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Film and the American Left A Research Guide
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M. Keith Booker
Book Code: GR0980
ISBN: 0-313-30980-9
ISBN-13: 978-0-313-30980-9
440 pages
Greenwood Press
Publication: 9/30/1999
List Price: $138.95 (UK Sterling Price: £80.00)
Availability: In Stock
Media Type: Hardcover
Also Available: Ebook
Trim Size: 6 1/8 x 9 1/4
Subjects: Reviews:
  • The bibliography is a rich source for further reading. The discussions in the summaries are exceptionally refreshing, offering information and points of reflection not readily more traditional sources. For all readerships.
    —Choice
  • This volume delivers on its promise to serve as a "useful starting point for students and scholars interested in the cultural production of the American Left."
    —Science & Society     Fall 2002
  • This volume is recommended for performing arts, popular culture, and U.S. history collections.
    —American Reference Books Annual
  • Thoroughly examines leftist elements in 260 American Films.
    —C&RL News
Description: The American Left has produced a rich and varied cultural tradition that was largely suppressed during the Cold War but whose influence on the larger society has always been significant. Much of this tradition found its expression in film and despite the suppression of overtly leftist content in most Hollywood films, there is still a substantial amount of leftist material in American movies. Booker's study gives the attention to the films of the American Left that they have long deserved by examining the full range of their history. Such well known directors as Charlie Chaplin, Orson Welles, William Wellman, Fritz Lang, John Huston, Stanley Kubrick, Oliver Stone, and John Sayles often showed leftist inclinations in their work. Other films associated with the American Left have been produced in a number of modes and subgenres, including war films, historical films, detective films, and science fiction. Some of these directors have offered overt criticisms of capitalism in films dealing with labor and business. This reference book thoroughly explores leftist elements in American films. The book begins with a brief historical survey of the development of this important cultural phenomenon. It then provides detailed entries for more than 260 films associated with the American Left. The entries are arranged chronologically, so that the reader may trace the cinematic representation of the American Left across time. The entries include not only plot summaries, but also critical examinations of the political content and implications of the films. Included are discussions of such classic works as Citizen Kane and The Grapes of Wrath, along with considerations of more recent films, such as Apocalypse Now, Taxi Driver, and Men with Guns. Two appendixes and index provide alphabetical access to the entries. The individual entries provide brief bibliographical citations, while the volume closes with a bibliography.
Table of Contents:
  • Preface
  • Summaries of Selected Films
  • Appendix 1: Films Listed Alphabetically by Title
  • Appendix 2: Films Listed Alphabetically by Director
  • Works Cited
  • Index
LC Card Number: 99-11268
LCC Class: PN1995
Dewey Class: 791
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