Fearmakers: The Screen's Directorial Masters of Suspense and Terror, The

by John McCarty (Editor)

Here are the masters of the monstrous and macabre, the nightmare makers, the giants of the silver screen, Hollywood's greatest terrifiers - The Fearmakers.

The Fearmakers discusses twenty practicioners of the art of screen fearmaking, from the silent era to the present day, whose contributions to and influence upon the genre in terms of theme, style, and technical and other innovations remain significant - the architects of screen fear chosen for discussion in this book are deemed to be the genre's most important and influential grand masters, honourable practitioners and up-and-comers, each of whom sought or continues to seek, with varying degrees of success, to take the genre to a place it has never been before.

Genres: Film

198 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1994

Reviews

[M.R. Dowsing · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very enjoyable book with lots of photos. McCarty knows his stuff and writes well - I especially appreciated his chapter on Terence Fisher along with his fascinating take on James Whale's four horror films.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great portrait on all major "fearmakers" in the last century and their important films. Many excellent film photos in black and white inside. Benjamin Christensen ("Witchcraft Through the Ages, 1922), Roland West, James Whale (The Bride of Frankenstein), Jacques Tourneur (Les Diaboliques), Roger Corman (House of Usher). Especially liked the presentation of Jack Arnold and his filmography. Watched every film of his as a kid with him doing an introduction on TV. Fine memory. William Castle (The House on Haunted Hill), Polanski, George Romero, Dario Argento (Suspiria), Wes Craven, Brian de Palma, Tobe Hooper (Poltergeist), John Carpenter, David Cronenberg and many more. This was a quite interesting compilation with lots of background information and awesome photos. Really enjoyed it and can absolutely recommend it! Excellent cover too!