ReFocus: The Films of Wes Craven

ReFocus: The American Directors Series

by Calum Waddell (editor)

This edited collection provides an insightful look at the career and output of American horror director Wes Craven, whose most famous films – such as The Last House on the Left (1972), A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) and Scream (1996) – came to define the form in the later decades of the 20th century. Also paying attention to Craven’s more underrated work, from Deadly Friend (1986) through to his melodrama Music of the Heart (1999), this academic study argues that the filmmaker’s influence can still be felt on cinema today, many years after his passing. Featuring 16 chapters and an extensive introduction, this addition to the ReFocus line will prove to be essential reading for scary movie connoisseurs and brings a valuable contribution to the growing field of horror film studies.

320 pages, Hardcover

Published July 10, 2023

About the author

Calum Waddell gained his PhD at the University of Aberdeen and teaches at Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, China.