Combining historical narrative with close readings of several significant horror films, this brief volume offers a broad and lively introduction to cinematic horror. In doing so, it outlines and investigates important issues in the production, consumption, and cultural interpretation of the genre. * An ideal text for perennially popular courses on the horror film genre. * Examines the ways in which horror movies have been produced, received, and interpreted by filmmakers, audiences, and critics, from the 1920s to the present. * Provides a short historical introduction of the horror film as an orientation to the field. * Analyses a wide variety of major works in the genre, including Frankenstein, Cat People, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Halloween and Bram Stoker's Dracula.