Reanimated: The Contemporary American Horror Remake

Abstract

Explores American horror remakes produced since 2000 within key cultural, industry and reception contexts Analyses remaking as a form of adaptation and offers new theoretical frameworks for understanding remakes and their prominence in contemporary film productionSituates horror remakes within their own industrial, cultural and genre contexts rather than solely comparing them to original versionsCase study analyses of a range of key films, distinct cycles, production companies, and thematic approachesReanimated offers a new perspective on twenty-first century American horror film remakes. Counter to the critical dismissal of genre remakes as derivative rip-offs, Mee approaches the films as intertextual adaptations which have both drawn from and helped to shape horror since 2000. Covering films from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) to Candyman (2021), and identifying distinct cycles, production strategies and patterns of reception, this book illustrates the importance of the remake to contemporary horror cinema and addresses key cultural, industry and reception contexts. Rather than representing the death of horror, Reanimated argues that remaking instead demonstrates the genre’s capacity for creative recycling, adaptation and evolution.