Nightmare Fuel

The Science of Horror Films

By: Nina Nesseth

Narrated by: Raquel Beattie

Do you like scary movies? Have you ever wondered why?

In Nightmare Fuel, Nina Nesseth explores the strange and often unexpected science of fear through the lenses of psychology and physiology. How do horror films get under our skin? And why do we keep coming back for more?

Horror films promise an experience: fear. But how exactly do filmmakers pull this off? The truth is, there's more to it than just loud noises and creepy images.

With the affection of a true horror fan and the critical analysis of a scientist, Nesseth explains how audiences engage horror with both their brains and bodies, and teases apart the elements that make horror films tick. Nightmare Fuel covers everything from jump scares to creature features, serial killers to the undead, and the fears that stick around to those that fade over time.

With in-depth discussions and spotlight features of some of horror's most popular films—from classics like The Exorcist to modern hits like Hereditary—and interviews with directors, film editors, composers, and horror academics, Nightmare Fuel is a deep dive into the science of fear, a celebration of the genre, and a survival guide for going to bed after the credits roll.

©2022 Nina Nesseth (P)2022 Tantor

A Definitive Look into the Genre

I live my life with nonstop horror. It definitely makes up a large portion of the media I consume and create, and I could gush endlessly about my love for it. This book continually raised new interesting ideas about the genre and why people love it, helping to answer burning questions I have had for years. I could not recommend more.

Robotic narrator

The book was interesting if a little too detailed and scientific. However, something felt really off with the narration. Their voice was nice… but felt almost like an AI book reader app. It was exhausting to listen to at any rate, every line cannot be intense, thrilling and captivating. Like writing in ALL CAPS.

Science + Horror = Intrigued

I know the title of the book is “the science of horror movies” but I wasn’t expecting it to go that in depth on the anatomy of the brain. Thankfully that was mostly just in the first section where it was heavily talked about. As the book progressed, it covers more of the “anatomy” of horror, which I loved. The sounds. The settings. The characters. And how it all works together to create the fear response in your body.

But yeah, as the book went on, I really started to dig the scientific approach and the dissection of certain horror movies and sub-genres.

This ended up being an enjoyable read. I appreciated that it wasn’t just another tread of the usual horror movie critiques and interpretations.

I rarely read nonfiction but when I do it’s usually about film history, or about the history of horror. So this was a satisfying combo.

oh i get it now!

an amazing and educational romp through what and why horror scares us! LGBT related. super great and fantastic listen. narrator in point!!!

Surface Level Political Propaganda

It's just the author's politcal views disguised as objective information about the genre. The bias combines with a slow, plodding prose style to make for a difficult listen/read.