Forthcoming Book: The Texas Chain Saw Masscare

My third book is to be published in November 2012 by Auteur Publications: as part of their growing series The Devil's Advocates, the book is an in-depth critical analysis of Tobe Hooper's seminal film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. The book is avaible for pre-order at Columbia Uiveristy Press who describe the book as...

No-one who has ever seen the original The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is ever likely to forget the experience. An intense fever dream (or nightmare), it is remarkable for its sense of sustained threat and depiction of an insane but nonetheless (dys)functional family on the furthest reaches of society who have regressed to cannibalism in the face of economic hardship. As well as providing a summary of the making of the film, James Rose discusses the extraordinary censorship history of the film in the UK (essentially banned for two decades) and provides a detailed textual analysis of the film with particular reference to the concept of ‘the Uncanny’. He also situates the film in the context of horror film criticism (the ‘Final Girl’ character) and discusses its influence and subsequent sequels and remakes.

Preorder the book at Columbia Univerisity Press by following this link or at Waterstones by following this link.

Forthcoming Publication

I recently wrote an essay for World Film Locations: London. Edited by Neil Mitchell and published by Intellect, my contribution examined the relationship between the London Underground and the horror film, including Quatermass and the Pit, Death Line and An American Werewolf in London.

As described on the Intellect website, the book

is an exciting visually focused tour of a diverse range of films shot on location in London. The volume will contain concise but knowledgeable reviews of carefully chosen film scenes and evocative essays about key directors, themes, ideas and historical periods that explore London's relationship to cinema. The book will be illustrated throughout with scene–specific screengrabs, stills of filming locations as they appear now and city maps that include location information for those keen to investigate the cinematic landmarks of London. The individual scene reviews, theme specific essays and illustrations will collectively offer up their own wider questions relating to London itself and how cinema shapes our view of the city. Covering the periods of the Victorian era via the swinging 60s through to the post 7/7 atmosphere of modern day London and seen through the eyes of the full range of communities that have been portrayed onscreen World Film Locations: London will illuminate all corners of this richly diverse and cinematically fertile city.

World Film Locations: London (ISBN 9781841504841)
will be published on 12th September 2011.

Order your copy through the following links:

Intellect Publishing

Amazon.co.uk