Immoral Tales

Immoral Tales surveys European exploitation cinema from 1956-1984, focusing on directors who combined elements of horror and eroticism. The book won the Bram Stoker Award for Best Non-Fiction in 1994 and remains a key text on this under-documented film movement. Authors Tohill and Tombs profile significant but often overlooked filmmakers including Jesús Franco, Jean Rollin, and Walerian Borowczyk. The text examines their careers, artistic approaches, and major works while placing them within the broader context of European cinema. The book covers the production circumstances, censorship battles, and distribution challenges these directors faced while working in a controversial genre. It includes rare photographs, detailed filmographies, and first-hand accounts from many of the key creative figures. This pioneering study challenges conventional film criticism by treating exploitation cinema as a legitimate artistic movement worthy of serious analysis. The authors argue these films, despite their transgressive content, often achieve a unique poetry through their exploration of sexuality, death, and social taboos.

Readers appreciate the depth of research and rare photos documenting European exploitation films from the 1960s-1980s. Multiple reviews note the book serves as a solid reference guide for discovering obscure titles. Likes: - Detailed director biographies and filmographies - Behind-the-scenes production information - Coverage of hard-to-find films - Quality of photo reproductions Dislikes: - Text can be academic and dry - Some find the material too explicit - Limited coverage of certain directors/regions - High price for a paperback Ratings: Goodreads: 4.17/5 (246 ratings) Amazon: 4.3/5 (21 ratings) One reader on Letterboxd called it "the definitive guide to European cult cinema." An Amazon reviewer noted it "fills gaps in film history other books ignore." Several Goodreads reviews mention using it as a checklist for tracking down rare films, though some found the writing style "pretentious" and "overly scholarly."

Killing for Culture by David Kerekes. A chronicle of death and transgression in cinema, focusing on snuff films, mondo documentaries, and extreme underground movies.

European Trash Cinema by Cathal Tohill and Pete Tombs. An investigation into exploitation films from Italy, France, and Spain, examining directors, movements, and production histories from the 1960s and 1970s.

Nightmare USA by Stephen Thrower. A comprehensive examination of independent regional horror filmmaking in America between 1970 and 1985.

Blood and Black Lace by Adrian Luther-Smith. A reference guide covering 200 giallo films from Italy's golden age of horror and thriller cinema.

Flowers of Perversion by Stephen Thrower. A detailed exploration of Jesus Franco's filmography, covering his transgressive works and underground cinema from 1960 to 1975.

🎬 Jean Rollin funded many of his vampire films by secretly directing adult movies under various pseudonyms to maintain his artistic career 📽️ The book shares its title with Walerian Borowczyk's controversial 1974 film anthology, which was initially banned in several countries 📚 Pete Tombs co-founded Mondo Macabro, a DVD label dedicated to releasing rare and obscure international cult films 🎥 Jesús Franco, one of the featured directors, made over 180 films during his career, sometimes completing up to 12 movies in a single year 🌍 The exploitation cinema movement gained particular momentum in Europe after the collapse of traditional studio systems in the 1960s, leading to more experimental and boundary-pushing filmmaking