"A sorely-needed and comprehensive audit of twentieth-century trans film history... a deeply engrossing, thoughtful, and often recuperative examination of transness in film."
"A thoughtful, revelatory, and rewarding read from two of the most essential critics working today."
"As timely as it is vigorous, brave, and intelligent... Gardner and Maclay have written one of the most important - and exciting - works of long-form film criticism of this century thus far."
"Gardner and Maclay reach into the guts of the trans film image, into the disreputable world of mondo movies, into unfortunate prestige pictures and forgotten radical Cinema verite and bring all of it to a present moment teeming with possibilities.Thisis an untold history treated with wit and intelligence and a humane, searching tone."
"A superb work of film history...lively and thoroughly researched, a treasury of astute film criticism, and a portrayal of the highways and byways of trans (legal; medical; political) that is both engaged and dispassionate. A definitive treatment of the subject."
"An invaluable tour through the history of trans images on film, ranging from international and underground landmarks, to Oscar winners and beyond. The perfect gift for your well-meaning cis cinephile friends who have a lot to learn."
"An instant classic in the field of queer film studies... Gardner and Maclay illuminate the diverse and complex ways that the medium has charted the history of their community over the past century, carefully analyzing a wide range of Hollywood movies as well as films that deserve to be much more widely known."
"Traversing carnival sideshows, secret mountain communes, defunct medical facilities, lush European teahouses, and blockbuster cyberpunk simulations, Corpses, Fools, and Monsters is a crucial resource for the modern filmgoer, highlighting the importance of archival care and intergenerational dialogue in the trans community."
"Well-researched and endlessly readable, Caden Mark Gardner and Willow Maclayhave created something crucial for our times that will no doubt become one of the classic texts of cinema history and criticism."
"A powerful intervention to the often fraught concept of representation, one that shines through its nuanced and thoughtful prose. Moving, invigorating, and readable. I devoured it with immense joy."
"Corpses, Fools and Monstersis the work of passionate movie-lovers renegotiating their own bad romance."
"Abenchmark in queer cinematic writing.I leftCorpses, Fools, and Monstersboth enlightened and optimistic about the trans film imageand about the future of film criticism in general."
"Mixing tender and rigorous research into a largely hidden archive with lyrical and polemical close readings of everything from silents to slashers, this wonderful book excavates the history of the moving image to discover its potential future."
