The Films of Woody Allen (Cambridge Film Classics) [Paperback]

Sam B. Girgus (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521389992 | ISBN-13: 978-0521389990 | Publication Date: January 29, 1993

The Films of Woody Allen is the first full-length study of Woody Allen the artist as opposed to the celebrity and personality and argues that Allen is a major artistic force. On the cutting edge of contemporary critical and cultural consciousness, Allen challenges our notions of authorship, narrative, perspective, character, theme, ideology, gender and sexuality. A student and admirer of the classic Hollywood cinema, Allen combines this appreciation for American directors with a developed sensitivity to experimental European directors such as Fellini, De Sica and Bergman. Probably the most widely recognized aspect of his work involves his films that experiment with narrative, plot and psychology. In the films dating from the early seventies, Allen develops into one of America's great innovative directors as he takes his brilliant comic impulses seriously. His technical, literary, visual and linguistic innovations introduce intensity and complexity to his humour. Instead of continuing on the path of zany comedy, he carefully creates films that form an original union of the serious and comic.

Editorial Reviews

Book Description

The first full-length study of Woody Allen the artist as opposed to the celebrity and personality. It argues that Allen is on the cutting edge of contemporary critical and cultural consciousness.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (January 29, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521389992
• ISBN-13: 978-0521389990
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,529,753 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Boring!, May 3, 2004

By 

anja (US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Films of Woody Allen (Cambridge Film Classics) (Paperback)

I expected an intelligent and interesting interpretation of Allen's major movies, but I got some highbrow gibberish instead. The author starts by talking about Allen's life (a short overview would in my opinion be enough) and then goes on to "interpret" his movies. In the first place, he quotes too much and commentates the statements that other critics have given about Allen's movies (he obviously lacks fresh and original ideas)... To make a long story short, it's an extremely boring book about an extremely funny and amusing subject.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Save your time and money, July 6, 2007

By 

C. E. Bowen (Georgia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Films of Woody Allen (Cambridge Film Classics) (Hardcover)

Sam Girgus sounds like a college professor trying to impress some freshmen students. He has no idea how to make a interesting subject interesting to read about. Don't waste your money on this garbage.

1.0 out of 5 stars Dulllll - and wrong, November 11, 2011

By 

D. Shanahan (Prague) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Films of Woody Allen (Cambridge Film Classics) (Hardcover)

The other reviewers have pointed out the obvious. This is a book steeped in monstrously convoluted post-modernist analysis. But the simple truth is that it's hard to take any book seriously that starts out with a bald mistake. Girgus says that "Play It Again, Sam" starts out in a New York cinema - when the whole film takes place in San Francisco, with shots of the Golden Gate, an apartment on Telegraph Hill, a cancelled dinner in Sausalito, and a weekend at Point Reyes. Girgus, of course, is from New York . . . sigh.