Monsters are nothing new to cinema but when writer/director
Clive Barker concocted his twisted fantasy about the creatures and monsters of
Midian in his second feature Nightbreed audiences would experience a whole new world
of the fantastic like never before seen.
In the book Clive Barker’s
Nightbreed Chronicles Barker and co-authors Murray Close (photographer) and
Stephen Jones (editor) have brought the monsters from the film into the pages
of this book where the reader gets to know a little bit about all the
characters of the film many of which were only glimpsed at in the theatrical
version (as it has become public knowledge that there was much of the film left
on the cutting room floor).
A brief look at the film Nightbreed
in which a race of monsters, known as the Breed, who have lived in secret for
centuries find their lives uprooted when a stranger by the name of Boone
(played by Craig Sheffer) finds his way to their sanctuary called Midian. His presence in Midian disrupts the lives of
the Breed and threatens their very existence when the local police catch wind
of them hiding out and decide to destroy each and every one of them. Now Boone must decide how he can help The
Breed whose lives he has put in jeopardy while also trying to maintain a life
with his girlfriend who is not part of The Breed.
There are many art books out there from Clive Barker
showcasing his artwork and paintings but this is one of the few showcasing his
work in film especially in terms of the creatures that populate the film and give
a purpose to the background of the characters which is either lacking in the
film or unnecessary (especially in terms of all the background characters in
the film that are touched upon in this book).
Barker gives a brief Introduction to the book before getting into what
the fans or the film and the readers of the book really want which is more info
on the monsters.
Barker gives a brief background to the creatures of Midian
in many cases explaining how they came to find themselves in this world. This is the most interesting part of the book
since Barker is known for populating the worlds of his books with many
characters from many different backgrounds and this film is no different. Close provides a plethora of photos of each
of the monsters in the book both production stills from the film and photos
crafted specifically for the book so there is plenty here that has not been
seen in other books or publication.
Overall, fans of Barker’s will want to add this book to their collection
like so many of his other great books.
No comments:
Post a Comment