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Hammer Films' Psychological Thrillers, 1950–1972
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Book Presentation:
Hammer Film’s is justly famous for Gothic horror but the company also excelled in the psychological thriller. Influenced by Henri-Georges Clouzot and Alfred Hitchcock, Hammer created its own approach to this genre in some of the company’s very best films. This book takes a chronological, film-by-film approach to all of Hammer’s thrillers. Well-known classics such as Seth Holt’s The Nanny (1965) and Taste of Fear (1961) are discussed, together with less well known but equally brilliant films such as The Full Treatment (dir. Val Guest, 1960) and Michael Carreras’ Maniac (1963). The films’ literary ancestry, reflection of British society and relation to psychological theories of Freud and Jung, architectural metaphor, sexuality, religion, and even Nazi atrocities are all fully explored.
About the Author:
David Huckvale has worked as a researcher, writer and presenter for BBC Radio and as a lecturer for various universities in England. He lives in rural Bedfordshire.
Press Reviews:
"The book is well-written and does an excellent job of not only analyzing the movies as self-contained artifacts but also how they relate to one another…highly recommended"—ARBA
"from start to finish, the author delivers smart, insightful readings"—Bookgasm
"just when you thought that every aspect of Hammer Film’s prolific output had been covered, along comes this fine book…. [Huckvale’s] writing is first class and he explores his subject matter in great detail"—Destructive Music
"a highly useful contribution to the film buff’s bookshelf"—Crime Time
See the publisher website: McFarland & Co
> From the same author:
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A Classic Horror Film in Context
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Terrors of the Flesh (2020)
The Philosophy of Body Horror in Film
A Green and Pagan Land (2018)
Myth, Magic and Landscape in British Film and Television
Subject: Countries > Great Britain
Visconti and the German Dream (2012)
Romanticism, Wagner and the Nazi Catastrophe in Film
Subject: Director > Luchino Visconti
Ancient Egypt in the Popular Imagination (2012)
Building a Fantasy in Film, Literature, Music and Art
Subject: Sociology
James Bernard, Composer to Count Dracula (2011)
A Critical Biography
Subject: Others persons > James Bernard
Touchstones of Gothic Horror (2010)
A Film Genealogy of Eleven Motifs and Images
> On a related topic:
Hammer Goes to Hell (2023)
The House of Horror's Unmade Films
Hammer Complete (2023)
The Films, the Personnel, the Company
The Women of Hammer Horror (2021)
A Biographical Dictionary and Filmography
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