SNUFF: REAL DEATH AND SCREEN MEDIA
The phenomenon of so-called 'snuff movies' (films that allegedly document real acts of murder, specifically designed to 'entertain' and sexually arouse the spectator) represents a fascinating socio-cultural paradox. At once unproven, yet accepted by many, as emblematic of the very worst extremes of pornography and horror, moral detractors have argued that the mere idea of snuff constitutes the logical (and terminal) extension of generic forms that are dependent primarily upon the excitement, stimulation and, ultimately, corruption of the senses. Snuff: Real Death and Screen Media brings together scholars from film and media studies to assess the longevity of one of screen media's most enduring cultural myths. Drawing on new research and theoretical perspectives, the contributions to this volume address areas ranging from exploitation movies, the video industry, trends in contemporary horror cinema, pornography and Web 2.0. Thorough, provocative, and well argued, Snuff: Real Death and Screen Media should appeal to anyone interested in this controversial cultural phenomenon.
Table of Contents
Foreword: A CULTURE OF CHANGE (DAVID KEREKES)
Introduction: SHOT, CUT AND SLAUGHTERED (NEIL JACKSON)
Introduction: SHOT, CUT AND SLAUGHTERED (NEIL JACKSON)
PART I: THE CHANGING MEANINGS OF “SNUFF”
Chapter 1: THE WAY TO DIGITAL DEATH (JULIAN PETLEY) Chapter 2: THE AFFECTIVE REALITY OF SNUFF (MISHA KAVKA) Chapter 3: ANIMAL SNUFF (SIMON HOBBS) Chapter 4: BREATHING NEW LIFE INTO OLD FEARS: EXTREME PORNOGRAPHY AND THE WIDER POLITICS OF SNUFF (CLARISSA SMITH) Chapter 5: FROM SNUFF TO THE SOUTH: THE GLOBAL RECEPTION OF CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST (NICOLÒ GALLIO AND XAVIER MENDIK) Chapter 6: A MURDER MYSTERY IN BLACK AND BLUE: THE MARKETING, DISTRIBUTION AND CULT MYTHOLOGY OF SNUFF IN THE UK (Mark McKENNA) Chapter 7: TRACES OF SNUFF: BLACK MARKETS, FAN SUBCULTURES AND UNDERGROUND HORROR IN THE 90s (JOHNNY WALKER) Chapter 8: SNUFF 2.0: REAL DEATH GOES HD READY (MARK ASTLEY) |
PART II: “SNUFF” ACROSS FILM AND TELEVISION
Chapter 9: UNFOUND FOOTAGE AND UNFOUNDED RUMOURS: THE MANSON FAMILY MURDERS AND THE PERSISTENCE OF SNUFF (MARK JONES AND GERRY CARLIN) Chapter 10: WILD EYES, DEAD LADIES: THE SNUFF FILMMAKER IN REALIST HORROR (NEIL JACKSON) Chapter 11: THE MEDIATION OF DEATH IN FICTIONAL SNUFF: REFLEXIVITY, VIEWER INTERPELLATION AND ETHICAL IMPLICATION (XAVIER ALDANA REYES) Chapter 12: “WHY WOULD YOU FILM IT?” SNUFF, SINISTER AND CONTEMPORARY US HORROR CINEMA (SHAUN KIMBER) Chapter 13: CINEMA AS SNUFF: FROM PRE-CINEMA TO SHADOW OF THE VAMPIRE (LINDA BADLEY) Chapter 14: AFFECT AND THE ETHICS OF SNUFF IN EXTREME ART CINEMA (TINA KENDALL) Chapter 15: A VIEW TO A KILL: PERSPECTIVES ON FAUX-SNUFF AND SELF (STEVE JONES) |