1970s Horror
Dawn of the Dead Painted the Perfect Picture of a Consumer Apocalypse
George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead was an absolutely revolutionary horror picture. It was made for no money but you wouldn’t know that by looking at it. And people latched onto it in a ...
Wizards of Gore: Why Torture Cinema Was Around Long Before Saw and Hostel
When people condemn the horror films of the 2000s, they typically refer to that time—other than first raving about remakes—as the age of torture cinema. Saw, Hostel, those were the kinds of movies we ...
Deathdream and the Horrors of War
Most people have probably heard the tale of “The Monkey’s Paw” in one form or another. The 1902 short story by W. W. Jacobs revolves around a mysterious monkey’s paw with the ability to grant three wi...
How Mario Bava Set the Template for American Slashers
It’s no secret that the early slasher films were heavily influenced by the Italian giallo movies. These were very similar features, albeit slightly more sophisticated—yet gorier—versions of the same t...
Jaws at 40: The Shark is Still Working
It was one of the biggest, most influential horror movies of all time. It was the first blockbuster. But more than that, it will always be remembered for being the film that made people stop going in ...
It’s Only a Movie: Why Wes Craven’s Last House on the Left is a Brutal Take on the Post-Nuclear Family
It’s no coincidence that Wes Craven’s first feature film is also among his most brutal. Craven had a very repressed Christian upbringing. And there was no real way for him to take in too much violent ...
Disaster/Artist: The Mind-Boggling Career of Tobe Hooper
Of all the masters of horror, Tobe Hooper has the most confounding career. He’s done enough to earn the title, but not enough to stand comfortably beside contemporaries like John Carpenter and Wes Cra...
Five Great Horror Movies That Were Critical Disasters When First Released
There are many horror films in the genre’s long history that are now lauded as classics. But they weren’t always. Some movies that are beloved now were critical disasters when they were first re...
Don’t Look Now is Getting a Criterion Re-release!
Nicolas Roeg’s 1973 giallo-esque horror picture Don’t Look Now is getting a Criterion release. The film has been out of print for a spell but fortunately Criterion plans to rectify that wi...
