Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film (2006)

A documentary on the history of the slasher film.

Writers:

J. Albert Bell, Rachel Belofsky,

Stars:

Ed Green, John Carpenter, Wes Craven

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ed Green	...	Narrator (voice)
John Carpenter	...	Himself
Wes Craven	...	Himself
Herb Freed	...	Himself
Stan Winston	...	Himself
Tom Savini	...	Himself
John Dunning	...	Himself
Joseph Stefano	...	Himself
Jeff Katz	...	Himself
Debra Hill	...	Herself (archive footage)
Malek Akkad	...	Himself
Gregory Nicotero	...	Himself (as Greg Nicotero)
Amy Holden Jones	...	Herself (as Amy Holden-Jones)
Rob Zombie	...	Himself
Anthony Timpone	...	Himself (as Tony Timpone)

Storyline

This historical and critical look at slasher films, which includes dozens of clips, begins with "Halloween," "Friday the 13th," and "Prom Night." The films' directors, writers, producers, and special effects creators comment on the films' making and success. During the Reagan years, the films get gorier, budgets get smaller, and their appeal wanes. Then, "Nightmare on Elm Street" revives the genre. Jump to the late 90s, when "Scream" brings humor and TV stars into the mix. Although some criticize the genre as misogynistic (Siskel and Ebert), most of the talking heads celebrate the films: as long as there are teenagers, there will be slasher films, says one.

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Plot Keywords:

film director | film making | producer | director | writer | 

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Genres:

Documentary

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 October 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Slasher-filmien nousu ja tuho

Company Credits

Production Co:

Starz Entertainment, thinkfilm, Candy Heart Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min 88 min (European Film Market)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Crazy Credits

Joseph Stefano, in loving memory

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Connections

References Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)

User Reviews

What a newbie thinks.

I was raised on Dracula and Frankenstein, and was living in Europe during the rise and fall of the slasher film. I have not seen most of the films mentioned in this film.

However, I was pleased at the presentation and now have a sense of history as to how the slashers came into being, the influences of Italian directors like Bava and Argento, the importance of the makeup and special effects guys, and the guttural significance of slasher films.

It was extremely interesting to see the directors and producers and actors and how they felt about the work they had done and were doing. I was also excited to see people like George Clooney, Jamie Lee Curtis, Cary Elwes, Robert Englund, Sid Haig, Heather Langenkamp, Dina Meyer, Bill Moseley, and many more in clips from their performances.

Of course, I am always happy to see Christa Campbell.