Snuff

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Snuff (1976) occupies a unique place in cinematic history as the first commercially successful film to capitalise upon the myth of the 'Snuff' movie. When savvy producer Allan Shackleton's resurrected a long-forgotten exploitation film and added a bloody, if unconvincing conclusion, he consolidated the belief that somewhere, at some time, someone was killed on camera in an attack that was as much about the sexual gratification of the film's intended audience, as it was about the commercial rewards for those producing the film. In the years since its release, the film has been routinely cited as 'evidence' of the existence of the snuff movie, contributing to a cultural history that exists far beyond the film. This book explores the production, distribution and exhibition of the film Snuff, and considers it alongside that cultural history, exploring the ways in which a scarcely seen exploitation film contributed to a popular understanding of the snuff movie