Essential Cinema


Book Description

Succinct, lively, and affordable, ESSENTIAL CINEMA: AN INTRODUCTION TO FILM ANALYSIS vividly illustrates principles in action as it helps you develop effective skills in close analysis. The book is packed with frame captures you can readily relate to, and it also features interviews with film practitioners throughout, giving you insight into real-world practice. In addition, unique screening questions at the end of each chapter help you apply chapter concepts to any film you watch, while the running glossary and end-of-text illustrated glossary offer easy access to full explanations of concepts. This edition includes an updated card reflecting the new guidelines from the 2016 MLA HANDBOOK, Eighth Edition.




Essential Cinema


Book Description

A cogent and provocative argument about the art of film, Essential Cinema is a fiercely independent reference book of must-see movies for film lovers everywhere.




The New York Times Book of Movies


Book Description

A collection of reviews for the 1,000 most important, popular, and influential movies of all time. While critiques of beloved Hollywood milestones from Stanley Kubrick, Steven Spielberg, Alfred Hitchcock, and Orson Welles are all included, this book is notably a resource for the modern cinema buff and student. Nowhere else can one find this curated collection of reviews with such special features as lists of best films by category and year, as well as unique recommendations and sidebars for the modern viewer--including what to watch and how: from DVD and Blu-Ray to streaming platforms. In an era when most students and fans of film simply rely on the Internet for information, this category killer will prove its worth as a relevant and indispensable gift and reference.




Weimar Cinema


Book Description

In this comprehensive companion to Weimar cinema, chapters address the technological advancements of each film, their production and place within the larger history of German cinema, the style of the director, the actors and the rise of the German star, and the critical reception of the film.




Clint Eastwood: Icon


Book Description

Featuring rare, outstanding additional content, Clint Eastwood: Icon is the definitive collection of film art and material representing Clint Eastwood’s legendary career as seen through the original iconic artwork. Clint Eastwood is a nameless vigilante, a vengeful detective, a bare-knuckle boxer, a Secret Service agent, and countless other definitive screen archetypes now embedded in our shared pop-culture consciousness. However you define him, Clint Eastwood has a powerful and extremely recognizable image that exists as something beyond the narratives of his films. Featuring a wealth of additional content, this new edition of Clint Eastwood: Icon presents an unprecedented collection of film art and rare material surrounding the legendary actor. This comprehensive trove gathers together poster art, lobby cards, standees, Italian Spaghetti Western Premier posters, studio ads, and esoteric film memorabilia from around the world. From his early roles as the nameless gunslinger in Sergio Leone’s spaghetti Westerns, to the vigilante films of the 1970s and 1980s, through his directorial roles and latest releases, Clint Eastwood: Icon captures the powerful presence that turned Eastwood into the definitive American hero.




An Introduction to Film Analysis


Book Description

An Introduction to Film Analysis is designed to introduce students to filmmaking techniques while also providing an invaluable guide to film interpretation. It takes readers step by step through: -the basic technical terms -shot-by-shot analyses of film sequences -set design, composition, editing, camera work, post-production, art direction and more -each chapter provides clear examples and full colour images from classic as well as contemporary films Ryan and Lenos's updated edition introduces students to the different kinds of lenses and their effects, the multiple possibilities of lighting, and the way post-production modifies images through such processes as saturation and desaturation. Students will learn to ask why the camera is placed where it is, why an edit occurs where it does, or why the set is designed in a certain way. The second section of the book focuses on critical analysis, introducing students to the various approaches to film, from psychology to history, with new analysis on postcolonial, transnational and Affect Theory. New to this edition is a third section featuring several in-depth analyses of films to put into practice what comes before: The Birds, The Shining, Vagabond, In the Mood for Love, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead.




The Chinese Cinema Book


Book Description

This revised and updated new edition provides a comprehensive introduction to the history of cinema in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as to disaporic and transnational Chinese film-making, from the beginnings of cinema to the present day. Chapters by leading international scholars are grouped in thematic sections addressing key historical periods, film movements, genres, stars and auteurs, and the industrial and technological contexts of cinema in Greater China.




Fun City Cinema


Book Description

A visual history of 100 years of filmmaking in New York City, featuring exclusive interviews with NYC filmmakers Fun City Cinema gives readers an in-depth look at how the rise, fall, and resurrection of New York City was captured and chronicled in ten iconic Gotham films across ten decades: The Jazz Singer (1927), King Kong (1933), The Naked City (1948), Sweet Smell of Success (1957), Midnight Cowboy (1969), Taxi Driver (1976), Wall Street (1987), Kids (1995), 25th Hour (2002), and Frances Ha (2012). A visual history of a great American city in flux, Fun City Cinema reveals how these classic films and legendary filmmakers took their inspiration from New York City’s grittiness and splendor, creating what we can now view as “accidental documentaries” of the city’s modes and moods. In addition to the extensively researched and reported text, the book includes both historical photographs and production materials, as well as still-frames, behind-the-scenes photos, posters, and original interviews with Noah Baumbach, Larry Clark, Greta Gerwig, Walter Hill, Jerry Schatzberg, Martin Scorsese, Susan Seidelman, Oliver Stone, and Jennifer Westfeldt. Extensive "Now Playing" sidebars spotlight a handful of each decade’s additional films of note.




500 Essential Cult Movies


Book Description

There are distinct qualities that make a movie a cult: a devoted and niche following, popularity based on word-of-mouth enthusiasm, and a tendency to remain in fans memories years after release, as well as many other intricacies, often hotly debated by film buffs. 500 Essential Cult Movies sifts through the greatest movies ever made, to bring together a list of the best cult classics that ever graced the cinema screens or didnt, in some cases! From Carpenter to Lucas, Cronenberg to Lynch, Scorsese to Spielberg the big names in cult are all there, as well as the more obscure films that may have sneaked below the radar. Sorted into chapters based on genre, this vast collection includes plot synopses, reviews and further viewing recommendations for each title. 500 Essential Cult Movies is a must-read for all film aficionados and aspiring buffs alike.




Blaxploitation Cinema


Book Description

Dazzling, highly stylised, excessively violent and brimming with sex, blaxploitation films enjoyed a brief but memorable moment in motion picture history. Never before, and never since, have so many African-American performers been featured in films, not in bit parts, but in name-above-the title starring roles. Here's a new and appreciative look back at a distinctly American motion picture phenomenon, the first truly comprehensive examination of the genre, its films, its trends and its far-reaching impact, covering more than 240 Blaxploitation films in detail. This is the primary reference book on the genre, covering not just the films' heyday (1971-1976) but the entire decade (1970-1980). Includes: film posters and ads