Roman Polanski (Contemporary Film Directors) [Paperback]

James Morrison (Author)

Book Description

Series: Contemporary Film Directors | Publication Date: July 2, 2007

A new take on an eclectic and controversial director

James Morrison's Roman Polanski offers one of the most comprehensive and critically engaged treatments ever written on Polanski's work. Tracing the filmmaker's remarkably diverse career from its beginnings to the present, the book provides commentary on all the major films in their historical, cultural, social, and artistic contexts. By locating Polanski's work within the genres of comedy and melodrama, Morrison argues that the director is not merely obsessed with the theme of repression, but that his true interest is in the concrete--what is out in the open--and in why it is so rarely seen.

A volume in the series Contemporary Film Directors, edited by James Naremore

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Polanski first drew critical note with such early-1960s arthouse fare as Knife in the Water and Repulsion. He found greater fame later with Rosemary's Baby and Chinatown, which Morrison says rounded out the first era of his career. The second, in the 1970s and 1980s, mirrored the second phase of the art films that followed the French New Wave. The third, post-Hollywood phase consists of international coproductions reflecting the director's self-imposed exile from the U.S. after his conviction for statutory rape. Although widely typed as a horror director, Polanski is, Morrison shows, drawn more frequently to comedy and melodrama, albeit in a "post-generic" fashion. Most recently, Polanski's work has ranged from the roundly derided horror-movie pastiche The Ninth Gate to the serious Holocaust film The Pianist, with which he made a resounding commercial and critical comeback. The dizzying ups and downs of Polanski's career, Morrison observes, are representative of the vagaries of international cinema during the past half century. Flagg, Gordon --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"The dizzying ups and downs of Polanski's career, Morrison observes, are representative of the vagaries of international cinema during the past half century."--Booklist

"A valuable addition to the already substantial field of Polanski studies. It is insightful and richly informative not only about Polanski's trailblazing, difficult-to-classify films, but also the cultural context of the past few decades."-Times Literary Supplement

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: University of Illinois Press (July 2, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0252074467
• ISBN-13: 978-0252074462
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #696,107 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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