Great monsters of the movies

by Edward Edelson

The Monsters are coming!Most of us like to escape from the ordinary or enjoy the thrill of a good fright. One of the most popular scary entertainments in this century has been the parade of monster movies. Vampires, werewolves, and gigantic beasts are just a few of the terrifying creatures that have made these movies famous. This survey covers the legends behind the stories, and the brilliant directors, technicians, and actors who created some of the most successful horror films. Stills of such classic villains as King Kong, Frankenstein, Dracula and the Wolf Man add to the fascination and delight of this book for all monster-movie buffs.

Genres: Nonfiction

101 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

Reviews

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of my favorite books as a kid, and re-reading it forty years later, I'm pleasantly surprised at this brief and light critique of classic monster movies. Edelson doesn't talk down to his audience (say 7-12 year-olds), and offers his readers some great direction for finding veins of horror gold in the mountains of dross out there (he recommends the movies of Val Lewton and Roger Corman's "Poe" films).

Sadly, the book is somewhat dated. An entire generation of iconic movie monsters has grown up since this book was written, and the movies Edelson gives detailed synopses of (mainly the heavy-hitter Universal monsters) are now easily available through a number of media and are nowhere as difficult to find in their entirety as they were in the early 70's. Still, this book survives well as a nugget of nostalgia with quite a few insights for young movie buffs.

(Incidentally, Edeson's prediction of a Phantom of the Opera movie once every twenty years has proven somewhat true: 20 years on the nose if you allow the 1983 TV movie with Maximilian Schell; a little late if you consider the 1989 Robert Englund version).

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I used to own this book as a child and read it till it was tatters. Just found it used and couldn't resist! This book helped cement my love of classic horror movies, and I've counted it a personal triumph every time I've seen one of the movies mentioned (and I've now watched a good number!). Bucket list. ;) Although I've heard some of the details provided about the movies (years, etc) are incorrect, it has not stopped me from enjoying this book immensely.

[Kurt Fox · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's pretty brief. Loads missing. It is geared for a 3rd grader, maybe. What I really didn't like about it was that it totally had spoilers for the movies. Like, monster XXX dies at the end due to YYY. Even the way things are described do not do certain scenes justice. It's like trying to describe the nuances of The Great Gatsby and only using 1 sentence to do so... with words only a 3rd grader would know. I love monster movies, and this book somehow made me NOT want to watch them, made them seem so , well, boring. Oh, and there are now vampires in space. (Well, that's how that past chapter or paragraph or two seemed.) 2 stars for lots of usage of non-copyrighted images.

[Hugh's BigBookshelf · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never watched any of the horror movies documented in this book as a kid, but I LOVED this book nonetheless.
A well-written, expressive and easily soluble book in which the behind-the-scenes of older classic horror movies are explained. I can still remember the photos of the ugly and frightening monster makeup paired with the great and beautifully conveyed assessment of the making off descriptions. I would recommend this book to everyone who is interested in monsters, movies, and anything relating. A Must-Have in your bookshelf!

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything you need to know in one short catchy little book with great movie stills and photos. Didn't expect anything when picking up this classic but the author did a superb job. The legends, the pioneers (Cabinet of Dr Caligari/Nosferatu), three frightening men (Lugosi, Karloff, Lon Chaney Jr), the big beasts (King Kong), a miscellany of monsters and great monsters. This book hits the target. Easy to read, compelling and to the point. The elemental book on movie monsters. Highly recommended!

[Jenny a.k.a....Jenny from the block · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good history of monster movies that I enjoyed when I was a child. I decided to watch the movies while reading this book at the same time. Something different than I usually do but fun. I was scared by the original version even as an adult but the others didn't scare me when I was a teen. Childhood was fun but as an adult, I have a lot of responsibility which is scary in itself.

[Patrick Ullmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book as a kid. I never saw any of the films described within when I was young, but the descriptions of the plot and technical behind-the-scenes work was always intriguing to me. I love the excessiveness and simplicities of the material and its descriptions. Great book which I hope to one-day add to my bookshelf.

[Nik Havert · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a fun little book about classic monster films ranging from "Frankenstein" to "Planet of the Vampires." I don't agree with the author's take on "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein," which he claims is a bad film. I contend it's the greatest horror comedy of all time.

[Anthony Valletta · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a child, I found this book in a grocery store and had my mom buy it for me. I read it from cover to cover many times (until it quite literally fell apart) and saw every film inside of it. Special thanks to Mr. Edelson for introducing me to Mario Bava via "Planet of The Vampires".

[Mal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool little book of monster facts and movie plots. Pretty funny to read about how the zombie subgenre was not a money maker when this book was published.