Horror to the Extreme

This book compares production and consumption of Asian horror cinemas in different national contexts and their multidirectional dialogues with Hollywood and neighboring Asian cultures. Individual essays highlight common themes including technology, digital media, adolescent audience sensibilities, transnational co-productions, pan-Asian marketing techniques, and variations on good vs. evil evident in many Asian horror films. Contributors include Kevin Heffernan, Adam Knee, Chi-Yun Shin, Chika Kinoshita, Robert Cagle, Emilie Yeh Yueh-yu, Neda Ng Hei-tung, Hyun-suk Seo, Kyung Hyun Kim, and Robert Hyland.

Jinhee Choi is a lecturer of film studies at the University of Kent. Mitsuyo Wada-Marciano is an assistant professor of film studies at Carleton University.

“From The Ring to The Host and beyond, Asian horror has become a regional brand with global reach. Yet, this culturally and commercially significant phenomenon has been conspicuously neglected—until now. Horror to the Extreme is the book we’ve all been waiting for. Focusing heavily on Japanese and Korean films, but extending to Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, it follows the contours of the hit genre and examines it from a variety of angles, making this an ideal book for newcomers and connoisseurs alike.” —Chris Berry, Goldsmiths, University of London