Hammer Complete: The Films, the Personnel, the Company

by Howard Maxford

Think you know everything there is to know about Hammer Films, the fabled "Studio that Dripped Blood?" The lowdown on all the imperishable classics of horror, like The Curse of Frankenstein, Horror of Dracula and The Devil Rides Out? What about the company's less blood-curdling back catalog? What about the musicals, comedies and travelogues, the fantasies and historical epics--not to mention the pirate adventures? This lavishly illustrated encyclopedia covers every Hammer film and television production in thorough detail, including budgets, shooting schedules, publicity and more, along with all the actors, supporting players, writers, directors, producers, composers and technicians. Packed with quotes, behind-the-scenes anecdotes, credit lists and production specifics, this all-inclusive reference work is the last word on this cherished cinematic institution.

Genres: Film

992 pages, Hardcover

First published February 6, 2019

Reviews

[Lance Lumley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wonderful packaged book covers all things of the Hammer Studio, even up to some of the recent films. It covers in an encyclopedia style format (with several columns per page) the horror, sci-fy, mystery films, as well as comedies and several merchandise such as record albums, and the tv series. It is well packaged and sturdy. However, like the author states, it is not meant to be read cover to cover like other McFarland horror collections, which may put some off after seeing the price of the text. I will say the book is worth it for those that want to pay the fee; the author took many years putting it together, and not only has plot lines, but behind the scenes stories from those that were in the set.
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[Bill Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't claim to have read this entire enormous volume, but I've used it as a guide since October for a comprehensive revisit of Hammer's early films. I've seen the majority of their horror output many times but had seen only a few of their other movies, so I had a lot of ground to cover. This book is an excellent guide to the studio's films and history; reading the entries for each film after I watched it was an informative experience that improved the viewings enormously. The text is clear, thorough, well informed, and full of entertaining anecdotes. The authors clearly love their material. I'm up to the early 70s now, when the quality of Hammer's output changed, usually not for the better, but I will keep the book on my coffee table to use as a guide for the rest of the journey.

Highly recommended as a reference work.