Sixties Shockers: A Critical Filmography of Horror Cinema, 1960-1969

by Mark Clark, Bryan Senn, Robert Tinnell (Foreword)

This comprehensive filmography provides critical analyses and behind-the-scenes stories for 600 horror, science fiction and fantasy films from the 1960s. During those tumultuous years horror cinema flourished, proving as innovative and unpredictable as the decade itself. Representative titles include Night of the Living Dead, The Haunting, Carnival of Souls, Repulsion, The Masque of the Red Death, Targets and The Conqueror Worm. An historical overview chronicles the explosive growth of horror films during this era, as well as the emergence of such dynamic directorial talents as Roman Polanski, George Romero, Francis Ford Coppola and Peter Bogdanovich.

Genres: Film

535 pages, Hardcover

First published July 25, 2011

Reviews

[Holger Haase · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of these books that I savoured over the years and regularly dipped in and out of until I had it finished. Quite an amazing feat: Reviewing every single 1960s horror film made (or at least released within the US/UK). An additional chapter even has another further list of those movies that aren't quite horror but contain horror elements. Pretty much perfect with just one small niggle: The films are listed under the US release titles which at times means they ignore the more commonly known ones (e.g. CONQUEROR WORM instead of THE WITCHFINDER GENERAL or THE HORROR CHAMBER OF DR FAUSTUS instead of EYES WITHOUT A FACE) but apart from that this is a Must Have for anyone interested in genre entries for that decade that went through a whirlwind of changes and included everything from some of the most popular Hammer Horrors, Hitchcock's PSYCHO and an abundance of copycat psycho thrillers to George A. Romero's NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and Hershell Gordon Lewis' splatter fests. Reviews are incredibly entertaining to read, at times wonderfully irreverent but always with a wealth of background info about the production history and reception.

[Fraser Sherman · Rating 5 out of 5]

At the risk of stating the obvious, an encyclopedic listing of every horror film released in the US in that era will get fewer stars if you're not interested. I am, so I thoroughly enjoyed this (even if I'm more dubious about some of their recommendations). I particularly liked that the authors don't quibble too much about genre boundaries, including sword-and-sandal and SF films with horror elements. Though some of the films in the appendix make me scratch my head (it's a stretch to imagine The Yesterday Machine as horror) I much prefer my reference books be inclusive. If you like the topic, this is the go-to book.

[Arthur O'dell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, a wealth of information about Sixties horror films, especially lesser known films from Spain, Mexico, and Asia. The Sixties were a pivotal time in horror cinema, with Hitchcock's Psycho, England's Hammer films, and Romero's Nigh of the Living Dead changing and stretching the limits of the genre. This books covers virtually every film that could be considered horror, and it has the most comprehensive international filmography for the decade that I have seen. Required reading for any would-be horror film historians out there.

[Rector · Rating 5 out of 5]

You won't believe how many of these movies you actually know...and you'll be shocked how many shockers you LIKE. From a reluctant horror movie fan