how I learned of its existence in the first place) is the in-movie reference in the SOV film from the same production company, “The Ripper”.

[Bren · Rating 4 out of 5]

definitely exceeded my expectations, bc a project like this is always going to be written by a fan and i have to brace myself that this kind of publication is not rly going to surface above the level of fanzine-worthy writing. but i was very pleasantly surprised! p much the definitive work on the subject rn as far as i can tell. nothing else ive read treats a beautiful, multivalent work like splatter farm the way this does, with an erudite understanding of how exactly the films of the polonias et al. work. didnt exactly get more recommendations from this which is what i like to look for but it did deepen my liking for some of the films mentioned

[Egghead · Rating 4 out of 5]

Media studies
jargon surrounding fisting
scene in Splatter Farm.