Offbeat (Revised & Updated): British Cinema’s Curiosities, Obscurities and Forgotten Gems

by Julian Upton

For years there has been consensus about the merits of Britain’s ‘cult films’ ― Peeping Tom, Witchfinder General, The Italian Job ― but what of The Mark, Unearthly Stranger, The Strange Affair and The Squeeze ? Revisionist critics wax lyrical over Get Carter and The Wicker Man , but what of Sitting Target, Quest for Love and The Black Panther ? OFFBEAT redresses this imbalance by exploring Britain’s obscurities, curiosities and forgotten gems ― from the buoyant leap in film production in the late fifties to the dying days of popular domestic cinema in the early eighties.

Featuring essays, interviews and in-depth reviews, OFFBEAT provides an exhaustive, enlightening and entertaining guide through a host of neglected cinematic trends and episodes,

The last great British B-movies
‘Anti-swinging sixties’ films
Sexploitation ― from Yellow Teddy Bears to Emmanuelle in Soho
The British rock ‘n roll movie
CIA-funded British cartoons
Asylums in British cinema
The Children’s Film Foundation
The demise of the short as supporting feature
Val Guest, Sidney Hayers and the forgotten journeyman of British film
Swashbucklers, crime thrillers and other non-horror Hammers

Now updated with more than 150 pages of new reviews and essays,

The Beatles in Colour!
The History of the AA Certificate
Ken Russell’s 1980s Films
Iris Murdoch’s A Severed Head
Curating Offbeat films in the Digital Age

And much more

Genres: Film

1175 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 7, 2022

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating and entertaining selection of some British film oddities from the 60s through to the 80s.

Some quirky choices and some disappointing but understandable omissions (the book is already just short of 600 pages long). The writing is never less than enthralling and informative and there are some big-name reviewers between the covers - Kim Newman, David Hyman, David Sutton of Fortean Times fame for example.

I've been led down some strange rabbit holes by following up on some of the entries and throwaway asides. For example, there's some really good work on short films (cheap alternatives to B-Movies partly-funded by a tax on US-made movies) which has sparked a new interest for me. I'm trying to track down as many as I can on YouTube, Amazon etc.

The book includes great artwork with rare stills and posters for every film: these would have been even better in colour but the monochrome reproductions here fit right in with the 'offbeat' ethos of the book.

This is a much-expanded re-issue of an earlier version which I haven't read, unfortunately, so I can't say whether readers of the previous edition will gain much by reading this. But it's fun!