In François Truffaut’s opinion The Innocents was ‘the best English film after Hitchcock goes to America’. Tennessee Williams said of The Great Gatsby: ‘a film whose artistry even surpassed the original novel’. The maker of both films was Jack Clayton, one of the finest English directors of the post-war era and perhaps best remembered for the trail-blazing Room at the Top which brought a new sexual frankness and social realism to the British screen. This is the first full-length critical study of Clayton's work. The author has been able to consult and quote from the director's own private papers which illuminate Clayton’s creative practices and artistic intentions. In addition to fresh analyses of the individual films, the book contains new material on Clayton's many unrealised projects and valuably includes his previously unpublished short story ‘The Enchantment’ – as poignant and revealing as the films themselves. This is a personal and fascinating account of the career and achievement of an important, much-loved director that should appeal to students and film enthusiasts.

Jack Clayton's gothic masterpiece The Innocents, though not a commercial success on its release in 1961, has been hailed as one of the greatest psychological thrillers of all time. Dividing reviewers with its ambiguous depiction of ghosts, the film ignited a debate about the aesthetics of horror which still rages today. In this stimulating introduction to The Innocents, Sir Christopher Frayling traces the film from its genesis in the original novel The Turn of The Screw by Henry James, via contemporary critical contexts and William Archibald's 1950 stage adaptation of the same name, to the screenplay by William Archibald, Truman Capote and John Mortimer. Drawing on unpublished material from Jack Clayton's archive – including Capote's handwritten drafts for the film – and interviews with Deborah Kerr, Freddie Francis, and John Mortimer, Frayling explores how this classic ghost story came to life on screen. This special edition features original cover artwork by Matthew Young.

THE MONORAILS OF MARS In the manner of a Hitchcock film, the suspense runs deep and the plot twists into the macabre and horrific. Who is controlling the finest minds of genius on two worlds? How will the invasion of Earth by Mars and of Mars by Earth bring about the desire of fanatics for Harm-aggedon? What is behind the collaboration of Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison to build an ""electric bridge""? Why are War Machines with Death Rays secretly manufactured by leading industrialists? Who is the mysterious Ada who has walked the Earth from the time of Noah? Why is a Las Vegas style religious theme park being built on Mars? How did the son of the Lord of Apes become involved? These and other suspense-filled puzzles are examined and solved in a delightful and humorous look at mind-control and religious delusion, in an old-fashioned pulp-style romp through the 20th century alternate history in Science-Fiction format! READ: THE MONORAILS OF MARS