THE CINEMA OF FRANCE

An in-depth look at some of the best and most influential French films of all time, The Cinema of France contains 24 essays, each on an individual film. The book features works from the silent period and Poetic Realism, through the stylistic developments of the New Wave, and up to more contemporary challenging films, from directors such as Abel Gance, Jean Renoir, Marcel Carné, François Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, Alain Resnais, Agnès Varda and Luc Besson. Set in chronological order, The Cinema of France includes in-depth studies of films such as Un Chien Andalou (1929), Les Vacances de Monsieur Hulot (1953), Le Samouraï (1967), Shoah (1985), Jean de Florette (1986), Les Visiteurs (1993) and La Haine (1995).

February 2006
288 pages

978-1-904764-46-5 (pbk)	£18.99	£16.14 with 15% online discount - add to basket
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Phil Powrie is Professor of French Cultural Studies at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. He has published widely on French film, notably French Cinema in the 1980s: Nostalgia and the Crisis of Masculinity (1997), Contemporary French Cinema: Continuity and Difference (1999) and French Cinema: A Student’s Guide (2002).

‘The experienced researcher will enjoy the original observations and fruitful close readings, and the new film student will naturally benefit from the clarity and accessibility of the commentaries… [Tutors] should be delighted by this book’s rewarding content and ensure that it is an essential text on reading lists for both French and film students…for years to come.’
– Catherine O’Brien, French Studies

‘Ultimately the value of this book lies in its range and diversity, not just in terms of films but of approaches (aesthetic, literary, political, sociological, gender). The individual chapters are differently rewarding, but the volume as a whole will appeal to anyone interested in French cinema.'
– Ginette Vincendeau, Sight and Sound

‘Ranging from the pioneering (Un Chien Andalou), to New Wave classics (A bout de souffle, The 400 Blows) and home-grown hits (Three Men and a Cradle), the choice of films is spot-on, ultimately providing an excellent primer for student and fan alike.' 
– Empire ****

'The Cinema of France is a crucial addition to the 24 Frames series in its focus on one of the most historically important and consistently influential of world cinemas. What a pleasure to encounter a collection of essays of such uniformly high quality and with equal appeal to scholars and students alike; indeed, this volume of sophisticated, well-researched, engaging, and yet accessible essays is likely to become required reading in film courses. Combining close analysis of a significant number of individual texts with careful consideration of their various historical, socio-cultural, and aesthetic contexts, this work admirably illustrates the continued importance of talking about cinema in specifically national terms.'
– Carolyn A. Durham, The College of Wooster 

'Phil Powrie has brought together a wide range of internationally distinguished scholars in this attractively-presented volume, providing lucid and accessible introductions to major French films spanning almost seventy years. Wallflower Press are to be congratulated on their enterprising series, which bids fair to become the first port of call for students –undergraduate and postgraduate - of the key European national cinemas.'
– Keith Reader, Glasgow University