Description
Book SynopsisLuchino Visconti (1906-1976) was one of Europe's most prestigious filmmakers, who rose to prominence as part of the Italian neo-realist movement, alongside contemporaries Vittorio De Sica and Roberto Rossellini. Famous for his elegant lifestyle, as friend of Jean Renoir and Coco Chanel amongst others, his vibrant technicolour dramas are also known for their decadence and stunning display of aesthetic mastery and sensory pleasure.Looking beyond this colourful façade, however, Resina explores the philosophical implications of decadence with a particular focus on three films from the late phase in Visconti's production,
Damned (1969),
Death in Venice (1971), and
Ludwig (1972). From the incestuous relationship between decadence and power to decadence as an outcome of straining toward formal perfection, Resina uncovers the unity and philosophical cohesiveness of these films that deal with different subjects and historical periods.Reading these films and their decadence
Trade ReviewAn original, productive approach to a major filmmaker with unmistakable philosophical relevance, makes a major contribution not just to the study of Visconti’s legacy but to the exploration of the dialogue between film, history and philosophy. * Antonio Monegal, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain *
A wonderful book of oxymoric strenghts: provocative, yet made to become a standard work; lucid in its analytic abstraction, yet palpably concrete; aesthetic, yet political; historical, yet for our times. * Jan Söffner, Professor and Chair in Cultural Theory and Analysis, Zeppelin University Friedrichshafen, Germany *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgements Introduction 1.
Ludwig 2. Death in Venice 3. The Damned Conclusion
Bibliography Index
