1970-1979

1970: A more permissive society and a tired formula encourages Hammer to make The Vampire Lovers an out and out erotic exploitation film with lesbian vampires and lots more nudity.

1971: Hammer releases an exploitation movie not linked to vampirism Dr Jekyll and Sister Hyde.

1972: Cushing and Lee star in Hammers Dracula AD 1972. In an attempt to appeal to younger audiences the setting is updated, teenagers become the main characters and the film is filled with psychedelic rock music. Inspired by The Virgin Spring (1960) and the violent footage of the war in Vietnam director Wes Craven and producer Sean S. Cunningham release Last House on the Left. This rape revenge movie is extremely controversial for it’s graphic scenes of torture and rape juxtaposed with central actor David Hess’s acoustic score. Craven expresses that the film is an attempt to replicate the real life violence playing out in Vietnam. The film is cut and banned in some countries notably in the UK where the BBFC refuses it a certificate.

1973: William Friedkin’s The Exorcist is released. This terrifying classic breaks new ground with it’s graphic portrayal of a child possessed by a demon and frank use of four letter words. Rumours abound of supernatural happenings on set and bad luck besetting cast and crew members and a horror movie legend is born. The film also benefits from an iconic soundtrack by Mike Oldfield. Hammer releases it’s final Frankenstein movie Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell. It is also Terence Fisher’s last film for the studio. British studio British Lion shoots The Wicker Man, however by the time that it is due for release EMI have bought the company out and want to disown the film. It is heavily cut and released as a B movie double bill with fellow British Horror Don’t Look Now. Despite the studios scorn and the fact that sections of the film are thrown in as landfill under a British motorway, The Wicker Man will go on to become a a cult classic and will eventually be hailed as one of the greatest British films of all time.

1974: Hammer merges it’s Dracula cycle with the popular martial arts movies of the seventies and releases The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires. In the US Tobe Hooper releases The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The film is pilloried for it’s graphic depictions of violence and gore and is ultimately banned in a number of countries. Following the pattern of many ‘slasher’ movies of the seventies, the film will become a franchise and spawn a number of sequels. Along with Last House on the Left the film is credited with bringing a new sense of realism to screen violence.

1975: US withdraws from Vietnam. Sony launches its Betamax home video system enabling people to record and watch tapes on their own televisions, the video age has begun. Steven Spielberg releases Jaws. It becomes a worldwide phenomenon. The story of a series of shark attacks on Amity Island will inspire a number of sequels but with its memorable score by John Williams and incredible performances from its cast none will be as successful as the first. In an echo of Karloff’s Frankenstein (1931) the film breaks a taboo in a scene where the shark eats a little boy. Canadian Filmmaker David Cronenberg releases Shivers and his sub-genre of body horror is born. His films will continually explore peoples fear of infection, infestation and bodily change.

1976: JVC launches it’s VHS or Video Home System to rival Sony’s Betamax the two formats will battle each other for market supremacy for the next few years. The first release of a pre-recorded film is a 1972 Korean movie called The Young Teacher. Hammers final horror film is released, Christopher Lee stars in To the Devil a Daughter an adaptation of Dennis Wheatley’s novel and Hammer’s entry to the current spate of films involving children and the occult. Another film released this year that is US made but set in England is The Omen. Directed by Richard Donner and with a memorable Oscar winning score by Jerry Goldsmith, the story follows the early childhood of Damien Thorn, the Antichrist. Like The Exorcist before it rumours abound of bad luck and tragedy besetting the cast and crew. These rumours will persist and the film will pass into screen history and urban myth. It will also spawn two less successful sequels. Stephen King’s novel Carrie is another entry in the ‘demonic child’ cycle of films. Sissy Spacek wins an Oscar for her portrayal of the telekinetic teenager and Brian De Palma directs.

1977: Wes Craven releases The Hills Have Eyes a film about a family of cannibals inspired by the real life Scottish story of Sawney Bean. David Cronenberg releases Rabid.

1978: The ‘slasher’ returns. Drawing inspiration from Hitchcocks’s Psycho (1960) John Carpenter releases Halloween. Like so many films before it since Universal’ s classic monsters the film spawns a franchise. Sequel after sequel will be released and Michael Myers becomes the latest recurring screen monster. Day of the Woman (more famously known by it’s later title I Spit on Your Grave) is the latest rape revenge movie to be released. It is banned in many countries. George Romero releases Dawn of The Dead. This time Tom Savini who has returned from Vietnam is onboard to do special effects and make-up. The action is moved from a house as in Night (1968) to a shopping centre and becomes a critique of American consumerism. Romero’s shambling, flesh-eating zombies and Savini’s bright red stage blood become a trademarks of the film. Italian filmmaker Dario Argento helps secure the money for this US/Italian co production.

1979: Abel Ferrara releases Driller Killer while Italian director Lucio Fulci unleashes Zombie Flesh Eaters his unofficial sequel to Romero’s Dawn of the Dead (1978). In the US Ridley Scott releases the influential Alien. In many ways the film harks back to the sci-fi horror of the fifties but also incorporates many of David Cronenberg’s themes of ‘body horror’. H. R. Giger’s stunning bio sets and an Alien bursting from John Hurt’s chest make this film a memorable entry into both sub genres.