Perry Kate Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Cleveronix A different way of telling a story

Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Rosie Searle It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

bean-d This is a good documentary but not great. I wish the film had been organized according to chronological order, discussing the relationship between the history of the 1960s and '70s and numerous horror films. What we get,unfortunately, is a discussion with a few directors and a few select horror films ("Night of the Living Dead," "Shivers," "Last House on the Left," "Dawn of the Dead," "Halloween"). Those horror films are related to the decades in question, but I never felt as if we went beyond a surface exploration. I will admit, however, that I have read numerous books on horror film, so most 90-minute docs aren't going to be able to encapsulate my breadth of knowledge. However, if you're a horror fan, you'll probably enjoy this.

Superunknovvn At last there's a documentary that goes to the core of horror movies and analyzes them properly. Unlike "Stephen King's World Of Horror" or "Going To Pieces" where we would just hear certain people commenting on infamous scenes, saying how much the movie "rocked", "The American Nightmare" takes a closer look at the origin of some of America's most legendary horror movies.Unfortunately, the inaccurate title might lead you to believe that this documentary actually tries to give you an overview of all the important American horror movies, which is not the case. Instead six different movies that where released between 1968 and 1978 have been picked (namely "Night Of The Living Dead", "The Last House On The Left", "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre", "Dawn Of The Dead", "Shivers" and "Halloween") and commented on. George A. Romero, Wes Craven, Tobe Hooper, David Cronenberg, John Carpenter, Tom Savini and some bystanders (John Landis as well as various university professors) get to analyze the social movements that influenced those movies. It's a pretty interesting viewing, but at the same time it's frustrating that only so few movies are dealt with. Where is "The Shining"? What about "The Exorcist"? I know these movies appear in every other horror documentary anyway, but I feel like the makers of this one might actually have had something new and informative to say about those films.Before watching one has to be aware of the fact that "The American Nightmare" is not so much a documentary about movie making itself, but about the connection between social circumstances and the movies. You won't hear anything about box office results or merchandise in this film, but you'll get some explanations of why certain things were put on celluloid and what they really mean beyond the obvious. Some theories seem a little far fetched, others aren't too mind-blowing or new, but all in all this documentary is the most insightful I've seen on the subject so far.Now, to correct that little flaw, which is the movie's very limited running time (only 70 minutes), bring on a sequel, which includes "A Nightmare On Elm Street" and all the other great American horror movies that have seemingly been forgotten this time around.

pizowell This documentary is an absolute treasure for any true horror film buff. Containing insightful interviews from film philosophers and sociologists analyzing films and the circumstances and reflections of the times in which they were made along with detailed and compelling interviews with such pioneering genre filmmakers as Tobe Hooper, Wes Craven, David Cronenberg, George A. Romero, John Carpenter and others. The interview with Tom Savini in which he recalls gruesome instances from his tour in Vietnam is riveting, adding to the overall bleakness of the piece. Fascinating, thoughtful, chilling and ultimately unforgettable. I applaud director Adam Simon for assembling the components to pull off this highly analytical serenade to the most profound and influential horror films and filmmakers and his ability to do so with integrity and intelligence and an obvious love for the genre. Extra kudos for the Godspeed You Black Emperor soundtrack. Brilliant.

chris miller i think this documentary may have been the inspiration for danny boyle to use godspeed you black emperor! in "28 days later..." godspeed are used fairly judiciously in this film and "sad mafioso" is used during the clips of "dawn of the dead" which is the heaviest influence on "28 days later..." all that aside...the documentary covers six major horror films (night of the living dead, last house on the left, dawn of the dead, shivers, halloween, and texas chainsaw massacre) of the 60s and 70s. more than just rehashing them or talking about their influence on the genre, the film talks to the filmmakers about their influences and spends a good deal of time examining the cultural climate in which these films took place. everything from the cold war to civil rights to the sexual revolution to vietnam to the gas crisis is discussed by the filmmakers as the climate that facilitated these films. unlike "visions of light" which gave a fairly clinical view of cinematography's art and history, American Nightmare demonstrates a certain intimacy and love of the subject. visions of light certainly had interviewees who showed an immense passion for the subject, but the film itself did not exude that same passion. part of the way american nightmare does this is through its soundtrack (epically scored by godspeed you black emperor! and Karlheinz Stockhausen) and its ambitious style of cutting in source material with voice-overs. it's a good film and, like stone reader or visions of light, does a really good job of getting the audience into the material. after watching this i wanted to break out all my horror films and watch them on end. it's able to do this because the film itself is passionate about the subject, the interviewees are passionate, and the information relayed to the viewer is interesting, funny, moving and intelligent. B+.