Description
Book SynopsisWith the exception of die-hard aficionados of European or Italian horror cinema, most people may not have heard of giallo cinema or have seen many films in this subgenre of horror. Most academic film studies tend to ignore horror cinema in general and the giallo specifically. Critics often deride these films, which reveal more about the reviewers'' own prejudices than any problem with the works themselves. As a counter to such biases, Mikel J. Koven argues for an alternative approach to studying these films, by approaching them as vernacular cinemadistinct from popular cinema. According to Koven, to look at a film from a vernacular perspective removes the assumptions about what constitutes a good film and how a particular film is in some way artistic. In La Dolce Morte: Vernacular Cinema and the Italian Giallo Film, Koven explores the history and evolution of this aspect of cinema, and places these films within the context of Italian popular filmmaking. He addresses various themes, mo
Trade Review...an interesting study of Giallo...a very detailed analysis of the main themes of the genre... * Killing In Style *
La Dolce Morte is an informed and engaging examination of neglected and marginalized films that purposely provokes readers to re-examine biases against the giallo. * Rue Morgue *
La Dolce Morte presents sound and interesting textual analysis of an impressive number of gialli. * Senses Of Cinema *
...this is a serious contribution to film studies. It opens a side of Italian cinema that is rarely studied. Recommended. * CHOICE, Vol. 44, No. 11 (July 2007) *
...a carefully constructed presentation and discussion of one of the most important phenomena in modern cinema. * Film Studies *
"Giallo," Italian for "yellow," is applied to a vernacular film genre (e.g., Sergio Martino's Torso, 1973) based on mystery novels with bright yellow covers that an Italian publisher has been producing since the 1920s. In the context of psychodynamics and Italian audiences, Koven (film and television studies, U. of Wales, Aberystwyth) explores themes including the outsider, sexually-driven murder, the amateur detective's role, and a view of these films from Pasolini's theory of a "cinema of poetry." He concludes that gialli, like other horror cinema, reflect modernity's ambivalence toward both traditional folk beliefs and science. * Reference and Research Book News *
Koven's study is highly detailed and wide ranging. Koven clearly adores his chosen subject and explores it with an eye to accessibility—he often writes wittily but always lucidly—and these are reasons why the book is so engaging. * Gothic Studies *
Koven's well-organized catalog of the subgenre's characteristics makes his book a valuable reference tool as well as an incisive critical study. * The American Society Of Cinematography *
Table of ContentsPart 1 Preface Part 2 Acknowledgments Chapter 3 1. What is Giallo? Chapter 4 2. Toward an Understanding of Vernacular Cinema Chapter 5 3. Space and Place in Italian Giallo Cinema: The Ambivalence of Modernity Chapter 6 4. Murder and Other Sexual Perversions Chapter 7 5. Watching the Detectives: Amateur Detectives and the Giallo as Detective Cinema Chapter 8 6. The Killer's Identity Chapter 9 7. "Weird Science of the Most Egregious Kind": The Ambivalence of Belief in the Giallo Film Part 10 8. "A Perverse Sublime": Excess and the Set Piece in the Giallo Part 11 9. The Giallo as Cinema of Poetry Part 12 10. From Giallo to Slasher Part 13 Filmography Part 14 Bibliography Part 15 Index Part 16 About the Author
