review for 100 Years of Horror on AllMovie

Although its disjointed jumps from one topic to another mark it as a hack job on a much longer work (the 13-episode horror series of the same name), 100 Years of Horror is one of the better feature-length documentaries on the subject simply because it covers so much ground. From the accidental origin of special effects just after the birth of film itself to behind-the-scenes footage of various creature-feature stars and insight into how the business side of things works, the documentary gives a thorough, if rambling, overview of horror films as both an art form and an industry. The film clips and trivia concentrate on the Universal monster classics of the '30s and '40s and the Hammer revival of the '50s and '60s -- perhaps because host/narrator Christopher Lee starred in so many of the latter films. However, the slasher films of the '70s and '80s and their European antecedents are also covered, as are the careers of such prestige directors as Alfred Hitchcock. Like the series itself, the segments here are devoted to individual themes in horror -- the mad scientist, the werewolf, the mummy, and the psychopath. Unfortunately, it appears that no new material was filmed to string these sequences together, resulting in a jumbled feel that detracts from the overall quality. Still, it's better to suffer from an overabundance of material than a dearth of it, as is the case in such likeminded efforts as Flixmix Vol. 1: Boogeymen. Real horror buffs, however, might want to seek out episodes of the original series rather than this abbreviated rush job.