Reel Horror: True Horrors Behind Hollywood's Scary Movies [Paperback]

John W. Law (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2004

"Reel Horror - The Real Horror Behind Hollywood's Scary Movies" takes readers on a frightening tour behind the scenes of some of Hollywood's best known and most frightening films. Whether it was death and tragedy on the set, or real terror behind a true story that lead to the film, "Reel Horror" promises to offer readers the story that wasn't told on the big screen.

* The death of Brandon Lee on the set of "The Crow"
* Bette Davis' horrific last days in the making of "Wicked Stepmother"
* The tragedies of "Twilight Zone - The Movie"
* Fear on the set and death off the set for the "Poltergeist" series
* The real terror of The "Amityville Horror"
* The Trouble of "Jaws"
* Tragic death on the set of "The Exorcist" and the troubled neighborhood where the story takes place, and more

Stories that have, in some cases, outlived the movies themselves, find out the full details behind Brandon Lee's harrowing days on the set of The Crow and the truly tragic consequences dangerous special effects can play in feature like the Twilight Zone. Read about the making of Psycho and see rare photographs of Joan Crawford and her final film Trog.

"Reel Horror" is 125-pages, illustrated and perfect bound with a glossy soft cover. It measures 8 1/2 x 11 inches in size. Order a copy today.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

John W. Law is also the author of Curse of the Silver Screen - Tragedy & Disaster Behind the Movies (Aplomb Publishing, 1998)

Product Details

• Paperback: 125 pages
• Publisher: Aplomb Publishing (October 2004)
• ISBN-10: 096656765X
• ISBN-13: 978-0966567656
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 8.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,932,241 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars too many typos., September 7, 2005

By 

Jennifer R. Word - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Reel Horror: True Horrors Behind Hollywood's Scary Movies (Paperback)

The book was kind of interesting. The first few stories "The Crow" and "Twilight Zone, The Movie," were definitely eerie and gruesome. Loaded with details I didn't previous know. But for a book with the title Reel 'Horror', some of the stories were just plain boring. I thought the book was about actual deaths that took place during the filming of various movies. Only the first few movies were about mysterious or nasty deaths. The rest were just stories of production woes. Poltergeist did have deaths, but none occurring on set. Who cares about the production problems on Bette Davis' last film? It doesn't qualify as 'horror' in any way (although the director and producers probably disagree). The Jaws story wasn't terrifying at all. What was it doing in the book? And I couldn't get past the various typos throughout the book. There are at least 5 on every page. Some mistakes are too grievous to be overlooked. The author refers repeatedly to the director of Poltergeist as Tobe Cooper! (it's Hooper!!). Out of sheer curiosity, I looked up the cinematographer named on the Bette Davis story, and couldn't find his name in the database. His name is also not the name listed on the official credit of cinematographer who worked on the film. Hmmm...I simply had to check references after the Hooper incident! It makes me wonder about the credibility of the authors' references. While there may be an explanation for certain questions (perhaps the cinematographer quit halfway through production and was replaced?), I can't believe they mispelled a directors' name....Not very interesting. I'd try a different title than this for some real 'reel horror'.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Subject Matter, March 17, 2006

By 

Sam in Chicago "Sam" (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Reel Horror: True Horrors Behind Hollywood's Scary Movies (Paperback)

Not all inclusive but this book has some interesting stories that I havent seen before. It's not the usual horror stuff that tries to talk about the themes or hidden meanings. This book is fun because it goes into the making of the movie. Some good coverage of Twilight Zone the movie, the Crow and the rare Bette Davis flick Wicked Stepmother. It also covers the usual making of big flicks like Exorcist, Jaws and Psycho, but it's the rare ones that make the book a treat. Small publisher so there's not a lot of money put into the printing. Quality is ok. Some nice pics, some typos, but overall an interesting read. I recommend if you like back story stuff around hollywood flicks.

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating but cheaply made book, June 11, 2005

By 

Just Another Reviewer (Ashburn, VA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Reel Horror: True Horrors Behind Hollywood's Scary Movies (Paperback)

Not to be confused by Reel Terror, a book containing the stories that influenced several sc-fi and horror movies. This book focuses on the tragic real life events surrounding some recognizable movies.

Be warned, the book is cheaply made and is 8.5 x 11, not a standard paperback size as I was expecting. For the price, I would recommend trying to find it at your local library over purchasing. But a good read, nonetheless.