Christianity has had a powerful influence on every sphere of Western art, even art which on the surface might seem antithetical to the faith. This book argues that point with an analysis of the horror film genre, examining nine classics which illustrate the evolution of horror and reveal a culture haunted by fear of the unspeakable. The history and literary roots of the horror genre are also discussed. The author concludes that our innate dread of evil and the imperative of warding it off are the key mechanics of the horror experience. Films covered include Vampyr (1932), The Mummy (1932), The Thing (1951), Night of the Demon (1957), The Wicker Man (1973), The Exorcist (1973), Halloween (1978), Ringu (1998) and Pan's Labyrinth (2006).

From Vietnam to Desert Storm and the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq, the soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines of America have gone into harm's way to defend and protect the United States. Vietnam and Other Heartaches provides a stark picture of what they must endure in the hell on earth that is combat.Author Peter C. Fraser is a Green Beret and a proud American who volunteered for military service in 1965, serving in Vietnam for two years. The poems featured in Vietnam and Other Heartaches include original verse Fraser composed while he was in Vietnam. Some of the poems were written after his service ended in Vietnam and during a career that spanned thirty years of service. This included deployment in Desert Storm in 1991 and in support of operations in Central America. His writing during from his service gives the reader a unique insight into the lasting horror and stress of overseas combat.Fraser's poetry offers a startling insight into the reality of war and artfully expresses what American soldiers have faced in the past and in the present. Vietnam and Other Heartaches serve as a reminder to all Americans to remember and respect the brave young men and women serving their country.

Although wielding huge influence in late Victorian and Edwardian political life, Reginald Baliol Brett (1852 1930), the second Lord Esher was, an enigma to his contemporaries and still remains a puzzle to historians.At the heart of British and Imperial political affairs for several decades, Esher sat in both Houses of Parliament, was a high ranking civil servant, friend and confidential advisor to three Sovereigns and four Prime Ministers (of differing political hues) and yet refused high office offered by both Liberals and Conservatives. Yet his behind-the-scenes influence through his range of friends in high places gave him unmatched, some thought undemocratic, power. Despite his lack of military service he was instrumental through his work on the Committee for Imperial Defence (CID) and its Secretarial for the wholesale reorganisation of the Armed Forces. It could be said that Esher, with his grasp of power without responsibility, was a unique phenomenon in British history.The Author, while compiling this fascinating study, drew on Cabinet and CID files, the Royal Archives and the papers of the Esher, Balfour, Asquith and Lloyd George estates. The result is a brilliant readable yet scholarly addition to British political bibliography.

The Christian faith has had a powerful impact on every sphere of art in the West. While the Church, particularly in the United States in the 20th Century, cautions against the potential dangers of film as a corrosive influence on society, films emerge which are recognized as masterpieces of Christian art. In this original new book, Peter Fraser analyzes "sacramental" films, where the narrative has been disrupted and redeemed by a divine presence, in an analogy to Christian liturgical and devotional patterns. This presence transforms the film's narrative into the most recognizable of all Christian narrative patterns: the Passion. Fraser examines the films which best portray Christ's Passion, and he provides a theoretical discussion of this unique and neglected genre of filmmaking. Chapters offer a close reading of important films with spiritual content, including On the Waterfront, Diary of a Country Priest, Hardcore, The Mission, Andrej Rublev, Black Robe, You Only Live Once, and Rome, Open City. Fraser concludes with a chapter on the development of the Biblical epic. Most reading for students and scholars interested in the confluence of popular studies and film with modern expressions of religion.

Edited by Michael Mack.