Stacey Abbott Bücher

First released in 1987, Near Dark is a vampire film set in the contemporary American Midwest that tells the story of Caleb, a half-vampire trying to decide whether to embrace his vampire nature or return to his human family. The film, an early work of the now-established director Kathryn Bigelow, skilfully mixes genre conventions, combining gothic tropes with those of the Western, road movie and film noir, while also introducing elements of the outlaw romance genre.Stacey Abbott's study of the film addresses it as a genre hybrid that also challenges conventions of the vampire film. The vampires are morally ambiguous and undermine the class structures that have historically defined stories of the undead. These are not aristocrats but instead they capture the allure and horror of the disenfranchised and the underclass.As Abbott describes, Near Dark was crucial in consolidating Bigelow's standing as a director of significance at an early point in her career, not simply because of her visual art background, but because of the way in which she would from Near Dark onward re-envision other traditionally mainstream genres of filmmaking.

The book offers an in-depth analysis of the spin-off series Angel, highlighting its unique approach aimed at adult audiences. It explores how the creators, Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt, crafted a distinct identity for the show, diverging from the formula of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Stacey Abbott examines the complexities and creative innovations that set Angel apart, fostering a dedicated fanbase despite its lesser popularity. The study reveals the show's depth and the intentional choices made to develop its narrative and themes.

Challenges the conventional interpretation of vampire mythology and argues that the medium of film has reinvented the vampire archetype. This book traces the evolution of the American vampire film, arguing that vampires are more than just blood-drinking monsters; they reflect the cultural and social climate of the societies that produce them.

Exploring how the figure of the vampire has been infused with the language of science, disease and apocalypse, while the zombie text has increasingly been influenced by the trope of the 'reluctant' vampire, Stacey Abbott shows how both archetypes are actually two sides of the same undead coin.