You're Next! Loss of Identity in the Horror Film, (Paperback)

Fear of the dark, fear of death, fear of the unknown and the unseen. Commentators have analyzed at length these terrors of the psyche and how they figure prominently in the horror film. But one particular fear, one particular fate worse than death, which manifests itself time and again, has rarely been discussed in detail or depth.

Loss of identity, submergence of self, death of the soul under various names and in various guises befalls individuals trapped in a horror/s.f./fantasy universe. This encyclopedic examination of the ways in which this fundamental terror is visited upon people in the movies-and what it does to them-offers a new perspective on and greater understanding of the films that employ it and may perhaps lead to a deeper appreciation of what it means to be human and why losing that defining aspect of our lives is so profoundly frightening.

In essays of 200-1,000 words, 17 contributors analyze 201 well-known films (from Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to Zombies on Broadway, with stops along the way at movies like Dracula, The Exorcist, Horror of Dracula, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Matrix, Night of the Living Dead, Psycho, Star Wars, and 196 more) in 320 pages with 206 illustrations.