Description
Book SynopsisExamines the Italian films of the last two decades of the 20th century which managed to transcend the decline of Italian cinema's prominence within the industry. The author interprets, in detail, a body of work which established an independent profile for the Italian cinema of the 80s and 90s.
Trade ReviewDetailed and persuasive, this book makes an important contribution to the study of contemporary Italian film. Choice Marcus is always at her best in the description and analysis of the characters in the films she explores... The Italian cinema, in her master project, is a human comedy of characters. Typically she will tease out the intricate relationship, say, of the three brothers of Rosi's film to each other, to their parents, and to their wives and lovers. In doing so, she will invariably keep one eye on the cinematic deployment of shots and another on the nuances of difference the same characters present in a source text. -- P. Adams Sitney Cineaste Scholars of film as well as those who enjoy Italian cinema will welcome this fine survey by Marcus. Book News
Table of ContentsContents: Acknowledgments Introduction Looking Back 1 National Identity by Means of Montage in Roberto Rossellini's Paisan 2 Luchino Visconti's Bellissima: The Diva, the Mirror, and the Screen Italy by Displacement 3 Bernardo Bertolucci's The Last Emperor : Powerless in Peking 4 Mediterraneo and the "Minimal Utopias" of Gabriele Salvatores 5 From Salazar's Lisbon to Mussolini's Rome by Way of France in Roberto Faenza's Pereira Declares Family as Political Allegory 6 Francesco Rosi's Three Brothers: After the Diaspora 7 The Alternative Family of Ricky Tognazzi's La scorta 8 The Gaze of Innocence: Lost and Found in Gianni Amelio's Stolen Children Postmodernism; or, the Death of Cinema? 9 Ginger and Fred: Fellini after Fellini 10 Giuseppe Tornatore's Cinema Paradiso and the Art of Nostalgia 11 From Conscience to Hyperconsciousness in Maurizio Nichetti's The Icicle Thief 12 Postmodern Pastiche, the Sceneggiata, and the View of the Mafia from Below in Roberta Torre's To Die for Tano The Return of the Referent 13 Filming the Text of Witness: Francesco Rosi's The Truce 14 The Seriousness of Humor in Roberto Benigni's Life is Beautiful 15 Caro diaro and the Cinematic Body of Nanni Moretti Appendix: Plot Summaries and Credits Notes Bibliography Videography Index
