Customer Reviews

Reel Horror: True Horrors Behind Hollywood's Scary Movies

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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'.

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.

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.