Journey into darkness : the art of James Whale's horror films (1979)

Author: Ellis, Reed
Subject: Whale, James; Horror films
Language: English

CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
Everything must have a beginning,
to speak in Sanchean phrase.
Mary Shelley, Frankenstein
(Preface to 1831 edition)
We love the thing that shocks us
and sends chills down our spine.
Carl Laemmle
The horror film has something for
everybody. ' ", '
I.
John Simon
I am a mere goosepimpler.
James Whale
During the past ten years, the proliferation of books on
film has been astounding. These works deal with a wide variety of
subjects and with such diverse personalities as D. W. Griffith,
Sergei Eisenstein, the Marx Brothers, John Ford, Woody Allen, and
Clint Eastwood. Many of these publications focus on the work of individual
directors. Yet, in all this outpouring of material, there is
no book-length study of the British-born director, James Whale, although
he directed some of the most interesting films of the 1930's. Indeed,
several film historians do not even mention Whale's name. In this study....Read more