Film & Media
Royal Portraits in Hollywood Cover
Format: Hardback
Pages: 338
ISBN: 9780813125435
Pub Date: 26 Jun 2009
Illustrations: 19
Description:
Few lives provide as much history or drama as those of monarchs. Filmmakers from the silent era to onward have displayed a deep fascination with the lives of royalty and with queens in particular. Still, the question remains: what do these films really tell us about the women beneath the crowns?
Being Hal Ashby Cover Being Hal Ashby Cover
Format: 
Pages: 440
ISBN: 9780813125381
Pub Date: 17 Apr 2009
Series: Screen Classics
Illustrations: 47
Pages: 440
ISBN: 9780813134635
Pub Date: 01 Dec 2011
Series: Screen Classics
Illustrations: 47
Description:
Hal Ashby set the standard for subsequent independent filmmakers by crafting unique, thoughtful, and challenging films that continue to influence new generations of directors. Initially finding success as an editor, Ashby won an Academy Award for editing In the Heat of the Night (1967), and he translated his skills as an editor into a career as one of the quintessential directors of 1970s. Perhaps best remembered for the enduring cult classic Harold and Maude (1971), Ashby quickly became known for melding quirky comedy and intense drama with performances from A-list actors such as Jack Nicholson in The Last Detail (1973), Warren Beatty and Goldie Hawn in Shampoo (1975), Jon Voight and Jane Fonda in Coming Home (1978), and Peter Sellers and Shirley MacLaine in Being There (1979).
The Philosophy of The X-Files Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 314
ISBN: 9780813192277
Pub Date: 27 Mar 2009
Series: The Philosophy of Popular Culture
Illustrations: 0
Description:
In The Philosophy of The X-Files, Dean A. Kowalski has gathered a remarkable cast of contributors to shed light on the philosophical mysteries of the television show The X-Files. With sections devoted to the show's credos, such as "The Truth Is Out There," individual characters, and specific episodes, The Philosophy of The X-Files illuminates the philosophical assumptions and presuppositions of the show as well as presents discussions through the show to help the reader better understand philosophy and philosophical inquiry.
The Philosophy of Stanley Kubrick Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 288
ISBN: 9780813192208
Pub Date: 13 Feb 2009
Series: The Philosophy of Popular Culture
Description:
In The Philosophy of Stanley Kubrick, some of our most respected philosophers investigate Kubrick's art to illuminate his view of reality. In films like 2001: A Space Odyssey, Eyes Wide Shut, and Dr. Strangelove, Kubrick explores the world honestly, mirroring the vast complexity of the world of philosophy.
It’s the Pictures That Got Small Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 304
ISBN: 9780819568946
Pub Date: 06 Jan 2009
Illustrations: 41 illus.
Description:
The interplay between television and film in the 1950s transformed television production and programming, affected the careers of countless film actors, and challenged the traditional mechanisms of the Hollywood star system. In this groundbreaking study, Christine Becker asks why certain film stars, like Ronald Reagan and Ida Lupino, crossed over to television in this period while others did not, why some succeeded in the new medium and others failed, and how the presence of film stars shaped the nature of certain television genres. Using extensive primary source material and new archival research, It's the Pictures That Got Small argues that the early film-to-television crossover turned traditional myths of star-making inside out, fundamentally altering the standard workings of the Hollywood star system.
The Philosophy of the Coen Brothers Cover The Philosophy of the Coen Brothers Cover
Format: 
Pages: 304
ISBN: 9780813125268
Pub Date: 12 Dec 2008
Series: The Philosophy of Popular Culture
Illustrations: 0
Pages: 332
ISBN: 9780813134451
Pub Date: 30 Mar 2012
Series: The Philosophy of Popular Culture
Description:
Many critics agree that Joel and Ethan Coen are one of the most visionary and idiosyncratic filmmaking teams of the last three decades. Combining thoughtful eccentricity, wry humor, irony, and often brutal violence, the Coen brothers have crafted a style of filmmaking that pays tribute to classic American movie genres yet maintains a distinctly postmodern feel. Since arriving on the film scene, the Coens have amassed an impressive body of work that has garnered them critical acclaim and a devoted cult following.
Hollywood's West Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 392
ISBN: 9780813191966
Pub Date: 01 Dec 2008
Illustrations: photos
Description:
Hollywood's West examines popular perceptions of the frontier as a defining feature of American identity and history. Seventeen essays by prominent film scholars illuminate the allure of life on the edge of civilization and analyze how this region has been represented on big and small screens. Differing characterizations of the frontier in modern popular culture reveal numerous truths about American consciousness and provide insights into many classic Western films and television programs, from RKO's 1931 classic Cimarron to Turner Network Television's recent made-for-TV movies.
Thinking Outside the Box Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 376
ISBN: 9780813191942
Pub Date: 07 Nov 2008
Illustrations: photos
Description:
Thinking Outside the Box brings together some of the best and most challenging scholarship about TV genres, exploring their genesis, their functions and development, and the interaction of disparate genres. The authors argue that genre is a process rather than a static category and that it signifies much about the people who produce and watch the shows. In addition to considering traditional genres such as sitcoms, soap operas, and talk shows, the contributors explore new hybrids, including reality programs, teen-oriented science fiction, and quality dramas, and examine how many of these shows have taken on a global reach.
Hollywood Under Siege Cover
Format: Hardback
Pages: 408
ISBN: 9780813125176
Pub Date: 08 Aug 2008
Illustrations: 14
Description:
In the late 1980s, the major conservative Christian groups suffered a series of public setbacks. In Hollywood Under Siege: Martin Scorsese, the Religious Right, and the Culture Wars, Thomas R. Lindlof asserts that the Christian right realigned itself and tried to solidify its self-appointed role as moral regulator of the entertainment industry in response to Martin Scorsese's The Last Temptation of Christ.
Why We Fought Cover Why We Fought Cover
Format: 
Pages: 624
ISBN: 9780813124933
Pub Date: 25 Jul 2008
Series: Film and History
Illustrations: 143
Pages: 624
ISBN: 9780813191911
Pub Date: 25 Jul 2008
Series: Film and History
Illustrations: 143
Description:
This book makes a powerful case that film can be as valuable a tool as primary documents for improving our understanding of the causes and consequences of war. Why We Fought: America's Wars in Film and History is a comprehensive look at war films, from depictions of the American Revolution to portrayals of September 11 and its aftermath. The volume contrasts recognized history and historical fiction with the versions appearing on the big screen.
All-Stars and Movie Stars Cover
Format: Hardback
Pages: 328
ISBN: 9780813124483
Pub Date: 20 Jun 2008
Series: Film and History
Illustrations: 59
Description:
In addition to the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat, sports offer a versatile arena for discussion of class, race, gender, sexuality, and other social facets. All-Stars and Movie Stars: Sports in Film and History examines the interplay between sports films and the defining characteristics of the cultures from which they emerge. This important and unique collection will serve scholars of film, popular culture, and American history.
The Essential Science Fiction Television Reader Cover
Format: Hardback
Pages: 368
ISBN: 9780813124926
Pub Date: 02 May 2008
Series: Essential Readers in Contemporary Media and Culture
Illustrations: 43
Description:
Exploring early hits such as The Twilight Zone and Star Trek, as well as more recent successes such as Battlestar Galactica and Lost, The Essential Science Fiction Television Reader illuminates the history, narrative approaches, and themes of the genre. The book discusses science fiction television from its early years when shows attempted to recreate the allure of science fiction cinema, to its current status as a sophisticated genre with a popularity all its own. J.
Hollywood Ambitions Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 272
ISBN: 9780819568656
Pub Date: 31 Mar 2008
Illustrations: 25 illus.
Description:
Working with a varied and untraditional cast of characters-Wyatt Earp, Jack London, Clara Bow, Gertrude Stein, and Ida Lupino-author Marsha Orgeron examines the Hollywood ambitions of a fading western legend, a successful popular author, a poor Brooklyn girl turned flapper icon, a self-proclaimed avant-garde genius, and a frustrated actress on her way to becoming a director. Investigating their separate involvements with the expanding film industry, Orgeron illustrates the implications of film celebrity during the era in which cinema's impact was first felt. The aspirations of these individuals demonstrate the unifying role that the American motion picture capital played in shaping cultural notions of reputation, success, glamour, and visibility.
The Films of Samuel Fuller Cover
Format: Hardback
Pages: 264
ISBN: 9780819568663
Pub Date: 31 Mar 2008
Illustrations: 43 illus.
Description:
A cigar-chomping storyteller who signaled "Action!" by shooting a gun, Samuel Fuller has been lionized as one of the most distinctive writer/directors ever to emerge from Hollywood. In such films as The Steel Helmet, Pickup on South Street, Shock Corridor, and The Big Red One, Fuller gleefully challenged classical and generic norms-and often standards of good taste-in an effort to shock and arouse audiences.
Freedom of the Screen Cover
Format: Hardback
Pages: 384
ISBN: 9780813124513
Pub Date: 11 Jan 2008
Description:
Between 1907 and 1980, many state and local governments empowered motion picture censor boards with the legal authority to keep any movie they considered obscene, indecent, or harmful from being shown. Although the mainstream American film industry accepted the form of censorship known as "prior restraint," the independent distributors and exhibitors challenged the government censors in court. In Freedom of the Screen, Laura Wittern-Keller tells the story of those who fought prior restraint on movies.
The Philosophy of TV Noir Cover
Format: Hardback
Pages: 288
ISBN: 9780813124490
Pub Date: 04 Jan 2008
Series: The Philosophy of Popular Culture
Description:
The influence of classic film noir on the style and substance of television in the 1950s and 1960s has persisted to the present day. Its pervasiveness suggests the vitality of the noir depiction of human experience and the importance of TV for transmitting the legacy of film noir and producing new forms of noir. Noir television is also noteworthy for its capacity to raise philosophical questions about the nature of the human condition.