Horror Cinema

A collection of his finest writing on horror cinema by the acclaimed critic and journalist, Jon Towlson.

Essays range from studies of auteurs Tod Browning and George A. Romero to reflections on Universal horror, analysis of the 1978 classic Dawn of the Dead, and commentaries on contemporary global horror cinema.

The volume contains reviews of over 25 modern horror films, including Jennifer Kent's The Babadook (2014) and Brandon Cronenberg's Possessor (2020).

Plus, interviews conducted with 12 key creatives in horror cinema: Jason Blum (Blumhouse Productions), Scott Derrickson (Sinister, 2012; The Black Phone, 2021), Ernesto Diaz Espinoza (Bring Me The Head of the Machine Gun Woman, 2012), Èric Falardeau (Thanatamorphose, 2012), Larry Fessenden (Blackout, 2023), Gunnar Hansen (The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, 1974), Frank Henenlotter (Basket Case, 1982), Chad Crawford Kinkle and Lauren Ashley Carter (Jug Face, 2013; The Woman, 2011), Linnea Quigley and Jewel Shephard (Return of the Living Dead, 1985), Bernard Rose (Candyman, 1993) and Eduardo Sanchez (The Blair Witch Project, 1999).

'Vital research and analysis of classic American horror film' - Donato Totaro, Concordia University.

Jon Towlson is the author of numerous books on horror, science fiction and cult cinema, including Subversive Horror Cinema: Countercultural Messages from Frankenstein to the Present (McFarland, 2014). His writing on horror movies has been nominated for five Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards.