The Films of Tod Browning

a Black Dog Publishing
The Films of Tod Browning
Editor: Bernd Herzogenrath
Contributors:Robin Blyn,
Stefan Brandt, Nicole Brenez,
Elisabeth Bronfen, Alec
Charles, Stefanie Diekmann
and Ekkehard Knörer,
Leger Grindon, Boris Henry,
Vivian Sobchack, Matthew
Solomon, Matthew Sweney
ISBN10: 1 904772 51 X
ISBN13: 978 1 904772 51 4
Paperback
352 pages
320 b/w and colour ills
25 × 18 cm
Pub date: Aug 2006
£29.95
Category Film
l Known as the ‘Edgar Allen Poe of cinema’, Tod Browning is the dark
master of filmmaking, whose works include such classics as Freaks,
Mark of the Vampire and Dracula.
l The Films of Tod Browning pays tribute to his substantial legacy with
contributors from the fields of film studies, gender studies and disability
studies from universities all over the world.
l Leading theorists the world over look at all aspects of the auteur’s
films, analysing their sociological and psychological aspects, as well as
their cinematic language.
l Spanning numerous genres including romantic comedy, horror and
melodrama, Tod Browning’s influences have been far reaching, and fans
include David Lynch and Tim Burton.
l Rich illustrations including publicity shots, film stills and promotional
material make this an accessible publication.
l The Films of Tod Browning is an essential for film buffs and academics
alike.
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Black Dog Publishing Limited
Unit 4.04 Tea Building, 56 Shoreditch High Street, London, E1 6JJ
www.bdpworld.com
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a
Description
Tod Browning was an American actor and director whose career spanned the silent and talkie eras.
He joined a traveling circus while still a teenager, performing as a clown and contortionist. In 1915 he
made his debut as an actor in DW Griffith’s classic Intolerance. Browning began directing in 1917,
frequently co-writing his films.
His first film with actor Lon Chaney, The Unholy Three, was a hit and led to several memorable silent
melodramas, including The Unknown, London After Midnight (which Browning remade in 1935 as Mark
Of The Vampire), and West Of Zanzibar. By the 1930s Browning was specialising in horror, and directed
two classics of the era: Dracula with Bela Lugosi, and the astounding Freaks. The latter, a shocker set
among the freaks of a traveling sideshow, was far too disturbing for its time and was quickly yanked
from theaters; only in the 1960s did the film come to be hailed as a masterpiece. Browning retired after
directing Miracles for Sale (1939); however, as with Freaks, the ground-breaking significance of his
work only started to be recognised decades later.
Known as the ‘Edgar Allen Poe of cinema’, Tod Browning is truly the dark master of filmmaking.
However, despite the commercial success he enjoyed during his lifetime, he has never received the
critical acclaim his work deserves.
Studying under the great master, DW Griffiths, Browning employed a unique cinematic style, involving
cross-cutting between scenes, dark noir-ish shadows, and macabre subject matter. Best known for his
films Freaks, The Unknown, Mark of the Vampire, The Devil Doll and Dracula, his dark, gothic style has
influenced such filmmakers as Sam Raimi, David Lynch and Tim Burton.
This book at last pays tribute to Browning’s cinematic legacy. The contributors include academics
from the fields of film studies, gender studies and disability studies from universities the world over.
“The Monstrous Body Politic of Freaks”, “The Film Historian as Archaeologist”, “Theatrical Illusion and
Browning’s films of the 1920s” and “Cultural Alterity and Sexual Desire in Where East is East”, are just
some of the essays by contributors including Matthew Sweney, Vivian Sobchack and Alec Charles.
It is a definitive academic text on Tod Browning’s singularly complex body of work, and looks at the
entire pantheon of the director’s films, analysing his choice of subject matter and cinematic approaches.
In a similar vein to Black Dog Publishing’s previous success, For Ever Godard, the book is packaged
in colourful, richly illustrated format. Film stills, publicity shots and promotional material will exemplify
the various points made in the essays, and will give the book a level of accessibility that is not usually
achieved in academic publications.
The Films of Tod Browning is a long overdue consideration of this influential auteur, and is an essential
for film buffs and academics alike.
Architecture Art Design Fashion History Photography Theory and Things
Black Dog Publishing Limited
Unit 4.04 Tea Building, 56 Shoreditch High Street, London, E1 6JJ
www.bdpworld.com