The American Nightmare - A Celebration of Films from Hollywood's Golden Age of Fright (2000)
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67% of critics liked it
(6 reviews) -
73% of users liked it
(2,556 ratings)
In the late '60s, the tone of American horror films began to shift in the wake of the startling success of George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead -- horror films became gorier, bleaker, and began to subtly reflect the political and social upheaval gripping the country. Through the… More In the late '60s, the tone of American horror films began to shift in the wake of the startling success of George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead -- horror films became gorier, bleaker, and began to subtly reflect the political and social upheaval gripping the country. Through the '70s and '80s, films like Last House on the Left, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Halloween held a distorted mirror up to American culture, reflecting its fear and chaos in the wake of Vietnam and Watergate. The American Nightmare is a documentary that looks at the transgressive horror films of the '60s and '70s and the people who made them. Directors Wes Craven, Tobe Hooper, and David Cronenberg, special effects man Tom Savini, and film critics Tom Gunning and Adam Lowenstein are among those interviewed by director Adam Simon. The American Nightmare was produced for the premium cable outlet The Independent Film Channel. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Directed By
- Adam Simon
- Written By
- Adam Simon
- Genres
- Documentary, Television, Horror, Musical & Performing Arts
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Feb 9, 2001 Limited
- On DVD
- Mar 30, 2004
- Studio
- Minerva Pictures
Critic Reviews
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Brian Mckay, eFilmCritic.com
Although several segments will appeal to horror aficionados, it often feels like a political statement couched in a format that will appeal to the blood and popcorn crowd.
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Rob Nelson, City Pages, Minneapolis/St. Paul
We've never had American horror as we did in the decade between Night of the Living Dead and Halloween (1978), no doubt because we've never had American history like that.
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