Mario Bava: The Artisan as Italian Horror Auteur

by Leon Hunt, Austin Fisher (Editor), Johnny Walker (Editor)

Overview

How do we approach a figure like Mario Bava, a once obscure figure promoted to cult status? This book takes a new look at Italy's 'maestro of horror' but also uses his films to address a broader set of concerns. What issues do his films raise for film authorship, given that several of them were released in different versions and his contributions to others were not always credited? How might he be understood in relation to genre, one of which he is sometimes credited with having pioneered?

This volume addresses these questions through a thorough analysis of Bava's shifting reputation as a stylist and genre pioneer and also discusses the formal and narrative properties of a filmography marked by an emphasis on spectacle and atmosphere over narrative coherence and the ways in which his lauded cinematic style intersects with different production contexts. Featuring new analysis of cult classics like Kill, Baby … Kill (1966) and Five Dolls for an August Moon (1970), Mario Bava: The Artisan as Italian Horror Auteur sheds light on a body of films that were designed to be ephemeral but continue to fascinate us today.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781501390852
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	09/21/2023
Series:	Global Exploitation Cinemas
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Austin Fisher is Associate Professor of Popular Culture at Bournemouth University, UK, author of Radical Frontiers in the Spaghetti Western (2011), founding co—editor of the “Global Exploitation Cinemas” book series and editor of Spaghetti Westerns at the Crossroads (2015). He serves on the Editorial Board of the Transnational Cinemas journal, is Co—Chair of the SCMS “Transnational Cinemas” Scholarly Interest Group, and founder of the “Spaghetti Cinema” festival.

Johnny Walker is Associate Professor in the Department of Arts at Northumbria University, UK. He is the author of Contemporary British Horror Cinema: Industry, Genre and Society (2015) and founding co—editor of the Global Exploitation Cinemas book series (Bloomsbury).

Table of Contents

1. Between Expendability and Connoisseurship — Situating Bava
2. Artisan or Auteur — Bava and Authorship
3. Navigating filoni— From Sword and Sandal to il gotico italiano
4. Giallo all'italiana — Bava and the 'Italian style' Thriller
5. The poetics of 'Serie B' Cinema — Bava and Film Style
6. 'Grande stronzate'? — Reception and Reputation
8. Conclusion
Bibliography
Index

Editorial Reviews

[A] meticulously researched new book on the Italian filmmaker … an excellent way to develop an even deeper appreciation of his work.” —Cinema Retro Magazine

“Leon Hunt's Mario Bava: The Artisan as Italian Auteur is a thorough exploration of a director whose cult status has grown in recent times. Hunt explores several themes in this book, including the relation between Bava's work and genre cinema, his status as an artisan—auteur and the broader critical reception of his work. Written in an accessible style, this book is essential reading for those interested in Italian genre cinema, cult cinema and authorship and film.” —Jamie Sexton, Senior Lecturer in Film and Television Studies, Northumbria University, UK

“Leon Hunt's Mario Bava: The Artisan as Italian Horror Auteur masterfully asks and answers perennially important questions in relation to the study of the auteur and film: how can we approach a filmmaker like Bava whose achievements are often compromised by their production circumstances, and what issues do his films raise with regards to cultural value?” —Dolores Tierney, Head of Film Studies at the University of Sussex, UK and co—editor of Latsploitation, Exploitation Cinemas and Latin America

From the Publisher